Gallup falls just short of Biletnikoff Award

But Colorado State’s star receiver named an All-American

Colorado State wide receiver Michael Gallup’s extraordinary 2017 season ranked among the best in college football, but his bid for the Biletnikoff Award fell just short.

Oklahoma State’s James Washington was crowned as the nation’s top pass catcher Thursday night in Atlanta during ESPN’s telecast of “The Home Depot College Football Awards Show.” It marked the seventh time over the past 11 seasons that the winner was chosen from a Big 12 Conference team.

Gallup — a senior who transferred to CSU from Butler (Kan.) Community College in 2016 — has 94 receptions for 1,345 yards this year, both ranked in the top five nationally.

Gallup was the first Football Bowl Subdivision player to eclipse 1,000 yards receiving this year and is one of only two players with multiple 200-yard games. Gallup also earned firstteam all-Mountain West honors as a senior.

Though he didn’t win the Biletnikoff Award, Gallup was named a first-team All-American on Thursday by the Walter Camp Foundation, one of five All-America teams recognized by

The finalists

A statistical breakdown of how CSU’s Michael Gallup compared to his fellow Biletnikoff Award finalists:

James Washington, Oklahoma State :69 receptions, 1,423 yards and 12 touchdowns

Michael Gallup, CSU: 94 receptions, 1,345 yards and seven touchdowns

David Sills, West Virginia: 60 receptions, 980 yards and 18 touchdowns the NCAA.

“Obviously, everybody wants to win any award they get up for, but it was just an honor for me to be here with all these great players,” Gallup said in Atlanta. “Not very many people can say they were an All-American. That’s just something that I wanted to do, to try to get on that list, and I did it. So I got one of my goals out of the way.”

CSU fans will have two more opportunities to watch Gallup play before the NFL draft next spring. Gallup has accepted an invitation to play in the Senior Bowl on Jan. 7 in Mobile, Ala., and he also will play for the Rams against Marshall in the New Mexico Bowl in Albuquerque on Dec. 16.