Preseason awards season keeps on rolling! Last week, the Maxwell Award, Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Outland Trophy, Jim Thorpe Award, Paul Hornung Award, Wuerffel Trophy, Ray Gay Award, and Lou Groza Awards were all previewed. This week, starting with the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award, there are six watchlists to be revealed.
The Walter Camp Award is another Player of the Year award in college football and has been given out each year since 1967. The award is named after Walter Camp, one of the forefathers of American football. He served on numerous award committees in the late 1800s and helped shape the game.
Nine Big Ten Players Land on Walter Camp Award Watchlist
The Buckeye Offensive Playmakers
The preseason award watchlists continue loving the Buckeyes. Ohio State is tied with Notre Dame with three on the Walter Camp Award watchlist, the most in the nation.
Emeka Egbuka is a fourth-year receiver and is expected to return to his 2022 form. Last year, he was hamstrung by injuries and finished with a 41-catch, 515-yard campaign with four touchdowns. The year prior is the source of all of the hype. In his first season as a starter in the Ohio State offense, Egbuka hauled in 74 passes for 1,151 yards and 10 touchdowns for the Buckeyes. He’s within striking distance of breaking a long-standing career receiving yards program record.
A pair of transfers Will Howard and Quinshon Judkins join Egbuka on this loaded offense. After spending the last four seasons with the Kansas State Wildcats, Howard has seemingly won the quarterback job. With the Wildcats, he finished with 5,786 yards and 48 touchdowns and helped lead his team to the Big 12 Championship two years ago.
Judkins, on the other hand, was a massive get by Ohio State’s coaches from the portal. He’s set to be part of a top-tier one-two punch alongside TreVeyon Henderson. A two-time First-Team All-SEC running back, Judkins comes to Ohio State with 2,725 yards and 31 touchdowns. Every report out of Fall Camp has been raving about the new running back.
A Pair From the Wolverine Offense
The Michigan defense is set to be the strength of the team but the Walter Camp Award shortlist had a pair of offensive playmakers highlighted. Donovan Edwards is easily one of the top running backs in the conference despite a down year last year. In that 2022 season, he ran for 991 yards and seven touchdowns. Last year, he had just 393 yards and three scores heading into the College Football Playoff National Championship. There, he reminded what he could do with a 104-yard, two-touchdown game to win it.
There is only one tight end on the Walter Camp Award watchlist and it’s Colston Loveland. Heading into 2024, Loveland is considered to be among the nation’s best at the position and will likely have just as strong of a season this year. Last year, he broke out as more of a receiving threat. He appeared in all 15 games and recorded at least one catch in each. In total, Loveland amassed 649 yards and four touchdowns with 45 catches for the Wolverines.
Both Sides Represented from Penn State
Of all of the Big Ten programs represented on the Walter Camp Award watchlist, Penn State is the only one with players from both sides of the ball. The Nittany Lions have a two-headed monster at running back. However, only Nicholas Singleton has been racking up preseason honors. Both he and Kaytron Allen have been two of the best in the Big Ten in their two years sharing the backfield. Singleton had a massive freshman year and took a step back last year. In total, Singleton comes into his junior season with 1,813 yards and 20 touchdowns on the ground.
Meanwhile, Abdul Carter is moving from linebacker to defensive end this fall. After earning First-Team All-Big Ten honors as a linebacker, Carter will be looking to make an impact on the defensive line. Last year, he made 48 tackles, five-and-a-half tackles for loss, four-and-a-half sacks, five pass breakups, an interception, and a forced fumble.
Two From Out West
Two of the new West Coast programs to join the Big Ten have one player each. To start, Oregon sends a new quarterback, Dillon Gabriel. For the past few years, Gabriel has been one of the most productive quarterbacks in the nation. He’s thrown for over 3,100 yards four times already, totally a mind-boggling 14,865 yards and 125 touchdowns between three years at UCF and two at Oklahoma. Both totals are the eighth-most in college football history.
Zachariah Branch is USC’s do-it-all sophomore. As a receiver, Branch was the third-leading receiver with 31 catches for 320 yards and two scores. This year, he will be able to show off why he was the top-ranked receiver in the 2023 recruiting class. On the ground, he added nine rushes for 70 yards and a touchdown on offense. Branch is also a prolific return man. On the year, he returned 24 kicks for an average of 18.4 yards per and took one back for a touchdown. As a punt returner, he averaged 20.8 yards on 16 returns and another score.
