The Willie Thrower Foundation has announced the five finalists for the 2021 Willie Thrower Award. The award, inaugurated last year, recognized the top quarterback among WPIAL and City League schools.

The finalists are (listed alphabetically): Brad Birch (Gateway); Jared Brickner (Beaver Falls); Joey Daniels (Mt. Lebanon); Cadin Olsen (Armstrong) and Devin Whitlock (Belle Vernon).

The five were chosen by a voting panel of coaches from each WPIAL conference, the City League and 20 media members representing the nine-county area of Southwestern Pennsylvania. The five finalists have been invited to a luncheon on April 9 in New Kensington, hometown of Thrower, the NFL’s first African-American quarterback.

The winner will receive a 29-pound, bronze replica of the Willie Thrower statue that sits at the Valley High School stadium entrance in New Kensington. The other four finalists will receive a glass momento commemorating their season.

Pine-Richland’s Cole Spencer was last year’s winner.

After helping lead New Kensington to WPIAL football titles in 1946 and ’47 – along with a runner-up to Donora in 1945 – Thrower went on to Michigan State where he was part of the Spartans 1952 national champion. He was drafted by the Bears and broke the color barrier for NFL signal-callers on Oct. 18, 1953, at Wrigley Field against the 49ers. After leaving the Bears, he played several seasons in the Canadian Football League.

The Thrower award replica was produced by 1979 Valley graduate Stephen Paulovich, who also produced the Thrower statue at his Louisville, Ky., studio.

A steering committee of businessmen, community activists and Thrower friends and relatives have guided the process.

The Thrower Award was the idea of Melvyn Smith, long-time New Kensington civic leader and friend of Thrower.

Thrower died on Feb. 20, 2002 in New Kensington at age 71.