Alabama’s Tagovailoa leads OU’s Murray in Player of the Year awards
ATLANTA — Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa topped Oklahoma’s Kyler Murray in college football player of the year awards on Thursday, 2-1.
Players were recognized Thursday during the college football awards show in Atlanta.
Tagovailoa won the Walter Camp and Maxwell awards and Murray was named The Associated Press Player of the Year.
Murray also won the Davey O’Brien as top quarterback. Tagovailoa was a finalists for that, too.
Now, they will head to New York for the Heisman Trophy presentation tonight. The other finalists is Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins, and for the first time in a few years, the Heisman ceremony will have some drama.
Tagovailoa took the Maxwell over Murray and West Virginia quarterback Will Grier. The Walter Camp Award was announced right before the show started.
The last five winners of the Walter Camp have gone on to win the Heisman, but only five Heisman winners have failed to win AP Player of the Year since the award started in 1998.
Murray beat out Tagovailoa and Washington State’s Gardner Minshew II for the Davey O’Brien. The other finalists for the Walter Camp were Murray, Minshew, Grier and Kentucky linebacker Josh Allen.
Allen won the Chuck Bednarik Award as the nation’s top defensive player, beating out Alabama defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and Clemson defensive tackle. Allen is the first Kentucky player to win a major college football award since 1950.
Earlier in the night, the Disney Spirit Award went to Purdue fan Tyler Trent, the 19-year-old student who is battling cone cancer. Trent gained fame when he was profiled by ESPN’s “College GameDay” before the Boilermakers played Ohio State. He was able to attend the game against the Buckeyes and predicted Purdue’s upset.
Williams earlier won the Outland Trophy as the nation’s best interior lineman, beating out Clemson defensive tackle Christian Wilkins and Alabama offensive tackle Jonah Williams. Quinnen Williams is the fifth Alabama player to win the Outland.
Texas A&M’s Braden Mann won the Ray Guy Award as the nation’s best punter. He is averaging 51.15 yards per punt, a school record and challenging an NCAA record. Cincinnati’s James Smith and Utah’s Mitch Wishnowsky were the other finalists.
Alabama’s Jerry Jeudy won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation’s top wide receiver, beating out UMass star Andy Isabella and Oklahoma State’s Tylan Wallace. Jeudy is the second Crimson Tide player to win the Biletnikoff, joining Amari Cooper.
Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly was named the the Home Depot coach of the year, one of three major awards announced Wednesday night, the day before the college football awards show.
LSU’s Devin White won the Butkus Award as the nation’s top linebacker, becoming the first Tigers player to win the award.
Iowa’s T.J. Hockenson won the John Mackey Award as the nation’s top tight end. He is the first sophomore to win the award in its 19 years.
Georgia cornerback Deandre Baker is the first Bulldogs’ player to win the Thorpe Award as the nation’s top defensive back. The senior beat out LSU cornerback Greedy Williams and Notre Dame cornerback Julian Love.
Wisconsin’s Jonathan Taylor, the nation’s leading rusher, became the fourth Badgers player to win the Doak Walker. That ties Texas for the most of any school. He beat out Memphis’ Darrell Henderson and Clemson’s Travis Etienne.
Syracuse freshman Andre Szmyt won the Lou Groza as top kicker, beating out Cooper Rothe of Wyoming and Cole Tracy of LSU.