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(NOTE: In addition to numerous other awards, CollegeFootballPoll.com's Dave Congrove is a season-end voter for these awards in this article: Ray Guy, Bednarik, Maxwell, Lou Groza, Outland Trophy, Bronko Nagurski)
In no particular order, here are the Players of the Week, as well as semifinalist announcements from some of the committees.
The Maxwell Football Club announces that Georgia linebacker C.J. Allen has been named the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Week after a victory over No. 9 Ole Miss. In the 52-17 victory, the freshman collected 9 tackles, 4 solo and 5 assisted, and 1 sack for -7 yards. He led the Bulldogs defense in tackles, and helped clinch the SEC Eastern Division for the third year in a row. Georgia has extended their regular season win streak to 37, and are now 43-1 in their last 44 games. The Bulldogs will travel to take on No. 13 Tennessee next week.
Weekly Winners
Week 11: C.J. Allen, LB, Georgia
Week 10: Eugene Wilson, WR, Florida
Week 9: Kevin Concepcion, WR, NC State
Week 8: Reuben Bain Jr., DE, TCU
Week 7: Josh Hoover, QB, TCU
Week 6: Noah Fifita, QB, Arizona
Week 5: Caleb Downs, DB, Alabama
Week 4: Rocco Becht, QB, Iowa State
Week 3: Jordan Castell, S, Florida
Week 2: Anthony Hill, Jr., LB, Texas
Week 1: Dylan Edwards, RB, Colorado
The Augusta Sports Council and the Ray Guy Award announced the semifinalists for Punter of the Year.
Semifinalists
Alec Bevelhimer (Miami, O.)
Alex Mastromanno, Florida State
Austin McNamara, Texas Tech
Jack Bouwmeester, Utah
Jack Browning, San Diego State
James Burnip, Alabama
James Ferguson-Reynolds, Boise State
Matthew Hayball, Vanderbilt
Porter Wilson, Duke
Toyr Taylor, Iowa
Weekly Winners
Week 10: Porter Wilson, Duke
Week 9: James Ferguson-Reynolds, Boise State
Week 8: Tory Taylor, Iowa
Week 7: No announcement
Week 6: Austin McNamara, Texas Tech
Week 5: Oscar Chapman, Auburn
Week 4: Matt Hayball, Vanderbilt
Week 3: Tyler Perkins, Iowa State
Week 2: James Burnip, Alabama
Week 1: Ryan Rehkow, BYU
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (FWAA) – Five finalists for the 2023 Bronko Nagurski Trophy representing three different conferences plus Notre Dame, one of them from the top team in the current College Football Playoff rankings and one who has the sixth-most tackles in the FBS, were named Wednesday by the Football Writers Association of America and the Charlotte Touchdown Club as candidates for the award honoring the nation’s top defensive player.
Three members from the secondary, a linebacker and a defensive tackle compose the list. Three of the schools represented have had Bronko Nagurski Trophy winners in their past.
In alphabetical order, the finalists are Iowa cornerback Cooper DeJean, Illinois defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton, Georgia safety Malaki Starks, Notre Dame safety Xavier Watts and N.C. State linebacker Payton Wilson.
The Bronko Nagurski Trophy recipient will be chosen from these five finalists. The FWAA All-America Committee selects the defensive player of the year who is part of the 2023 FWAA All-America Team and presented with the trophy at the Bronko Nagurski Awards Banquet on Dec. 4 in Charlotte, N.C. where TCU head coach Sonny Dykes will be the keynote speaker.
Here is more information on the five Nagurski Trophy 2023 finalists:
Cooper DeJean, CB, Iowa (#3, 6-1, 207, Jr., Odebolt, Iowa): DeJean is one of the nation’s top cornerbacks and one of Iowa’s most experienced players. He has 41 tackles on the season, two interceptions and five pass breakups. The ball is not thrown to his side of the field often. DeJean had 10 tackles against Iowa State, a rarity for a corner, marking his third career 10-plus tackle effort. Iowa’s defense currently is third nationally, giving up 12.3 points per game, and has allowed only one touchdown over its last four games; it’s fresh off its first Big Ten shutout since 2019 following a 22-0 home win over Rutgers last week.
Iowa has never had a Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner but has two recent finalists in defensive tackle Daviyon Nixon in 2020 and linebacker Josey Jewell from 2017. Linebacker Pat Angerer was also a finalist in 2009.
Jer’Zhan Newton, DT, Illinois (#4, 6-2, 295, Jr., St. Petersburg, Fla.): A constant force in the middle of Illinois’ defense, Newton is the national leader in quarterback pressures among interior defensive linemen with 39 according to Pro Football Focus and leads all FBS defensive tackles in snaps played at 61.1 per game. He has two standout games with seven pressures against Wisconsin and six against then-No. 7 Penn State. Newton is sixth on Illinois’ season tackles chart with 42 and leads the Illini with 6.5 tackles for loss. He is also a special teams force with three blocked kicks this season, tied for the national lead.
Illinois has never had a Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner, but has had three previous finalists in defensive end Whitney Mercilus in 2011, linebacker Kevin Hardy in 1995 and linebacker Dana Howard in 1994.
Malaki Starks, S, Georgia (#24, 6-1, 205, So., Jefferson, Ga.): An imposing safety and one of the top underclassmen in the country, Starks lists fifth on the team with 33 tackles, ties for second with five pass breakups and has two interceptions. He has led the Bulldogs in tackles in two games this year against UT-Martin and Kentucky. Starks had 10 tackles against Tennessee last year, a career high, and faces the Vols again this weekend. Georgia, the top team in this week’s College Football Playoff rankings, is on a school record 27-game winning streak that is third in SEC history.
Georgia is well represented in Bronko Nagurski Trophy history. A fellow Bulldog defensive back, cornerback Champ Bailey, is the lone winner from 1998. But the Bulldogs have now had a finalist in three consecutive seasons and in five of the last six seasons (safety Chris Smith in 2022, defensive tackle Jordan Davis in 2021; safety J.R. Reed in 2019; linebacker Roquan Smith in 2017) and now nine finalists all-time. Eight of their nine finalists now have been in-state recruits.
Xavier Watts, S, Notre Dame (#0, 5-11, 204, Jr., Omaha, Neb.): A disrupter to opponents, Watts is the nation’s interceptions leader with seven, with five of them in the Irish’s last three games. He is the first Irish player to post multiple interceptions in consecutive games (vs. USC and Pitt) and the first FBS player to do it since 2020 – he was the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week following both wins. The USC game was a career highlight for him; in addition to seven tackles, Watts intercepted reigning Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams twice, forced a fumble and recovered another and returned it for a touchdown. His seven picks – half of the team’s 14 – have led directly to Notre Dame points in every occurrence totaling 41 points, or 11 percent of the Irish’s team scoring. He has 42 tackles, fourth at Notre Dame.
Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy in 2012. He is the Fighting Irish’s lone previous winner. Fellow linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah was a finalist for the award in 2020, as was cornerback Shane Walton in 2002.
Payton Wilson, LB, N.C. State (#11, 6-4, 238, Gr., Hillsborough, N.C.): Nicknamed by his head coach as a “wrecking ball,” Wilson leads the ACC and is fifth nationally with 11.2 tackles per game and has led the team in tackles in eight of NCSU’s 10 games. Wilson is 13th nationally in solo tackles and has 49 more tackles than any other Wolfpack player at 112 total, the highest mark by a Wolfpack player since 2012. N.C. State leads the ACC in scoring defense in league play at 14.5 ppg. In its last eight games Wilson has led the Wolfpack defense to allow just 84.1 rushing yards per game. He was a four-time ACC Linebacker of the Week and has 20 double-figure tackle outputs for his career, including five in 2023.
N.C. State defensive end Bradley Chubb won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy in 2017. Linebacker Levar Fisher is the Wolfpack’s only other finalist from the 2000 season.
Weekly Winners
Week 10: Will Putnam, C, Clemson
Week 9: Leif, Foutanu, OL, Arizona State
Week 8: Cooper Beebe, OG, Kansas State
Week 7: Charles Turner III, C, LSU
Week 6: Walter Rouse, OL LT, Oklahoma
Week 5: Jeremy Flax, OL, Kentucky
Week 4: Olumuyiwa Fashanu, OT, Penn State
Week 3: Joe Alt, OT, Notre Dame
Week 2: Anez Cooper, G, Miami (FL)
Week 1: Tanor Bortoloini, C, Wisconsin
LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels has been named the Maxwell Award Player of the Week after his monster performance against Florida. In the 52-35 victory, the quarterback completed 17 of 26 passes for 372 and 3 touchdowns. He also added 234 rushing yards with 2 touchdowns on 12 carries, totaling 606 yards of offense. This is Daniel’s 4th game this season with at least 400 passing yards, joining Joe Burrow as the only quarterbacks in school history to do so. Daniels also leads the nation in total offense, and ranks 3rd in passing yards per game at 310.2 yards per game.
The No. 15 Tigers look ahead to take on Georgia State at home next week.
Weekly Winners
Week 11: Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
Week 10: Jalen Milroe, QB, Alabama
Week 9: Ollie Gordon !!, RB, Oklahoma State
Week 8: Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State
Week 7: Michael Penix Jr., QB, Washington
Week 6: Dillon Gabriel, QB, Oklahoma
Week 5: Ray Davis, RB, Kentcuky
Week 4: Cameron Ward, QB, Washington State
Week 3: Michael Penix, Jr., QB, Washington
Week 2: Quinn Ewers, QB, Texas
Week 1: Jordan, QB, Florida State
Auburn edge rusher Jalen McLeod has been named the Bednarik Player of The Week after their Conference win over Arkansas. In the 48-10 victory, the edge rusher racked up 9 tackles, 3 sacks, 4 tackles for loss, and a forced fumble. It was a career day for the junior, as these were all career highs for McLeod while attending Auburn. He forced a fumble on Arkansas wide receiver KJ Jefferson near the end of the first half, leading to a time-expiring field goal at the end of the second quarter.
The Tigers will now head home to face off against New Mexico State (8-3).
Weekly Winners
Week 11: Jalen McLeod, EDGE, Auburn
Week 10: Jeremiah Trotter Jr., LB, Clemson
Week 9: Edgrrin Cooper, LB, Texas A&M
Week 8: Nathaniel Wilson, LB, Mississippi State
Week 7: Landon Jackson, DE, Arkansas
Week 5: Howard Cross III, DL, Notre Dame
Week 4: Dallas Turner, LB, Alabama
Week 3: Daquan Evans, DB, USF
Week 2: Jaden Hicks, DB, Washington State
Week 1: Kaimon Rucker, LB, North Carolina
College football’s top kicking award is presented by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission. Each week, they announce the Lou Groza Award "Stars of the Week".
Tyler Loop of Arizona connected from 24 yards out as time expired to give the Wildcats their first win as a ranked team in over eight years, topping Colorado 34-31. With the victory, the Wildcats have come out on top in four straight games for the first time since 2019. It’s the first game-winning field goal for Arizona since 2014. While his second make was the more important, the junior from Lucas, Texas had already knocked through a 52-yard field goal, setting a new career-long. He added four extra points for a 10-point performance. At 15-for-17 on the year, his 88.2% accuracy is tied for second in FBS among kickers with multiple field goals from long distance.
Drew Stevens of Iowa helped his team clinch a share of the Big Ten West division title. His leg provided 10 of Iowa's 22 points in a 22-0 win over Rutgers, hitting three field goals and a PAT. It marked the second time this season he outscored the Hawkeyes’ opponent on his own. In four other games he’s scored more than the margin of victory, making him arguably Iowa’s most important offensive weapon. This week he kicked field goals from 43, 32 and 24 yards out for his third career game with three or more makes. His 68 points this season are more than triple any other Iowa player.
Alex McPherson of Auburn hasn't missed kick in a full calendar year,a nd he set a record in the process of the Tigers’ 48-10 win over Arkansas. The freshman from Fort Payne, Alabama missed the first attempt of his career back on November 12, 2022, but since then has made 17 straight field goal attempts. That’s one more than the mark set by Daniel Carlson, the only three-time finalist in the history of the Lou Groza Award. Against Arkansas, McPherson was true from 39 and 31 and added six PATs for a 12-point game that ties for the most of any of the semifinalists this week. At 11-for-11 on field goals this year, he remains one of three FBS kickers yet to miss.
Weekly Winners
Week 11: Tyler Loop (Arizona), Drew Stevens (Iowa), Alex McPherson (Auburn)
Week 10: Bert Auburn (Texas), Cam Little (Arkansas), Collin Rogers (SMU)
Week 9: Andres Borregales (Miami), John Love (Virginia Tech), Brandon Talton (Nevada)
Week 8: Isaiah Hankins (Baylor), Dragan Kasich (Minnesota), Jose Pizaono (UNLV)
Week 7: Alex Hale (Oklahoma State), Scott Taylor Renfore (Troy), Trey Smack (Florida)
Week 6: Alex Hale (Oklahoma State), Brock Travelstead (Louisville), Peyton Woodring (Georgia)
Week 5: John Hoyland (Wyoming), Will Reichard (Alabama), Drew Stevens (Iowa)
Week 4: Michael Lantz (Georgia Southern), Trey Smack (Florida), Dominic Zvada (Arkansas State)
Week 3: Harrison Mevis (Missouri), Jose Pizano (UNLV), Noah Rauschenberg (North Texas)
Week 2: Colton Boomer (UCF), Caden Davis (Ole Miss), Camden Lewis (Oregon)
Week 1: Josh Karty (Stanford), Andrew Stein (Southern Miss), Brock Travelstead (Louisville)
DALLAS (SMU) – Missouri running back Cody Schrader rushed for 205 yards and had 116 receiving yards in a 36-7 thumping of Tennessee. The performance earned him the Doak Walker National Running Back of the Week honor for games the weekend of Nov. 11.
Prior to Saturday, no SEC player had ever recorded a 200-yard rushing and 100-yard receiving game. A walk-on transfer from Division II Truman State, Schrader carried the ball 35 times, scored one touchdown, and caught five passes on the afternoon, including a career-long 43-yarder. No Missouri player had ever recorded even a 100-yard rushing and receiving game.
The 5-9, 214-pound graduate from St. Louis, Mo., is the 10th player in Division I FBS history with 200 rushing yards and 100 receiving yards in the same game and the third player to do it against an AP-ranked opponent.
During the game, he passed 1,000 rushing yards for the 2023 campaign, upping his season total to 1,124 and becoming the 15th Tiger to top the century mark in a season.
The Tigers travel to Florida for a 7:30 p.m. ET tilt on ESPN this Saturday.
Other candidates for the honor in Week 11 included:
Weekly Winners
Week 11: Cody Schrader, Missouri
Week 10: Dillon Johnson, Washingnton
Week 9: Ollie Gordon II, Oklahoma State
Week 8: Nay-Quan Wright, South Florida
Week 7: Ollie Gordon II, Oklahoma State
Week 6: Trey Benson, Florida State
Week 5: Ray Davis, Kentucky
Week 4: DJ Giddens, Kansas State
Week 3: Trevor Etienne, Florida
Week 2: Omarion Hampton, North Carolina
Week 1: Dylan Edwards, Colorado
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (FWAA) – Five finalists for the 2023 Bronko Nagurski Trophy representing three different conferences plus Notre Dame, one of them from the top team in the current College Football Playoff rankings and one who has the sixth-most tackles in the FBS, were named Wednesday by the Football Writers Association of America and the Charlotte Touchdown Club as candidates for the award honoring the nation’s top defensive player.
Three members from the secondary, a linebacker and a defensive tackle compose the list. Three of the schools represented have had Bronko Nagurski Trophy winners in their past.
In alphabetical order, the finalists are Iowa cornerback Cooper DeJean, Illinois defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton, Georgia safety Malaki Starks, NotreDame safety Xavier Watts and N.C. State linebacker Payton Wilson.
The Bronko Nagurski Trophy recipient will be chosen from these five finalists. The FWAA All-America Committee selects the defensive player of the year who is part of the 2023 FWAA All-America Team and presented with the trophy at the Bronko Nagurski Awards Banquet on Dec. 4 in Charlotte, N.C. where TCU head coach Sonny Dykes will be the keynote speaker.
Here is more information on the five Nagurski Trophy 2023 finalists:
Cooper DeJean, CB, Iowa (#3, 6-1, 207, Jr., Odebolt, Iowa): DeJean is one of the nation’s top cornerbacks and one of Iowa’s most experienced players. He has 41 tackles on the season, two interceptions and five pass breakups. The ball is not thrown to his side of the field often. DeJean had 10 tackles against Iowa State, a rarity for a corner, marking his third career 10-plus tackle effort. Iowa’s defense currently is third nationally, giving up 12.3 points per game, and has allowed only one touchdown over its last four games; it’s fresh off its first Big Ten shutout since 2019 following a 22-0 home win over Rutgers last week.
Iowa has never had a Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner but has two recent finalists in defensive tackle Daviyon Nixon in 2020 and linebacker Josey Jewell from 2017. Linebacker Pat Angerer was also a finalist in 2009.
Jer’Zhan Newton, DT, Illinois (#4, 6-2, 295, Jr., St. Petersburg, Fla.): A constant force in the middle of Illinois’ defense, Newton is the national leader in quarterback pressures among interior defensive linemen with 39 according to Pro Football Focus and leads all FBS defensive tackles in snaps played at 61.1 per game. He has two standout games with seven pressures against Wisconsin and six against then-No. 7 Penn State. Newton is sixth on Illinois’ season tackles chart with 42 and leads the Illini with 6.5 tackles for loss. He is also a special teams force with three blocked kicks this season, tied for the national lead.
Illinois has never had a Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner, but has had three previous finalists in defensive end Whitney Mercilus in 2011, linebacker Kevin Hardy in 1995 and linebacker Dana Howard in 1994.
Malaki Starks, S, Georgia (#24, 6-1, 205, So., Jefferson, Ga.): An imposing safety and one of the top underclassmen in the country, Starks lists fifth on the team with 33 tackles, ties for second with five pass breakups and has two interceptions. He has led the Bulldogs in tackles in two games this year against UT-Martin and Kentucky. Starks had 10 tackles against Tennessee last year, a career high, and faces the Vols again this weekend. Georgia, the top team in this week’s College Football Playoff rankings, is on a school record 27-game winning streak that is third in SEC history.
Georgia is well represented in Bronko Nagurski Trophy history. A fellow Bulldog defensive back, cornerback Champ Bailey, is the lone winner from 1998. But the Bulldogs have now had a finalist in three consecutive seasons and in five of the last six seasons (safety Chris Smith in 2022, defensive tackle Jordan Davis in 2021; safety J.R. Reed in 2019; linebacker Roquan Smith in 2017) and now nine finalists all-time. Eight of their nine finalists now have been in-state recruits.
Xavier Watts, S, Notre Dame (#0, 5-11, 204, Jr., Omaha, Neb.): A disrupter to opponents, Watts is the nation’s interceptions leader with seven, with five of them in the Irish’s last three games. He is the first Irish player to post multiple interceptions in consecutive games (vs. USC and Pitt) and the first FBS player to do it since 2020 – he was the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week following both wins. The USC game was a career highlight for him; in addition to seven tackles, Watts intercepted reigning Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams twice, forced a fumble and recovered another and returned it for a touchdown. His seven picks – half of the team’s 14 – have led directly to Notre Dame points in every occurrence totaling 41 points, or 11 percent of the Irish’s team scoring. He has 42 tackles, fourth at Notre Dame.
Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy in 2012. He is the Fighting Irish’s lone previous winner. Fellow linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah was a finalist for the award in 2020, as was cornerback Shane Walton in 2002.
Payton Wilson, LB, N.C. State (#11, 6-4, 238, Gr., Hillsborough, N.C.): Nicknamed by his head coach as a “wrecking ball,” Wilson leads the ACC and is fifth nationally with 11.2 tackles per game and has led the team in tackles in eight of NCSU’s 10 games. Wilson is 13th nationally in solo tackles and has 49 more tackles than any other Wolfpack player at 112 total, the highest mark by a Wolfpack player since 2012. N.C. State leads the ACC in scoring defense in league play at 14.5 ppg. In its last eight games Wilson has led the Wolfpack defense to allow just 84.1 rushing yards per game. He was a four-time ACC Linebacker of the Week and has 20 double-figure tackle outputs for his career, including five in 2023.
N.C. State defensive end Bradley Chubb won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy in 2017. Linebacker Levar Fisher is the Wolfpack’s only other finalist from the 2000 season.
Weekly Winners
Week 10: Jeremiah Trotter Jr., LB, Clemson
Week 9: Xavier Watts, S, Notre Dame
Week 8: Jihaad Campbell, LB, Alabama
Week 7: Xavier Watts, S, Notre Dame
Week 6: Devin Grant, S, Buffalo
Week 5: Caden Jenkins, CB, Baylor
Week 4: Maxwell Hairston, CB, Kentucky
Week 3: Carlton Johnson, DB, Fresno State
Week 2: Ron Stone, Jr., EDGE, Washington State
Week 1: Travis Hunter, CB, Colorado