As expected, Vikings receiver-kick returner Percy Harvin was named the Pepsi rookie of the year on Thursday during a press conference at the Super Bowl XLIV Media Center.
The prize was determined by fan voting. More than 1.59 million votes were cast, a significant increase from the 1.002 million ballots from a year ago.
Apparently, however, Harvin wasn’t present for the presentation. (We’re trying to confirm that.)
Two of the other finalists -- Bills safety Jairus Byrd and Packers linebacker Clay Matthews -- definitely didn’t attend the press conference.
Present for the session were Texans linebacker Brian Cushing and Ravens tackle Michael Oher.
Harvin previously was named the Associated Press offensive rookie of the year.
UPDATE: Nick Scurfield of HoustonTexans.com tells us that Harvin didn’t attend the press conference. The announced reason was “travel complications,” which could mean that he simply didn’t want to travel to Miami.