Offensive Player of the Year
QB Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M

Defensive Player of the Year
DE Jadeveon Clowney, South Carolina
 
Co-Special Teams Player of the Year
K Caleb Sturgis, Florida
KR/PR Ace Sanders, South Carolina

Freshman of the Year
QB Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M

Scholar-Athlete of the Year
C Barrett Jones, Alabama

Jacobs Blocking Trophy
OT Luke Joeckel, Texas A&M

Co-Coaches of the Year 
Kevin Sumlin, Texas A&M
Will Muschamp, Florida

The finalists for the Outland Trophy was announced Monday November 19 by the Football Writers Association of America. 

All three players made the College Football Universe All-America Team and I nominated Barrett Jones for the 2012 Outland Trophy; Jones was the 2011 winner. He was also my top rated college offensive football lineman this preseason and is a definite favorite for the Outland after his performance on the field in 2012.  

Outland Trophy Finalists

C Barrett Jones 6-5 302 Sr, Alabama

OT Luke Joeckel 6-6 310 Jr, Texas A&M

OG Jonathan Cooper  6-3, 305 Sr, North Carolina

The finalists for the Maxwell Award Collegiate Player of the Year (most outstanding) and the Chuck Bednarik Award for the Outstanding Defensive Player of the Year was announced Monday November 19 by Maxwell Football Club President Ron Jaworski. 

Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o was named as a finalist of both awards and he was a potential contender that I mentioned for the Bednarik this preseason. 

The finalists of each award are the same players that I nominated as a part of my membership of the Maxwell Football Club. 

The Maxwell Award is similar to the Heisman Trophy, but often has different winners. The 2010 and 2011 winners of both awards were the same (Cam Newton 2010 & Robert Griffin III 2011), but in 2009, Alabama RB Mark Ingram won the Heisman while Texas QB Colt McCoy won the Maxwell. 

With the recent performances of Texas A&M QB Johnny Manziel and the decline of Kansas State QB Collin Klein, Johnny Football would have to be a favorite for the Maxwell. 

Maxwell Award Finalists

QB Collin Klein 6-5 226 Sr, Kansas State
Stats: 66.7 completion percent, 2,306 passing yards, 14 passing touchdowns, six interceptions, 787 rushing yards, and 20 rushing touchdowns.

QB Johnny Manziel 6-1 200 Fr, Texas A&M
Stats: 67.7 completion percent, 3,047 passing yards, 21 passing touchdowns, 1,114 rushing yards, and 17 rushing touchdowns.

LB Manti Te'o 6-2 255 Sr, Notre Dame
Stats: 98 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, six interceptions, two fumble recoveries, and 1.5 sacks. 

Chuck Bednarik Award Finalists

DE Jadeveon Clowney 6-6 256 So, South Carolina
Stats: 43 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, and two fumble recoveries.

LB Jarvis Jones 6-3 241 Jr, Georgia
Stats: 62 total tackles, 18 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks, two fumble recoveries, and one interception.

LB Manti Te'o 6-2 255 Sr, Notre Dame
Stats: 98 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, six interceptions, two fumble recoveries, and 1.5 sacks. 

As a member of the Maxwell Football Club, I have a vote in both. Here are my current top three of each award:
Maxwell Award- 1. QB Johnny Manziel Texas A&M, 2. LB Manti Te'o Notre Dame, and 3. QB Collin Klein Kansas State. 
Chuck Bednarik- 1. LB Manti Te'o Notre Dame, 2. LB Jarvis Jones Georgia, and 3. DE Jadeveon Clowney South Carolina.  

Find out more about the Maxwell Football Club here:
MaxwellFootballClub.org

The following list of coaches are the semi-finalist candidates for the Maxwell Football Club Collegiate Coach of the Year Award as announced by MFC President Ron Jaworski on Monday November 19:

MFC Collegiate Coach of the Year Semi-Finalists

Dave Doeren, Northern Illinois 10-1
Sonny Dykes, Louisiana Tech 9-2
Darrell Hazell, Kent State 10-1
Brian Kelly, Notre Dame 11-0
Chip Kelly, Oregon 10-1
Mike MacIntyre, San Jose State 9-2
Urban Meyer, Ohio State 11-0
Jim Mora, UCLA 9-2
Will Muschamp, Florida 10-1
Bill O’Brien, Penn State 7-4
Mark Richt, Georgia 10-1
Mike Riley, Oregon State 8-2
David Shaw, Stanford 9-2
Bill Snyder, Kansas State 10-1
Kevin Sumlin, Texas A&M 9-2
Dabo Swinney, Clemson 10-1

My top three are Brian Kelly, Kevin Sumlin, and Bill Snyder. There are so many good coaches on the list that it is hard for me to narrow down, but I think Brian Kelly has the most momentum and will definitely have my vote if the Irish successfully defeat the Trojans on Saturday. Notre Dame was not expected by many experts this preseason to even be a top 25 team in 2012, much less in the BCS championship game. 

There is also the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award handed out by the Football Writers Association of America.

Find out more about the Maxwell Football Club here:
Maxwellfootballclub.org

The 2012 Walter Camp Player of the Year Watch List was announced today by the Walter Camp Football Foundation. The award is named after  the "Father of American Football" Walter Camp which was a player, coach, and great innovator in football.

Last season's recipient was Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck, number one NFL Draft pick by the Indianapolis Colts. The watch has the usual favorites like Matt Barkley and Tyrann Mathieu. But there is an omission of Kansas State quarterback Collin Klein which is on the Davey O'Brien and Maxwell Watch List as well as the College Football Universe Dynamic Dozen Heisman Contenders. In 2011, Klein had 3,059 total yards and 40 total touchdowns (27 rushing TDs).

You can find more information about the Walter Camp Player of the Year at WalterCamp.org.


2012 Walter Camp Player of the Year Watch List:

SEC (12):
Tyler Bray, junior, QB, Tennessee
Jadeveon Clowney, sophomore, DE, South Carolina
Knile Davis, junior, RB, Arkansas
Shariff Floyd, junior, DT, Florida
James Franklin, junior, QB, Missouri
Barrett Jones, senior, Center, Alabama 
Jarvis Jones, junior, LB, Georgia 
Marcus Lattimore, junior, RB, South Carolina
Tyrann Matthieu, junior, DB, LSU 
AJ McCarron, junior, QB, Alabama
Aaron Murray, junior, QB, Georgia
Tyler Wilson, senior, QB, Arkansas

Big 12 (11):
Tavon Austin, senior, WR, West Virginia
Arthur Brown, senior, LB, Kansas State
Seth Doerge, senior, QB, Texas Tech
Tony Jefferson, junior, DB, Oklahoma
Landry Jones, senior, QB, Oklahoma
Tyler Lockett, sophomore, WR/KR, Kansas State 
Nigel Malone, senior, DB, Kansas State 
Alex Okafor, senior, DE, Texas
Joseph Randle, junior, RB, Oklahoma State
Geno Smith, senior, QB, West Virginia
Kenny Stills, junior, WR, Oklahoma

Pac-12 (7):
Keenan Allen, junior, WR, California
Matt Barkley, senior, QB, USC
T.J. McDonald, senior, DB, USC
Chase Thomas, senior, LB, Stanford
De’Anthony Thomas, sophomore, WR, Oregon
John White, senior, RB, Utah
Robert Woods, junior, WR, USC 

ACC (6):
David Amerson, DB, North Carolina State 
Tajh Boyd, junior, QB, Clemson
Brandon Jenkins, senior, DE, Florida State
Logan Thomas, junior, QB, Virginia Tech
Joe Vellano, senior, DL, Maryland 
Sammy Watkins, sophomore, WR, Clemson

Big Ten (5):
Montee Ball, senior, RB, Wisconsin 
Rex Burkhead, senior, RB, Nebraska
William Gholston, junior, DE, Michigan State
Silas Redd, junior, RB, Penn State
Denard Robinson, senior, QB, Michigan

Conference USA (2):
Zach Line, senior, RB, SMU
Charles Sims, junior, RB, Houston

MAC (2):
Alex Carder, senior, QB, Western Michigan
Branden Oliver, junior, RB, Buffalo

Independents (2):
Tyler Eifert, senior, TE, Notre Dame 
Manti Te’o, senior, LB, Notre Dame 

Big East (1):
Ray Graham, senior, RB, Pittsburgh

Mountain West (1):
Robbie Rouse, senior, RB, Fresno State

Sun Belt (1):
Ryan Aplin, senior, QB, Arkansas State

The 2012 Doak Walker Award Watch List for the nation's top running back was announced Thursday of this week. It is named after former Southern Methodist University and Detroit Lions football player, Doak Walker. 

Wisconsin Badger Montee Ball is an obvious favorite since he was a finalist for the award last season as well as a Heisman finalist. Last year's winner was Trent Richardson from Alabama which is now in the NFL, but the SEC still has strong candidates on the list returning including Marcus Lattimore for South Carolina and Knile Davis for Arkansas, both injured last year. 

The Pac-12 has the most with eight then followed by the Big Ten and Big 12 with seven each. The SEC finally trails the other conferences on the watch lists with just six listed. 

You can find more information about the Davey O'Brien Award at DoakWalkerAward.com.  


2012 Doak Walker Award Watch List:

Pac-12 (8):
Kenjon Barner (Sr.), Oregon
Jesse Callier (Jr.), Washington
Johnathan Franklin (Sr.), UCLA
Cameron Marshall (Sr.), Arizona State 
Curtis McNeal (Sr.), USC
Isi Sofele (Sr.), California
Stepfan Taylor (Sr.), Stanford
John White (Sr.), Utah

Big Ten (7):
Montee Ball (Sr.), Wisconsin
Le′Veon Bell (Jr.), Michigan State
Jordan Hall (Sr.), Ohio State
Rex Burkhead (Sr.), Nebraska
Silas Redd (Jr.), Penn State
Fitzgerald Toussaint (Jr.), Michigan
James White (Jr.), Wisconsin

Big 12 (7):
John Hubert (Jr.), Kansas State
Waymon James (Jr.), TCU
Joseph Randle (Jr.), Oklahoma State
Jarred Salubi (Sr.), Baylor 
Eric Stephens (Sr.), Texas Tech
Matthew Tucker (Sr.), TCU
James White (Jr.), Iowa State

SEC (6):
Knile Davis (Jr.), Arkansas
Eddie Lacy (Jr.), Alabama
Marcus Lattimore (Jr.), South Carolina
Onterio McCalebb (Sr.), Auburn 
Christine Michael (Sr.), Texas A&M 
Zac Stacy (Sr.), Vanderbilt

ACC (5):
Giovani Bernard (So.), North Carolina
Andre Ellington (Sr.), Clemson
Michael James (Sr.), Miami
Orwin Smith (Sr.), Georgia Tech

Conference USA (4):
Orleans Darkwa (Jr.), Tulane 
Nathan Jeffery (So.), UTEP
Zach Line (Sr.), SMU
Latavius Murray (Sr.), UCF

Independents (4):
Michael Alisa (Jr.), BYU
Gee Gee Greene (Sr.), Navy
Raymond Maples (Jr.), Army
Cierre Wood (Sr.), Notre Dame

Mountain West (3):
D.J. Harper (Sr.), Boise State 
Walter Kazee (Sr.), San Diego State
Robbie Rouse (Sr.), Fresno State

Sun Belt (3):
Benny Cunningham (Sr.), Middle Tennessee
Kedrick Rhodes (Jr.), Florida International 
Shawn Southward (Sr.), Troy

Big East (2):
Ray Graham (Sr.), Pittsburgh
Lyle McCombs (So.), Connecticut

MAC (2):
Branden Oliver (Jr.), Buffalo
Anthon Samuel (So.), Bowling Green

WAC (2):
Hunter Lee (So.), Louisiana Tech
Kerwynn Williams (Sr.), Utah State

The 2012 Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award Watch List was announced Wednesday of this week by the the Davey O'Brien Foundation. The award is named after College Football Hall of Fame and Texas Sports Hall of Fame quarterback, Davey O'Brien.

Some of the top favorites for the award are USC's Matt Barkley and Arkansas' Tyler Wilson which are two of the seven returning 2011 semifinalists. A couple non-BCS conferences have some decent longshots like Tyler Tettleton of Ohio and Ryan Aplin of Arkansas State. 

Of the 34 quarterbacks selected, the players are almost equally distributed throughout the BCS conferences. The ACC and SEC have the most listed with six each.

You can find more information about the Davey O'Brien Award at DaveyObrien.org. 


2012 Davey O’Brien Award Watch List:

ACC (6):
Tajh Boyd, Clemson
Mike Glennon, N.C. State
EJ Manuel, Florida State
Sean Renfree, Duke
Bryn Renner, North Carolina
Logan Thomas, Virginia Tech

SEC (6):
Tyler Bray, Tennessee
James Franklin, Missouri
AJ McCarron, Alabama
Aaron Murray, Georgia
Connor Shaw, South Carolina
Tyler Wilson, Arkansas

Big Ten (5):
Taylor Martinez, Nebraska
Braxton Miller, Ohio State
Denard Robinson, Michigan
Nathan Scheelhaase, Illinois
James Vandenberg, Iowa

Big 12 (5):
Seth Doege, Texas Tech
Landry Jones, Oklahoma
Collin Klein, Kansas State
Casey Pachall, TCU
Geno Smith, West Virginia

Pac-12 (3):
Matt Barkley, USC
Keith Price, Washington
Jeff Tuel, Washington St, 

Big East (2):
Teddy Bridgewater, Louisville
B.J. Daniels, USF

Independents (2):
Riley Nelson, BYU
Trent Steelman, Army

MAC (2):
Alex Carder, Western Michigan
Tyler Tettleton, Ohio,

Mountain West (2):
Derek Carr, Fresno State
Cody Fajardo, Nevada

Sun Belt (1):
Ryan Aplin, Arkansas State

The 2012 Biletnikoff Award Watch List for the most outstanding receiver in college football was announced Tuesday of this week by the Tallahassee Quarterback Club. The award is named after College Football Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver, Fred Biletnikoff. 

A favorite for the award is USC Trojan Robert Woods (111 receptions & 15 touchdowns in 2011). Clemson's Sammy Watkins is also a contender even though he is not on the list presumably due to an off-season arrest. Marquis Lee of USC was initially not on the watch until an ESPN researcher called the Tallahassee Quarterback Club to question the exclusion and he was added to it yesterday. Lee had 1,143 receiving yards with 11 touchdown receptions in 2011. 

Oregon hybrid RB/WR De'Anthony Thomas is not listed. According to the press release for the award, it is for the nation's "outstanding college football receiver (the award defines receiver as any player who catches a pass)" so he could have easily qualified. 

Almost every FBS conference is represented on the list of 49 players except the Sun Belt. The players are somewhat evenly distributed throughout the conferences. SEC leads with 10, but the ACC and Big 12 both have eight as well as seven for the Pac-12. 

You can find more information about the Biletnikoff Award at BiletnikoffAward.com.

2012 Biletnikoff Award Preseason Watch List:

SEC (10):
Emory Blake  Auburn
Andre Debose  Florida
Cobi Hamilton  Arkansas
Justin Hunter  Tennessee
Tavarres King  Georgia
Jordan Matthews  Vanderbilt
T.J. Moe  Missouri
Uzoma Nwachukwu  Texas A&M
Da’Rick Rogers  Tennessee
Ryan Swope  Texas A&M

ACC (8):
Jheranie Boyd  North Carolina
Michael Campanaro  Wake Forest
Marcus Davis  Virgina Tech
Willie Haulstead  Florida State
Erik Highsmith  North Carolina
DeAndre Hopkins  Clemson
Allen Hurns  Miami (Fla.)
Conner Vernon  Duke

Big 12 (8):
Tavon Austin  West Virginia
Stedman Bailey  West Virginia
Josh Boyce  TCU
Mike Davis  Texas
Tevin Reese  Baylor
Kenny Stills  Oklahoma
Eric Ward  Texas Tech
Terrance Williams  Baylor

Pac-12 (7):
Keenan Allen  California
Dan Buckner  Arizona
DeVonte Christopher  Utah
Marquis Lee USC
Markus Wheaton  Oregon State
Marquess Wilson  Washington State
Robert Woods  USC

Big Ten (4):
Jared Abbrederis  Wisconsin 
Corey Brown  Ohio State
Keenan Davis  Iowa
Roy Roundtree  Michigan

Big East (3):
Alec Lemon  Syracuse
Mike Shanahan  Pittsburgh 
Devin Street  Pittsburgh

Conference USA (2):
Aaron Dobson  Marshall
Darius Johnson  SMU

Independents (2):
Cody Hoffman  BYU
T.J. Jones  Notre Dame

Mountain West (2):
Colin Lockett  San Diego State
Matt Miller  Boise State

WAC (2):
Noel Grigsby  San Jose State
Quinton Patton  Louisiana Tech

MAC (1):
Nick Harwell  Miami (Ohio)

The Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List for the best collegiate lineman or linebacker was announced Monday of this week by the Rotary Club of Houston. 

Eligibility for the award includes offensive or defensive end to end down linemen who set up no farther than 10 yards to the left or right of the ball, linebackers who set up no farther than five yards deep from the line of scrimmage, and all candidates must be eligible to play college sports under the rules and regulations of the NCAA.

Last year's winner was Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly and the exhausting list has just about every position player that likes to hit each other and that are good at it. 

I am in the process of updating the other watch lists to the blog. I will also have in-depth Sun Belt and SEC online preseason guides posted later this week as well as other good stuff coming. 

You can find more information about the award at RotaryLombardiAward.org. The website does not seem to be updated yet for 2012, but I found the watch list and other information posted on NCAA.com.  The players are broke down on the CFU blog by conference . 

2012 Rotary Lombardi Award Watch List:

SEC (26):
C Alvin Bailey, Arkansas
LB Jonathan Bostic, Florida
DE Jadeveon Clowney, South Carolina
OT Chris Faulk, LSU
DE Sharrif Floyd, Florida
OT DJ Fluker, Alabama
OT Alex Hurst, LSU
G Gabe Jackson, Mississippi State
LB Jelani Jenkins, Florida
NT John Jenkins, Georgia
OT Luke Joeckel, Texas A&M
LB Nico Johnson, Alabama
C/G/T Barrett Jones, Alabama
OLB Jarvis Jones, Georgia
DE Corey Lemonier, Auburn
DE/DT Rob Lohr, Vanderbilt
TE Philip Lutzenkirchen, Auburn
OT Jake Matthews, Texas A&M
DE Barkevious Mingo, LSU
DE Sam Montgomery, LSU
LB C.J. Mosley, Alabama
LB Sean Porter, Texas A&M
DE Devin Taylor, South Carolina
G Larry Warford, Kentucky
G Chance Warmack, Alabama
DE Jesse Williams, Alabama

Big Ten (23):
LB Denicos Allen, Michigan State
LB Chris Borland, Wisconsin
LB Jonathan Brown, Illinois
DE Michael Buchanan, Illinois
LB Max Bullough, Michigan State
LB Kenny Demens, Michigan
C/G Travis Frederick, Wisconsin
DE William Gholston, Michigan State
DT Johnathan Hankins, Ohio State
DT Jordan Hill, Penn State
LB Gerald Hodges, Penn State
OT Taylor Lewan, Michigan
G Spencer Long, Nebraska
G Chris McDonald, Michigan State
LB James Morris, Iowa
DE Marcus Rush, Michigan State
DT Kawann Short, Purdue
DE John Simon, Ohio State
DT Akeem Spence, Illinois
DT Baker Steinkuhler, Nebraska
TE Jake Stoneburner, Ohio State
LB Mike Taylor, Wisconsin
OT Ricky Wagner, Wisconsin

ACC (17):
OT Oday Aboushi, Virginia
LB Jeremiah Attaochu, Georgia Tech
G Jonathan Cooper, North Carolina
C Dalton Freeman, Clemson
DE James Gayle, Virginia Tech
LB Steve Greer, Virginia
OT James Hurst, North Carolina
DE Brandon Jenkins, Florida State
OT Morgan Moses, Virginia
LB Kevin Pierre-Louis, Boston College
LB Kevin Reddick, North Carolina
LB Bruce Taylor, Virginia Tech
G Omoregie Uzzi, Georgia Tech
DT Joe Vellano, Maryland
DE Bjoern Werner, Florida State
DT Nikita Whitlock, Wake Forest
DT Sylvester Williams, North Carolina

Big 12 (17):
LB Arthur Brown, Kansas State
G Blaize Foltz, TCU
C Ben Habern, Oklahoma
LB Jordan Hicks, Texas
G Gabe Ikard, Oklahoma
DE Jackson Jeffcoat, Texas
LB A.J. Klein, Iowa State
LB Jake Knott, Iowa State
LB Shaun Lewis, Oklahoma State
C Joe Madsen, West Virginia
DE Stansly Maponga, TCU
LB Corey Nelson, Oklahoma
DE Alex Okafor, Texas
G Cyril Richardson, Baylor
G Lane Taylor, Oklahoma State
OT LaAdrian Waddle, Texas Tech
G Mason Walters, Texas

Pac-12 (17):
LB Dion Bailey, USC
OT David Bakhtiari, Colorado
LB Michael Clay, Oregon
DE Scott Crichton, Oregon State
TE Joseph Fauria, UCLA
DE Ben Gardner, Stanford
C Khaled Holmes, USC
DE Wes Horton, USC
DE Dion Jordan, Oregon
DE/OLB Travis Long, Washington State
DT Star Lotulelei, Utah
LB Hayes Pullard, USC
LB Shayne Skov, Stanford
LB Chase Thomas, Stanford
TE Levine Toilolo, Stanford
LB Brian Wagner, Arizona
G Carson York, Oregon

Big East (9):
C Mario Benavides, Louisville
DE Aaron Donald, Pittsburgh
DE Ryne Giddins, USF
LB Khaseem Greene, Rutgers
TE Ryan Griffin, Connecticut
LB DeDe Lattimore, USF
LB Sio Moore, Connecticut
OT Justin Pugh, Syracuse
DE Trevardo Williams, Connecticut

MAC (8):
G Eric Herman, Ohio
DL Chris Jones, Bowling Green
C Zac Kerin, Toledo
LB Khalil Mack, Buffalo
DE Roosevelt Nix, Kent State
DE Sean Progar, Northern Illinois
OT Brian Winters, Kent State
LB Dwayne Woods, Bowling Green

Conference USA (7):
OT Jacolby Ashworth, Houston
DE/LB Jamie Collins, Southern Miss
LB Jeremy Grove, East Carolina
DE Margus Hunt, SMU
LB Trent Mackey, Tulane
LB Taylor Reed, SMU
TE Luke Willson, Rice

Mountain West (7):
G Chris Barker, Nevada
LB Travis Brown, Fresno State
C Nick Carlson, Wyoming
TE Gavin Escobar, San Diego State
G Joe Kellogg, Boise State
OT Jeff Nady, Nevada
C Weston Richburg, Colorado State

Independents (6):
C Braxston Cave, Notre Dame
TE Tyler Eifert, Notre Dame
G Braden Hansen, BYU
OT Zack Martin, Notre Dame
LB Manti Te’o, Notre Dame
LB Kyle Van Noy, BYU

WAC (5):
DE Travis Johnson, San Jose State
C Tyler Larsen, Utah State
OT David Quessenberry, San Jose State
LB Keith Smith, San Jose State
C Stephen Warner, Louisiana Tech

Sun Belt (3):
LB Winston Fraser, FIU
LB Andrew Jackson, Western Kentucky
G Adam Smith, Western Kentucky

The Butkus Award Watch List for the top collegiate linebacker was announced by the Butkus Foundation on Monday of this week. The award is named in honor of College Football Hall of Fame and Pro Hall of Fame linebacker, Dick Butkus. There are also high school and professional categories of the award. 

Boston College's Luke Kuechly won the award in 2011, but has since moved on to the NFL. Notre Dame's Manti Te'o is the only returning finalist.Te'o won the inaugaral High School Butkus Award in 2008, but former Ole Miss and current San Francisco 49er, Patrick Willis, is the only player to win two versions of the award so far (college and pro). As mentioned before on CFU, Georgia's Jarvis Jones is top rated NFL talent and also a returning semi-finalist. 

There are 51 linebackers on the watch and the SEC has almost one-third of the players on the list with 16. The Big Ten and Pac-12 have the next most with nine and seven respectively. Most FBS conferences were represented except the MAC and WAC despite a player from the FCS on the list, Howard's Keith Pough. 

You can find more information about the Dick Butkus Award at theButkusAward.com.

2012 Butkus Award Watch List:

SEC (16):
Jonathan Bostic, Florida
Zaviar Gooden, Missouri
Alanzo Highsmith, Arkansas
DeVonte Holloman, South Carolina
Jelani Jenkins, Florida
A.J. Johnson, Tennessee
Nico Johnson, Alabama
Jarvis Jones, Georgia
Cameron Lawrence, Mississippi State 
John Lotulelei, Florida
Lerentee McCray, Florida
Kevin Minter, LSU
Damontre Moore, Texas A&M 
C.J. Mosley, Alabama
Sean Porter, Texas A&M 
Cornelius Washington, Georgia

Big Ten (9):
Denicos Allen, Michigan State 
Chris Borland, Wisconsin
Jonathan Brown, Illinois
Max Bullough, Michigan State 
Gerald Hodges, Penn State 
Michael Mauti, Penn State 
James Morris, Iowa
David Nwabuisi, Northwestern 
Etienne Sabino, Ohio State

PAC-12 (7):
Dion Bailey, Southern California
Travis Long, Washington State 
Brandon Magee, Arizona State 
Trent Murphy, Stanford 
Douglas Rippy, Colorado
Shane Skov, Stanford 
Chase Thomas, Stanford 

ACC (5):
Christian Jones, Florida State 
Nick Moody, Florida State 
Kevin Reddick, North Carolina
Kenny Tate, Maryland
Bruce Taylor, Virginia Tech 

Big 12 (4):
Arthur Brown, Kansas State 
A.J. Klein, Iowa State 
Jake Knott, Iowa State 
Tom Wort, Oklahoma

Big East (3):
Steve Beauharnais, Rutgers 
Khaseem Greene, Rutgers 
Sio Moore, Connecticut

Conference USA (2):
Jamie Collins, Southern Mississippi
Ja'Gared Davis, Southern Methodist University

Independents (2):
Uona Kaveinga, BYU
Manti Te'o, Notre Dame

Mountain West (1):
Jeremiah Greene, Nevada

Sun Belt (1):
Andrew Jackson, Western Kentucky

FCS-MEAC (1):
Keith Pough, Howard