Earlier than we get to bowl season, we need to get thru awards season, and this yr’s crop of nominees are a who is who of university soccer’s first-rate.
Michael penix jr., jayden daniels, brock bowers, marvin harrison jr. And extra will all be trying to take home hardware at this yr’s “home depot university football awards” on friday (7 p.M. Et on espn/espn app) .
Here are our alternatives for who ought to be venerated — and who will in reality nab the trophies.
It is smooth to examine something as easy as sacks and peg latu or turner as the fave here, however the award is going to the nice basic defender, and it is not possible to ignore wilson’s all-round dominance. He is one in all just 24 strength five linebackers to have at the least 75 snaps as a bypass rusher and 250 or greater in insurance, and of that group, wilson has the first-rate tackle charge (ninety four.Nine%), the most run stuffs (25), the most tackles for loss (17.5), the maximum takeaways (5) and the maximum passes defended (8) — no longer to say the maximum tackles usual (138). He’s considered one of just two gamers to have made or assisted on a tfl in each game this season, and he leads all power 5 defenders in tackles at or in the back of the road of scrimmage (37). Given that 2018, he’s one in every of simply 3 players to rack up a hundred tackles, 15 tfls, 5 sacks and three interceptions within the identical season. He has accomplished the entirety.
We’re now not saying electorate are effortlessly swayed with the aid of one or two gaudy stats, but latu has the sexiest numbers of any of the nominees: thirteen sacks (most in power 5) and 21.5 tackles for loss (maximum in fbs). He’s more of a one-trick pony than wilson — but it’s a quite darned incredible trick.
All due respect to the alternative finalists, but when washington — the no. 2 overall playoff seed — had its season on the road, it placed the ball in odunze’s fingers because, as coach kalen deboer stated, he was the first-class player on the sector. Odunze’s 81 catches, 1,428 yards and 13 touchdowns are all impressive — although, in fairness, all fall brief of the stats compiled through nabers. But odunze has a higher capture fee on contested throws and a better rate of first downs, and it is not possible to ignore how critical a number.
Clearly, pick out someone of the three, and also you’d get little pushback. All of them have a compelling case, they’re all more than deserving, and all 3 were a few of the very first-rate players at any role this season. But it’s difficult to imagine harrison’s ohio nation profession coming and going without him taking domestic this trophy. He has been so dominant — and at times this yr, because the best actual offensive danger on the sector — that this feels as a whole lot a lifetime fulfillment award as it’s miles one for the fine receiver in 2023.
He overlooked just two kicks all season, and become an ideal 16-of-16 on something less than forty yards. He related on both of his tries past 50, so he has the leg. But the maximum fantastic factor about pizano’s efforts in 2023 have been the impact his kicks had on unlv’s season. Six of his discipline dreams placed the rebels beforehand. Inside the playoff era, pizano is one among simply 10 kickers to have at least 20 made subject dreams, join on at least 90% of his tries and feature six or greater of those kicks put his team in advance. 3 have won the groza, and the others all came in seasons in which some other kicker with the same marks gained it. Pizano is the handiest kicker to hit those marks in 2023.
Have you ever watched any iowa football lately? Punting is form of a large deal. Certainly, when a fan base brazenly roots for punts, it’s miles both an indictment of the offense and a extreme point of pleasure for the guy booting the ones punts. Taylor really gave his fanatics their money’s well worth. He punted 86 times this season — 11 extra than any other participant inside the united states. He racked up 4,119 punt yards, 752 greater than anybody else and 1,014 greater yards than iowa’s offense controlled. (in reality, taylor punted for greater yards than 33 offenses in fbs.)
