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TCU cornerback Tre'Vius Hodges-Tomlinson (#1)
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Several TCU football players have garnered honors going into the 2021 college football season.
TCU junior cornerback Tre'Vius Hodges-Tomlinson has been named to the Preseason All-Big 12 defensive team, as chosen by media representatives who cover the league, has been named a
second-team preseason All-American by the Walter Camp Football Foundation, and has been named a Preseason All-Americans by Pro Football Focus.
Hodges-Tomlinson was 2020 First-Team All-Big 12 and received All-America
honors last season from the Associated Press and Pro Football Focus (PFF). PFF
rated him as the nation's highest-graded cornerback in coverage at
89.1, allowing just 12 catches on 45 targets over the final nine games
of the season. His 13 pass breakups led the Big 12 and were second
nationally. The junior had 26 stops on the season.
Junior defensive end Ochuan Mathis has
been named to the Preseason All-Big 12 defensive team, and he was named
second team edge rusher, Pro Football Focus Preseason All-Big 12 team.
Mathis also has been named to the watch list for the Rotary Lombardi Award, presented to the nation's best offensive or defensive lineman.
TCU All-Americans Jerry Hughes and Jake Kirkpatrick were finalists for the Rotary Lombardi Award in 2009 and 2010, respectively.
Last season, Mathis led the Big 12 and ranked 12th nationally in sacks per game at
0.9. A second-team all-conference selection last season, he recorded
a team-best nine sacks for the most by a Horned Frog since Mat Boesen had
11.5 in 2017. Mathis placed second on TCU with 14 tackles for loss (TFL),
which ranked third in the Big 12 and tied for 12th in the FBS. The
junior had at least one TFL in nine of 10 games and
placed fourth on TCU with 46 tackles. He started all 10 games, marking
his second straight season of starting every contest, and recorded a
career-best 3.0 sacks as part of six tackles in the 34-18 win over Texas
Tech.
Hodges-Tomlinson and Mathis have been named to the watch list for the
2021 Chuck Bednarik Award, presented to the nation's top defensive player. The duo also has been named to the watch list for the 2021 Bronko Nagurski Trophy, recognizing college football's defensive player of the year.
Hodges-Tomlinson has been named to the watch list for the Paycom Jim Thorpe Award, presented annually to the nation's top defensive back.
TCU's Tre'von Moehrig, now with the Las Vegas Raiders, was the 2020 recipient.
Hodges-Tomlinson also has been named to the watch list for the Lott IMPACT Trophy. Named after Pro Football Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott, the Lott IMPACT Trophy
recognizes the nation's top defensive player in terms of his impact on and off
the field.
TCU two-time consensus first-team All-America defensive end Jerry Hughes of the
Buffalo Bills was the 2009 Lott IMPACT Trophy recipient.
Hodges-Tomlinson is the nephew of TCU Board of Trustees member and Pro Football Hall of Famer LaDainian Tomlinson.
TCU quarterback Max Duggan has been named to the watch list
for the Maxwell Award, presented annually to the outstanding player in college
football. He also has been named to the watch list for the Davey O'Brien Award, which is presented to the nation's top quarterback. He has been named to the watch list for the Manning Award, the only
national quarterback award that includes the candidates' bowl
performance in its balloting. And he has been named to the watch list for the Johnny Unitas
Golden Arm Award, which is presented to the nation's top upperclassman
quarterback in college football.
The Manning Award was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in honor of the
college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning.
Duggan ran for a team-best 526 yards last season, making him the first
quarterback to lead TCU in rushing since Gil Bartosh in 1950 (710 yards).
He topped the Horned Frogs with 10 rushing touchdowns, the most by a TCU signal
caller since Kenny Hill had 10 in 2016. Duggan also became the first
TCU quarterback with multiple 100-yard rushing games in a season in the 20-year
Gary Patterson head coaching era. He rushed for a career-high and
team-best 154 yards and three touchdowns in a 34-18 win over Texas Tech,
including an 81-yard scoring run that was the longest by a
quarterback in TCU history and tied for 10th-bestoverall.
Former TCU standout quarterback Davey O'Brien was the 1938 recipient
of the Maxwell Award and, of course, the Davey O'Brien Award is name after him. O'Brien won the
1938 Heisman Trophy en route to leading the Horned Frogs to their second
national championship in four seasons.
TCU junior punter Jordy Sandy has been named to the watch list for the Ray Guy Award, honoring the nation's top collegiate punter.
Sandy, from Traralgon, Australia, was Second-Team All-Big 12
last season. His 41.0 punting average, which placed second in the Big 12, was
the highest by a Horned Frog since Ethan Perry's 44.5 mark in 2012.
He had
eight punts of at least 50 yards.
Sandy was instrumental in TCU placing second in the Big 12 in net
punting (38.9). He also serves as the holder on PATs and field goals.
TCU running back Zach Evans and
linebacker Hilton Harris have been named to the Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team.
Evans also has been named to the watch list of the Doak Walker Award.
To earn selection to the Academic All-Big 12 Rookie squad, freshmen in 2020-21 must have completed 24
semester hours and achieved a cumulative grade-point average of at least
3.0.
The Doak Walker Award is presented to the national top collegiate running back. TCU
Board of Trustees member and Pro Football Hall of Famer LaDainian
Tomlinson won the Doak Walker Award in 2000 as a Horned Frog.
Evans had a team-best 7.7
yards per carry average in 2020. It ranked third for a season in TCU
history and was second-best in the Big 12 for a true freshman dating back to
2008. The 7.7 average was also fourth nationally by a true freshman in a Power
Five Conference over the last six seasons.
Evans
placed third on
the Horned Frogs with 415 yards rushing while tying for second with four
rushing touchdowns in 2020. He topped 100 yards in two of the final
three games.
He ran for 130 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries in a 52-10
win over Louisiana Tech in the regular-season finale. His first career
100-yard game was in a 59-23 victory at
Kansas. He had 100 yards on 12 attempts. He ran for 81 yards on seven
carries in a 33-23 win at Baylor and had a one-yard, second-half
touchdown run in a 29-22 victory over No. 15 Oklahoma State.
Harris, a pre-major from Southlake, Texas, was a wide receiver last fall
before making the switch to linebacker in the spring.
Evans, Duggan and wide receiver Quentin Johnston have been named to the watch list for the Ninth Annual Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award.
The Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award recognizes the top offensive player
in Division I football who also exhibits the enduring characteristics
that define 1977 Heisman Trophy winner Earl Campbell: integrity,
performance, teamwork, sportsmanship, drive, community and tenacity —
specifically tenacity to persist and determination to overcome adversity
and injury in pursuit of reaching goals. In addition, the nominee must
meet one or more of the following criteria: born in Texas and/or
graduated from a Texas high school and/or played at a Texas-based junior
college or four-year Division I college in Texas.
Offensive lineman Steve Avila has been named to the watch list for the 2021 Rimington Trophy, which is given to the nation's top center.
A junior from Arlington, Texas, Avila was an Honorable-Mention All-Big
12 recipient last season. He started all nine games he played and was
the only Horned Frog to start at three different positions on the
offensive line. He made six starts at center, two at right tackle and
one at right guard.
TCU All-American Jake Kirkpatrick was the 2010 recipient of the Rimington Trophy.
Senior lineman/snapper Antonio Ortiz has been selected to the watch list for the Patrick Mannelly Award, presented to the best FBS senior long snapper. The award is named after longtime NFL snapper Patrick Mannelly, who played 16 years (1998-2013) with the Chicago Bears.
Ortiz will be in his fourth season as the Horned Frogs' snapper.
He has started all 32 games he has played
and is a two-time First-Team Academic All-Big 12 recipient.
TCU
receiver JD Spielman, and Johnston, have been named first-team
receivers on Pro Football Focus' Preseason All-Big 12 team. Pro Football Focus is a website that focuses on thorough
analysis of the National Football League and NCAA Division-I football in the
United States.
Spielman, the son of Minnesota Vikings GM Rick Spielman, transferred
to TCU before the 2020 season but ran only 49 routes across three games due to
a season-ending injury. He’s entering a sixth year of a collegiate career.
Johnston is a 6-foot-4, 193-pound wide receiver. He
ran 214 routes in his 2020 freshman campaign and closed out the year with two
astounding performances. Against Oklahoma State and Louisiana Tech, Johnston
produced a 91.1 receiving grade and five receptions that resulted in 15-plus-yard gains. He hauled in five go-routes for 267 yards in 2020
and broke 16 tackles on 22 receptions. He averaged 8.9 yards after the catch,
per reception.
TCU punt returner Derius Davis has been named a Preseason All-American by Pro Football Focus, and a Preseason All-American punt returner by Phil
Steele's College Football Preview.
Davis also has been named to the watch list for the Paul Hornung Award, recognizing the nation's most versatile player. TCU All-American Jeremy Kerley, who played eight seasons in the NFL, was a 2010 finalist for the Paul Hornung Award.
Davis led the Big 12 and ranked fifth nationally last season in punt return
average at 14.5 yards. He was one of only three players in the FBS with two
punt returns for touchdowns, reaching the end zone from 67 and 37 yards against
Baylor and Kansas, respectively. He is tied for second in TCU history with
three career punt return touchdowns on 17 attempts.
Davis, a senior, placed fourth on the
Horned Frogs in 2020 with 15 receptions and had a career-best game with
six catches for 139 yards, including a 71-yard touchdown, in a 29-22
late-season win over No. 15 Oklahoma State.
Other Frogs named to Pro Football Focus' Preseason All-Big 12 team:
- Steve Avila, Second-Team Interior Offensive Line
- Noah Daniels, second-team, cornerback
- T.J. Carter, second-team, flex defense
- Zach Evans, third-team running back
- Obinna Eze, third-team offensive tackler
- Khari Coleman, third-team edge
- Corey Bethley, honorable-mention, interior defensive line
- Kenny Turnier, honorable-mention, interior defensive line
- Jordy Sandy, honorable-mention, punter
TCU offensive tackle Obinna Eze has been named to the watch list for the Wuerffel Trophy, presented
annually to the FBS player who best combines exemplary community service
with leadership achievement on and off the field.
Eze is in his first season at TCU
after playing the past four years at Memphis. He started all 25 games at
left tackle the last two seasons for the Tigers, including the 2019
team that won the American Athletic Conference Championship and earned a
Cotton Bowl berth.
Eze has been involved in a myriad of community work and volunteerism
throughout his time at Davidson Academy in Nashville and at Memphis,
including assisting at juvenile centers and working with Under the
Bridge Ministries in helping feed the homeless. He was also active with
Memphis Athletics for Diversity & Equality (UMADE) to eradicate
systemic racism and promote social justice.
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