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As Kansas CIty's Patrick Mahomes and San Francisco's Brock Purdy get set for the Super Bowl, along with their respective head coaches Andy Reid and Kyle Shanahan, neither of them picked up the Bert Bell Professional Player of the Year Award, or the Greasy Neale Professional Coach of the Year Award.
Instead, Maxwell Football Club Director Mark Wolpert announced on Wednesday (February 7) that quarterback Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens was selected as the winner of the 65th annual player of the year award, and that Dan Campbell of the Detroit Lions was voted as the winner of the 35th annual coach of the year award.
NOTE: CollegeFootballPoll.com's Dave Congrove is a member of the Maxwell Football Club. He voted for Jackson as player of the year, and cast his vote for DeMeco Ryans of the Houston Texans for coach of the year with Campbell given his 2nd-place vote.
Meanwhile, believe it or not, odds are already posted at FanDuel.com for the 2025 Super Bowl game which will take place in New Orleans, tying the Crescent City with Miami at a record 11 times hosting football's biggest event.
Jackson put together a phenomenal 2023 campaign, posting a 67.2 completion percentage and 3,678 passing yards which were both career-highs. He threw 24 touchdown passes to just seven interceptions, and rushed for 821 yards and five touchdowns. The Pompano Beach, Fla. native helped guide the Ravens to a 13-4 record during the regular season, clinching the No. 1 seed in the AFC and a first round bye for the NFL Playoffs in the process. Against the Texans in the Divisional Round, Jackson completed 16 of his 22 pass attempts for 152 yards and two touchdowns, and rushed 11 times for 100 yards and two more scores. This is the third time Jackson has been honored by the Maxwell Football Club, first as the Maxwell Award winner as College Player of the Year in 2016 while at Louisville, and again in 2019 when he won his first Bert Bell Award.
The Ravens ended the season with a 17-10 loss at home to Kansas City, which suprisingly is NOT the odds-on favorite to win the big game this Sunday in Las Vegas. Instead, the odds to win super bowl LVIII go to San Francisco by 2.5.
Campbell joins former Lions coach Wayne Fontes (1991) as a winner of the Greasy Neale Coach of the Year Award, having led the Lions to a historic 2023 season. Detroit tied a franchise record with 12 regular season wins, won a divisional title for the first time in 30 years, and hosted a playoff game for the first time in Ford Field history. The Lions posted two playoff wins before ultimately falling to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game.
Jackson and Campbell will be honored Friday March 8, 2024 at the 87th Maxwell Football Club National Awards which will be held at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta. Also receiving awards at this event will be Michael Penix Jr. – Washington (Maxwell Award), Payton Wilson – NC State (Chuck Bednarik Award), Kalen DeBoer – Washington/Alabama (George Munger Coach of the Year Award), Caleb Downs – Alabama/Ohio State (Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award, John Grant Jr. – Cricket Celebration Bowl (Brookshier Spirit Award), Claude Felton – University of Georgia – Special Achievement Award, and Bobby Houck – University of Montana (Get in the Game Impact Award). The Club will be announcing additional winners in the coming days.
Congrove's vote for Ryans came after he guided the Texans to an 11-8 season, including a Wild Card playoff rout at home over Cleveland, before falling at Baltimore in the divisional round. They finished first in the AFC South in Ryans' first season as head coach and improved by 8 wins over the 3-13-1 campaign in 2022-23. Additionally, rookie quarterback CJ Stroud (Ohio State) flourished in the offense as he passed for 4,108 yards with 23 TD's and just 5 INT's. He won the rookie of the year award from the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA) and Pro Football Focus (PFF).
The Maxwell Football Club has honored excellence at all levels of football since 1935 and the Club's outreach programs provide educational opportunities for student-athletes and coaches. With members in over 40 states the Maxwell Football Club is one of the largest football organizations in America. Become a member by visiting maxwellfootballclub.org.