Summer Predictions for Every Major College Football Award
When it comes to trophies, the one every college football player and coach hopes to get their hands on is the shiny gold obelisk that's given out following the national championship.
But taking home some individual hardware along the way isn't a bad consolation prize, especially when it's for an award that signifies a player or coach is the best of his kind in the country.
Watch lists have already started popping up for some of the many individual awards that college football offers, and as the 2015 season progresses those lists will be pared down to semifinalists and finalists before winners are announced in December.
We're going to go ahead and take a stab at picking those winners now, and maybe we'll get a few right. Last year saw two players (Oregon's Marcus Mariota and Arizona's Scooby Wright) claim eight total trophies, but in the spirit of spreading the wealth we're picking someone different for every award.
Check out our predictions for the major college football awards, then give us your thoughts in the comments section.
Frank Broyles Award
1 of 21
Award type: Top assistant coach
Predicted winner: Brent Venables, Clemson
Defense has coursed through Venables' blood for more than 20 years, dating back to his time playing for Bill Snyder at Kansas State in the early 1990s. His fiery nature is picked up by his players, who respond with the same kind of intensity on the field.
In his three years with Clemson, he's gone from inheriting a defense that ranked 71st in 2011 to one that was tops in the nation last year, allowing 260.8 yards per game. Only four starters return from that unit, but those returners (and the backups and newcomers) will all play with a drive that oozes Venables' influence and should again be a strength for the Tigers.
Broyles winners tend to be assistants whose names are bandied about for head-coaching opportunities. Last year's winner, Ohio State offensive coordinator Tom Herman, is now in charge of Houston, while 2013 winner Pat Narduzzi of Michigan State stuck around one more season before taking the Pittsburgh job this offseason.
Venables wasn't connected to head jobs last winter, though major programs with defensive coordinator openings (Auburn, LSU, Texas A&M) looked his way, per George Schroeder of USA Today.
Burlsworth Trophy
2 of 21
Award type: Top former walk-on
Predicted winner: Jack Conklin, Michigan State
Even with 85 scholarships available to give out, FBS teams need more than that number of players to be able to fill out their rosters and have adequate depth for practice. Walk-ons help fill that void, and occasionally they manage to do enough to earn a scholarship.
Conklin was a preferred walk-on at Michigan State in 2012, but after redshirting that first season and providing a huge boost to the Spartans' scout team he was given a scholarship the following spring. By the end of 2013, he was a freshman All-American, starting 13 games at both tackle spots and helping MSU win the Big Ten title and the Rose Bowl.
He's now started 26 straight games at left tackle, and heading into his junior year he's listed by Bleacher Report NFL draft expert Matt Miller as the No. 14 player for the 2016 draft.
Ray Guy Award
3 of 21
Award type: Top punter
Predicted winner: JK Scott, Alabama
The hot new trend in college football is to pick up a punter from Australia, tapping into that country's love of football (the Australian rules variety) and turning it into a valuable weapon in the special teams game. The last two Ray Guy winners have come from Down Under, most recently Utah's Tom Hackett.
But good punters still exist in America, and Scott will buck that trend and give Alabama another trophy to add to its collection.
As a freshman, the Denver-born Scott led FBS with 48.0-yard average, best in school history. He was credited as the Crimson Tide's special teams player of the week eight times, most notably after helping them knock off unbeaten Mississippi State with three punts that landed inside the 10-yard line.
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Lou Groza Award
4 of 21
Award type: Top kicker
Predicted winner: Roberto Aguayo, Florida State
Only one player has won the Lou Groza Award more than once, though Aguayo should have been the second from his school to do so but he surprisingly finished second to Maryland's Brad Craddock in last year's voting. Otherwise, we'd be discussing the strong potential of the first three-peat for the Groza, which has been awarded since 1992.
Sebastian Janikowski won it for the Seminoles in both 1998 and 1999, while fellow FSU alum Graham Gano took home the award in 2008. Aguayo won it as a freshman in 2013, when he made 21-of-22 field goals and set an FBS record for points by a kicker with 157.
Last season, Aguayo became even more valuable, as FSU's offense struggled to score in the red zone, as he made 27-of-30 field goals.
FSU could need his reliable leg even more this fall, with so much turnover on offense, and he's shown to this point he can make the kicks when needed.
Paul Hornung Award
5 of 21
Award type: Most versatile player
Predicted winner: Adoree' Jackson, USC
Though in an ideal world every college football coach would prefer to have every player stick to one position and just focus on those duties, sometimes injuries or depth concerns make that not possible. And sometimes it's because there's a player who is just too good to limit to a single role.
Washington linebacker/running back Shaq Thompson showed that in 2014, scoring touchdowns on both offense and defense for the Huskies, and USC sophomore Jackson could one up that by finding paydirt in three ways.
Last year Jackson started at cornerback for much of the season for the Trojans, but also made starts at wide receiver, including on both sides against Notre Dame. He was also USC's top return man, scoring two touchdowns on kickoffs to go with his three on receptions, and he also registered four tackles for loss and broke up nine passes.
Jim Thorpe Award
6 of 21
Award type: Top defensive back
Predicted winner: Vernon Hargreaves III, Florida
As much as Florida has struggled the past two seasons, there's one area where this hasn't been the case. Actually, it's more been like one side of the field on defense, that being the area that Hargreaves has patrolled for the Gators.
In his two seasons Hargreaves has intercepted six passes and broken up another 24, numbers that are limited by the fact that most teams won't throw his way.
Hargreaves is so well-regarded that he's already become a comparison point for high school prospects, such as 5-star Florida State defensive back commit Levonta Taylor. Rated as the No. 6 overall player in the 2016 class by 247Sports, Taylor took to Twitter (h/t CollegeFootballTalk) to say he was better than Hargreaves, a clear sign that the Florida corner has achieved top-tier status.
Dick Butkus Award
7 of 21
Award type: Top linebacker
Predicted winner: Scooby Wright, Arizona
Despite winning three other national defensive awards last year, Wright somehow wasn't even a finalist for the honor given to the best player at his position. That will change in 2015, as the Arizona junior will add this trophy to the Bednarik, Lombardi and Nagurski awards he got in 2014.
Wright led the nation in tackles (163), tackles for loss (29) and forced fumbles last year (six), finishing fourth in sacks as well as being the driving force of an otherwise underperforming Wildcats defense. However, he came up big in key moments, such as a late strip sack of Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota that sealed Arizona's upset win over the Ducks last October.
With 2014 winner Eric Kendricks of UCLA now in the NFL, there's no reason that Wright doesn't win this award if he comes close to matching last year's performance.
Ted Hendricks Award
8 of 21
Award type: Top defensive end
Predicted winner: Shawn Oakman, Baylor
Aside from striking one of the most intimidating poses of any defensive player, there's more to the 6'9", 280-pound Oakman than just his stature. He's also a monster off the edge, one who is unstoppable when he gets a head of steam and builds momentum toward the quarterback or ball-carrier.
Oakman is still scratching the surface of his talent, having sat out his first two years of college after redshirting at Penn State and then transferring to Baylor, but last season he erupted with a school-record 11 sacks, 19.5 tackles for loss and three forced fumbles.
Likely a high pick had he turned pro after 2014, Oakman now has a chance to be one of the first selections in the 2016 draft.
Bronko Nagurski Trophy
9 of 21
Award type: Top defensive player
Predicted winner: Joey Bosa, Ohio State
A finalist last year for the Hendricks, Lombardi and Outland trophies, Bosa didn't win any of them. Don't expect that to be the case this season, as the junior (and possibly No. 1 overall draft pick) figures to be in the running for nearly every major award if he puts up another year like 2014.
Bosa had 13.5 tackles for loss and 21 sacks last season, though he believes there were a lot of big plays he missed out on by not giving full effort.
"I saw five or six sacks that I could have had," Bosa told ESPN's Austin Ward. "A lot of the times I was just doing my own thing, just because I felt like I always had to go and make that play to change the game. Watching the film I could see that plays could just fall into my lap and as long as I'm doing my job, I'll make even more plays."
Because Ohio State has so many strong defenders, it's not possible to focus too many blockers on Bosa. He'll capitalize on that and with 21 career sacks take a serious run at Mike Vrabel's school record of 36.
Chuck Bednarik Award
10 of 21
Award type: Top defensive player
Predicted winner: Jaylon Smith, Notre Dame
While they played different linebacker positions for the Fighting Irish, that's one of the few things that isn't similar between Smith and Manti Te'o, who won the 2012 Bednarik Award among many others. Watching Smith play, it's hard not to see a lot of what made Te'o such an important piece of Notre Dame's trip to the BCS National Championship Game and how Smith is poised to do the same.
Smith, a junior, has started all 26 games in his college career, and last year he had 112 tackles with 3.5 sacks and nine tackles for loss. That was at middle linebacker, but this spring he cross-trained outside and could end up playing all over the field to maximize his talents.
This will make him just as valuable to run-stopping as to dropping back into pass protection, similar to how he played as a freshman. Put it all together, and it's the kind of expectations you'd place on the nation's top defender.
Outland Trophy
11 of 21
Award type: Top lineman
Predicted winner: Max Tuerk, USC
Given to players on either side of the line of scrimmage, the Outland Trophy has gone to an offensive or defensive tackle nine straight years and 16 of the past 17. Tuerk will end that run by being the first center to win the award since 2005, though in reality he fits into the category of past winners since he's started at every spot on the offensive line.
Tuerk is heading into his second year as USC's starting center, but prior to that he started 14 games at left guard, five at left tackle and one at right tackle.
Last season Tuerk was the veteran presence on a line that started three freshmen.
Vince Lombardi Award
12 of 21
Award type: Top lineman
Predicted winner: Robert Nkemdiche, Ole Miss
Recruited as a defensive end but converted into an interior lineman, Nkemdiche can still play any spot on the line despite having nearly 300 pounds on his 6'4" frame.
Don't look at Nkemdiche's numbers to understand his importance, as last year he had only two sacks and four tackles for loss among 35 total tackles. His value was best noticed in Ole Miss' overall defensive performance, ranking 13th in yards allowed and first in scoring defense.
"I always have a motor on me and try to make things happen to free up other guys or do it for me," Nkemdiche told Hugh Kellenberger of the Clarion-Ledger. "I just want to disrupt the game, and that's what I'm going to do by being in the backfield as much as I can."
As a result, Nkemdiche was named a second-team All-American by CBS Sports, USA Today and the Associated Press in 2014, and this season he'll be the nation's top defensive lineman.
John Mackey Award
13 of 21
Award type: Top tight end
Predicted winner: Hunter Henry, Arkansas
Few teams use the tight end position as much as Arkansas, which often has two or three of them on the field at the same time. This is usually for run-blocking purposes, but the Razorbacks' big-bodied receivers also are very involved in the passing game.
Henry was second on the team with 37 receptions and 513 yards with two touchdowns in 2014, using every bit of his 6'5", 250-pound frame to block out defenders on passing routes.
"Henry gives Bret Bielema's offense a traditional in-line weapon who is the most complete tight end in the country," Matt Brown of Sports On Earth wrote.
Fred Biletnikoff Award
14 of 21
Award type: Top wide receiver
Predicted winner: Rashard Higgins, Colorado State
Higgins played fewer games than most of the top wide receivers in the country last year, missing one because of injury and not having the luxury of a conference title contest or playoffs to beef his numbers up. He still led FBS in yardage (1,750) and touchdowns (17), and his development was a big reason that Jim McElwain was able to land the Florida job.
Colorado State is now under the guidance of Mike Bobo, who at Georgia had some great receivers to work with but none might have been as skilled as the 6'2", 188-pound Higgins. Certainly none as prolific, or as consistent, as Higgins had a three-game stretch with at least 175 receiving yards in each game.
The last player to do that was Texas Tech's Michael Crabtree, in 2007, en route to his first of two consecutive Biletnikoff awards.
Doak Walker Award
15 of 21
Award type: Top running back
Predicted winner: Nick Chubb, Georgia
The early Heisman odds for 2015 (per OddsShark.com) have five running backs among the top 10 contenders, but Chubb isn't the first among those ball-carriers. That would be Ohio State's Ezekiel Elliott, who after rolling over three top teams during the postseason has spent much of the offseason as the Heisman favorite.
Chubb is a strong contender for that award, too, but his better bet is being named the nation's top rusher, especially if Georgia's quarterback situation remains muddy. With the way Chubb ran in 2014, there's no need to put too much pressure on that passer, anyways.
After getting only a handful of carries during the first five games in 2014, Chubb took over for Todd Gurley when he was suspended (and later lost for the year to a knee injury) and made a player who went 10th overall in this year's NFL draft seem like a distant memory. Chubb topped 100 yards in all eight games, capped by a 266-yard effort in Georgia's Belk Bowl win over Louisville.
Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award
16 of 21
Award type: Top senior quarterback
Predicted winner: Cody Kessler, USC
The only major award that's both position- and class-specific, the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award is somewhat of a lifetime-achievement honor that rewards those who stick it out and make it to their senior years rather than jumping to the pros as soon as possible. It can technically go to an academic senior, too, which is why Oregon's Marcus Mariota won it in 2014 as a redshirt junior.
This year's crop of senior quarterbacks is among the best ever, but Cody Kessler gets the nod because of what he's been able to accomplish at USC despite not being the kind of passer the Trojans have been known for over the years.
Listed at 6'1" and 215 pounds, Kessler is "the runt of the litter compared to his statuesque predecessors," Grantland's Matt Hinton wrote. While Kessler is smaller than the likes of Matt Barkley, Matt Leinart, Carson Palmer and Mark Sanchez, he's no less successful. Last year, he threw for 3,826 yards and 39 touchdowns, with just five interceptions and a 69.7 percent completion rate on 452 attempts.
For his career, Kessler has completed 67.9 percent of his throws.
Davey O'Brien Award
17 of 21
Award type: Top quarterback
Predicted winner: Connor Cook, Michigan State
The last five Davey O'Brien winners also happened to claim the Heisman Trophy, and Connor Cook figures to be in the hunt for that award as well. But even if his performance this year doesn't rise to the level of the greatest player in the country, it will still be worthy of recognition from a quarterback standpoint.
The O'Brien is meant for a player who shows great "teamwork, sportsmanship and leadership," per the award's website, and that description fits Cook perfectly. His selflessness was evident when he passed up a chance to go high in the 2015 NFL draft to play his senior year at Michigan State. In doing so, Cook cited "unfinished business"; potentially a national championship, something that's possible with him in place for a third year as the starter.
Cook threw for 3,214 yards and 24 touchdowns last season, but this year, he no longer has his top two receivers (Tony Lippett and Keith Mumphery) from that team. If he can put up big numbers again while leading MSU to a strong season, Cook will be more than worthy of this award.
Walter Camp Award
18 of 21
Award type: Player of the year
Predicted winner: Dak Prescott, Mississippi State
When Mississippi State jumped out to a 9-0 start last season, its best in program history, Dak Prescott was one of the top challengers to Mariota for the Heisman. But the Bulldogs struggled down the stretch, thus tarnishing Prescott's resume, and he finished a distant eighth.
Where Prescott finishes in that race this year will again likely depend on how MSU performs as a team, but his individual play should again be strong enough to warrant being chosen by the Walter Camp Foundation. The trophy is actually voted on by FBS coaches and their sports information directors, many of whom have been wowed by Prescott's versatility over the past two seasons.
With MSU losing running back Josh Robinson to the NFL, Prescott could end up being even more of the Bulldogs offense than he was last year, when he accounted for 4,435 yards of total offense and 42 touchdowns.
Maxwell Award
19 of 21
Award type: Outstanding player
Predicted winner: Ezekiel Elliott, Ohio State
Of the three national player of the year awards, the Maxwell is the one that tends to buck the trend and pick someone different from those selected by the Walter Camp and Heisman voters. Last year was an exception, with Mariota claiming all three.
The same could be the case this year. Ezekiel Elliott has a shot at all three, but with Ohio State also likely to have a Heisman candidate emerge from its quarterback competition, Elliott might struggle to get all of the votes from that portion of the country.
The same won't be the case with the Maxwell, which has routinely identified the player who means the most to his team. That was Mariota last year, Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron in 2013 and Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o before that.
It's hard to argue how valuable Elliott was to the Buckeyes during their national title run, as he had his three best games during the postseason. Against Wisconsin, Alabama and Oregon, the sophomore had 696 yards and eight touchdowns, finishing the year with 1,878 yards and 18 scores.
Home Depot Award
20 of 21
Award type: Coach of the year
Predicted winner: Nick Saban, Alabama
He has four national titles, which he has won at two different schools, one of only two coaches to have done that (along with Ohio State's Urban Meyer). He makes more money than anyone else in college football, by a wide margin, and has amassed the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation for the fifth year in a row.
Yet Nick Saban has won this award just once, in 2008, a year in which Alabama didn't win (or even play for) the national championship after it lost to eventual national champion Florida in the SEC title game and then fell to Utah in the Sugar Bowl.
Since then, he's led the Crimson Tide to three national titles, but in those years, the Home Depot Award went to Brian Kelly twice and to Les Miles, with two of those winners being the coach of the team Saban beat for the championship (Notre Dame and LSU).
Alabama should be in the hunt for another championship this season, and while the overwhelming amount of talent on the roster will play a big role in that, someone has to be coaching those stars. Because Saban has won so much and so often, he doesn't always get credit for those accomplishments, but this season, he will.
Heisman Trophy
21 of 21
Award type: College football's top player
Predicted winner: Trevone Boykin, TCU
The Heisman voters have spoken over the past few years, and it's clear what they like to see: a quarterback with a strong, accurate arm but one who can also beat you with his legs if needed. Robert Griffin III, Cam Newton, Johnny Manziel, Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota were all this type of player, and the one who best fits that description in 2015 is Trevone Boykin.
Last season, we saw Boykin transform himself into one of the most dynamic players in the country, a year after he struggled to stay on the field and had to be shuffled around multiple positions just to get touches. But in 2014, he put it all together, amassing 4,608 yards of total offense and providing TCU with 42 touchdowns.
Not surprisingly, the Horned Frogs were one of the biggest breakout teams of the year, going from 4-8 the season before to Big 12 co-champions and a College Football Playoff contender that turned a semifinal snub into a motivated 42-3 win over Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl. That was actually one of Boykin's least impressive games of the season, though he still threw three TD passes.
TCU is front and center in the playoff discussion again this year—but from the outset this time, not joining the conversation midway through. That means Boykin will be a Heisman contender all year long, and as he pushes the Frogs toward a national title bid, he'll lift himself onto the stage in New York City in December to accept college football's top individual honor.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
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