2019 Awards Updates

November 1, 2019 by Scott Farrell, CollegePressBox.com

NOTE: CollegeFootballPoll.com's Dave Congrove has a vote in many of these awards, and is a member of the nominating committee for several more.

Bednarik Award – Nation’s defensive player of the year (Next key date: Finalists named Mon., Nov. 25) - The Bendarik Award announced its 20 semifinalists on Tuesday hailing from 17 different schools in six conferences led by six from the SEC. Here’s the list: http://bit.ly/2C0QXIC. Chase Young of Ohio State (#2, Jr., Upper Marlboro, Md.), one of the semifinalists, was the award’s Player of the Week after he recorded six total tackles with five tackles for loss, four sacks and two forced fumbles in the Buckeyes’ 38-7 win over Wisconsin.

Biletnikoff Award – Nation’s outstanding receiver regardless of position (Next key date: Semifinalists announced Mon., Nov. 18) - The Tallahassee Quarterback Club announced four additions to its Watch List this week. Washington State’s Brandon Arconado (#19, Gr., Chino Hills, Calif.) has 39 catches for 591 yards and four TD’s, averaging 15.2 yards-per-catch. Colorado State’s Warren Jackson (#9, Jr., Mission Hills, Calif.) is in the nation’s top three in receptions (8.2 per game) and yards per game (119.8) despite missing two games; he leads the Mountain West with 29 catches of 10 yards or longer. Indiana’s Whop Philyor (#1, Jr., Tampa, Fla.) is tops in the Big Ten with 57 receptions (tied for 6th nationally), 737 yards, 7.1 yards per catch (9th) and 92.1 yards per game and is the only FBS player to have three double-digit reception games. Tulsa’s Keylon Stokes (#2, Jr., Manvel, Texas) leads Tulsa with 44 receptions for 695 yards with four TD’s.

Bronko Nagurski Trophy – Nation’s top defensive player (Next key date: Finalists named Wed., Nov. 20) - Chase Young tied Ohio State’s school record for sacks and tackles for loss in the Buckeyes’ dominating 38-7 win over Wisconsin to earn the trophy’s Player of the Week Award. The linebacker was a terror against Badgers ball carriers with two forced fumbles and a career-high six solo tackles. Young (#2, Jr., Upper Marlboro, Md.) recorded four sacks and five tackles for loss as Ohio State.

Burlsworth Trophy – Most outstanding player who began his career as a walk-on (Next key date: Semifinalists named Tue., Nov. 12) - The NCFAA announced this week that the Burlsworth Trophy is officially its newest member. The Burlsworth Trophy is named in honor of Arkansas Razorback All-American Brandon Burlsworth, who came to the University of Arkansas as a walk-on in 1994 and completed his college career as a two-time all-conference player and a first team All-American.

Butkus Award – Nation’s best linebacker (Next key date: Semifinalists named Mon., Nov. 4) - The top 15 players on the national total tackles list are all LB’s and four of them hail from the MAC. Western Michigan’s Treshaun Hayward (#23, Jr., Ypsilanti, Mich.) is one of two players to have more than 100 tackles (106; Cal’s Evan Weaver leads the nation at 127) and has posted double-digit tackles in seven of the last eight games. Akron’s John Lako (#40, Sr., Monroe, Mich.) is third nationally with 97 tackles and 18th in solo tackles (5.6 per game). Bowling Green’s Brandon Perce (#1, Sr., West Allis, Wis.) is tied for eighth with 81 tackles, and Ball State’s Jacob White (#2, Sr., Clarendon Hills, Ill.) is 14th with 78. Central Michigan’s Troy Brown (#8, So., Flint, Mich.) is tied for sixth in the nation with 51 solo tackles.

Davey O’Brien Award – Nation’s best quarterback (Next key date: Semifinalists named Wed., Nov. 13) - Texas A&M’s Kellen Mond passed for three TD’s and ran for two more as the Aggies beat Mississippi State, 49-30. It was the 12th time that Mond (#11, Jr., San Antonio, Texas) has scored rushing and passing in the same game, the most of any SEC quarterback at his current school. Carter Stanley (#9, Sr., Vero Beach, Fla.) led Kansas to its first Big 12 win with a season-high 415 yards and three TD’s against Texas Tech. KU was 7-for-10 on third down in the second half, all on Stanley throws, including 65- and 70-yard TD passes. TCU freshman Max Duggan (#15, Council Bluffs, Iowa) was the award’s National QB of the Week winner after his career-best 273 yards and two TD’s (with 72 rush yards) vs. Texas.

Doak Walker Award – Nation’s premier running back (Next key date: Semifinalists named Wed., Nov. 20) - Two of the country’s notable rushing efforts last week came from the AAC. Navy (6-1) stayed in contention in the AAC West Division with a 41-38 win over Tulane behind Jamale Carothers (#34, So., Bowling Green, Ky.), who had 154 yards and scored all four of Navy’s offensive touchdowns with three runs of 52, 35 and 15 yards and a 31-yard catch. UConn’s Kevin Mensah (#34, Jr., Worcester, Mass.) rushed for 164 yards and a career-high five touchdowns — the most by an FBS player this season — in UConn’s 56-35 win at UMass. He is the first UConn player with five rushing TDs in a game since 1993. Navy and UConn play tonight on ESPN2.

Heisman Trophy – Nation’s most outstanding player (Next key date: Finalists announced. Dec. 9) - Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence (#16, So., Cartersville, Ga.) completed 16-of-19 passes for 275 yards and three touchdowns in the Tigers’ 59-7 win over Boston College. He has thrown a TD pass in 18 consecutive games and that was his third straight game with three TD passes. He is guiding an offense that has produced at least 550 yards in three straight games for the first time since 2013 and scored 45 points in three consecutive games for the first time since 2012.

John Mackey Award – Nation’s most outstanding tight end (Next key date: Semifinalists announced Mon., Nov. 18) - Penn State tight end Pat Freiermuth (#87, So., Merrimac, Mass.) earned the Tight End of the Week Award after catching a career-high three touchdowns in a 28-7 win at Michigan State. Freiermuth became the first tight end in school history to have at least three touchdown receptions in a game. His seven touchdowns this season are the most in FBS among tight ends and he has a catch in 20 consecutive games.

Lou Groza Award – Nation’s top placekicker (Next key date: Semifinalists announced Thu., Nov. 7) - Three kickers were honored as Stars of the Week. Oklahoma’s Gabe Brkic (#47, Fr., Chardon, Ohio) was the first Sooner to kick four field goals in a game since 2011, hitting all four chances to extend his perfect streak to 10-for-10 this season. San Jose State’s Matt Mercurio (#39, Fr., Salinas, Calif.) also nailed four field goals and has made his last 10. Marshall’s Justin Rohrwasser (#16, Sr., Clifton Park, N.Y.) kicked career-long field goals twice last week, including a 53-yarder as time expired to give Marshall a 26-23 win over WKU.

Maxwell Award – Nation’s player of the year (Next key date: Finalists named Mon., Nov. 25) - The Maxwell Award announced its 20 semifinalists on Tuesday hailing from 17 different schools in six conferences. The list of semifinalists can be found here: http://bit.ly/2C0QXIC. The 2018 Maxwell Award winner, Tua Tagovailoa of Alabama, leads an impressive list of semifinalist returnees that includes Justin Herbert (Oregon), Jonathan Taylor (Wisconsin), Zack Moss (Utah), AJ Dillon (Boston College) and Travis Etienne (Clemson). Kansas State quarterback Skylar Thompson (#10, Jr., Independence, Mo.) earned the award’s Player of the Week nod following a 48-41 win over Oklahoma. Thompson rushed for four TD’s and threw for 213 yards.

Outland Trophy presented by NFID – Nation’s most outstanding interior lineman (Next key date: Semifinalists named Wed., Nov. 20) - Utah posted its first shutout in a Pac-12 game since joining the conference in 2011, 35-0 over Cal. The Utes held Cal to 43 plays and 83 total yards led in part by defensive tackle Leki Fotu (#99, Sr., West Valley City, Utah), who finished the game with three tackles with 1.5 tackles for loss and a sack. Utah has posted two shutouts in a season (Cal, Idaho State) for the first time since 2003. North Carolina defensive tackle Jason Strowbridge (#55, Sr., Deerfield, Fla.) had a career-high 10 tackles in a 20-17 win over Duke to go with 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks, a forced fumble and a recovery. Strowbridge leads UNC with three fumble recoveries and has 5.5 TFLs and 2.0 sacks.

Paul Hornung Award – Most versatile player in college football (Next key date: Finalists announced Thu., Nov. 14) - The award’s Honor Roll last week included: Cam Akers (#3, Jr., Clinton, Miss.) of Florida State, who rushed for 144 yards and four TD’s that tied the school record. He also completed two passes from the Wildcat formation and caught two passes in a 35-17 win over Syracuse. Kentucky WR/KR Lynn Bowden Jr. (#1, Jr., Youngstown, Ohio) subbed at quarterback and led a 29-7 win over Missouri, rushing for 204 yards and passing for 54 yards. Wesley Kennedy III (#12, Jr., Savannah, Ga.) of Georgia Southern amassed 222 all-purpose yards that included 123 rushing yards and a 67-yard punt return in a 41-7 win over New Mexico State. Kansas WR/KR Stephon Robinson (#5, Jr., Los Angeles, Calif.) had 294 all-purpose yards and two TD’s in a 37-34 win over Texas Tech, including 48- and 65-yard touchdown receptions. He also had four kick returns for 103 yards.

Paycom Jim Thorpe Award – Nation’s best defensive back (Next key date: Finalists named Mon., Nov. 25) - LSU safety JaCoby Stevens led the Tigers with 10 tackles in a 23-20 win over Auburn, LSU’s third win over a top 10 team this season. Stevens (#3, Jr., Murfreesboro, Tenn.) paced a defense that held Auburn to 130 rushing yards and 287 total yards. LSU’s defense forced six consecutive punts to help it rally from a 13-10 deficit. Stevens is second on the team with 49 tackles and two interceptions.

Ray Guy Award – Nation’s best punter (Next key date: Final candidates list announced Tue., Nov. 5) - Kentucky’s Max Duffy (#93, Jr., Perth, Australia) earned his second Punter of the Week honor after averaging 52.4 yards (gross and net) on five punts against Missouri. He also booted a career-long 70-yard punt. Note: Nomination forms for the award are due on Monday, Nov. 4.

Rimington Trophy – Nation’s premier center (Next key date: Finalists named Mon., Dec. 9) - Keith Ismael (#60, Jr., Oakland, Calif.) of San Diego State is the top-graded center in the Mountain West in the Pro Football Focus ratings and the third-highest rated center nationally. Ismael hasn’t allowed a sack or a QB hit and just four hurries on 244 pass blocks and his run-block grade (76.5) is fifth among all FBS centers. The Aztecs, fourth nationally in time of possession at 34:51, have run 573 plays with just three turnovers.

Walter Camp Award – Nation’s most outstanding player (Next key date: Semifinalists announced Thu., Nov. 21) - CJ Verdell rushed for 257 yards on 23 carries and scored three touchdowns to lead Oregon past Washington State. Verdell’s (#7, So., Chula Vista, Calif.) yardage was the fourth-highest total in Ducks history and included a career-long 89-yard touchdown run. He earned the award’s Player of the Week honor, the first Oregon player to win it since 2014. Ohio State linebacker Chase Young was the Defensive Player of the Week.

William V. Campbell Trophy – Nation’s premier scholar-athlete (Next key date: Winner announced Tue., Dec. 10) - The National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame announced the 12 finalists for the 2019 William V. Campbell Trophy Presented by Mazda on Wednesday, selected from a pool of 185 semifinalists from among all NCAA divisions and the NAIA. The 12 finalists are Spencer Blackburn (Eastern Washington), Rodrigo Blankenship (Georgia), Jordan Fuller (Ohio State), Alex Goetti (Minnesota State), Justin Herbert (Oregon), Adam Holtorf (Kansas State), Michael Lohmeier (Carnegie Mellon), Jordan Mack (Virginia), Dante Olson (Montana), Jelani Taylor (Cornell), Casey Toohill (Stanford) and Jon Wassink (Western Michigan). Full release on the finalists: http://bit.ly/336kpIV.

Wuerffel Trophy – Exemplary community service and academic achievement (Next key date: Semifinalists announced Tue., Nov. 25) - Friday at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, Fla., Danny Wuerffel will host the 9th Annual Desire Cup Golf Tournament benefitting Desire Street Ministries. Teams from Georgia and Florida go head-to-head in a Ryder Cup-type format on the golf course the day before the storied rivalry game in Jacksonville. The game matches two 2019 Wuerffel Trophy nominees in Florida WR Tyree Cleveland (#89, Sr., Houston, Texas) and Georgia K Rodrigo Blankenship (#98, Gr., Marietta, Ga.). – Compiled by Scott Farrell of collegepressbox.com The National College Football Awards Association encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football. Founded in 1997, the NCFAA and its 25 awards now boast over 800 recipients, dating to 1935.