Clemson football: Several Tigers named to award watch lists
Several members of the 2020 Clemson football team were named to national award watch lists Tuesday.
Last week, the Bednarik Award watch list was announced and Clemson football had no receivers named among those to watch in 2020. However, both the Nagurski and Outland Trophy Watch lists were announced today and several Tigers made the lists.
The Bronco Nagurski Trophy is given annually to the best defensive player in major college football. Since the award was first given in 1993, just one Clemson football player has won the award and that was Da’Quan Bowers in 2010.
This season Clemson has had two defensive players named to the watch list – fifth-year linebacker James Skalski and sophomore defensive tackle Tyler Davis.
While both are long shots to win the award, both are deserving of the praise after leading the Clemson defense in 2019. Besides Isaiah Simmons, both Skalski and Davis were major reasons for the Tigers’ ability to quickly move on despite losing three first-round draft picks from the 2018 national title team defense.
In total, 17 ACC players were named to the 2020 Bronco Nagurski Trophy watch list.
Clemson football land two on Outland Trophy watch list
Two Clemson football players were also among the 85 players around the country named to the 2020 Outland Trophy watch list. The Outland Trophy is given to the best offensive or defensive linemen in the country.
Junior offensive tackle Jackson Carman, as well as sophomore Tyler Davis, were both among the nine ACC players named to this preseason watch list; both are penciled in as starters for the second year in a row.
No Clemson football player has ever won the Outland Trophy in the 74-year history of the award. Matter of fact, just four ACC players have ever won the Outland Trophy Award – Mike McGee (Duke-1959), Randy White (Maryland-1974), Jim Ritcher (NC State-1979) and Aaron Donald (Pittsburgh-2013).
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Jackson Carman is projected to be the first-ever Clemson football offensive lineman drafted in the first round, so it would be appropriate for him to also be the first-ever Tiger to win the Outland Trophy.