LSU Football Has Six on Lombardi Watch List

BATON ROUGE, La. – On Thursday afternoon, the Rotary Lombardi Award Preliminary Watch List was announced with six Tigers making the cut in Kendell Beckwith, Leonard Fournette, Davon Godchaux, Arden Key, Lewis Neal and Ethan Pocic.

 

The six LSU football players were among 158 candidates to make the initial list for the award to the player that demonstrates outstanding performance and skill in offensive or defensive positions and best exemplify the discipline, virtue and wisdom that defined Vincent Lombardi’s exceptional brand of leadership.

 

The players selected for the watch list were chosen by earning All-American honors, being named to their respective all-conference teams, or by receiving 2016 pre-season honors.

 

Beckwith, on the watch lists for the Butkus, Nagurski and Bednarik awards, returned to LSU for his senior season this year and is coming off of a junior campaign where he finished second on the team in tackles with 84, including have 10.0 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks.

 

After setting the single-season record for rushing yards with 1,953, Fournette embarks on his junior season after leading the Southeastern Conference and the nation in rushing a year ago averaging 162.8 yards per carry on the ground and scoring 22 touchdowns, with four of those coming in the Texas Bowl win over Texas Tech in December.

 

A two-year starter at defensive tackle, Godchaux started 12 games at the position as a sophomore in 2015 in helping LSU have one of the stingiest running defenses in the conference allowing just 122.9 yards per game, earning 6.0 sacks and 9.0 tackles for loss on the year.

 

Key was named a Freshman All-American by ESPN.com and 247 Sports, along with being named to the SEC All-Freshman Team after he played in all 12 games and starting the last nine last year, collecting 41 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and 5.0 sacks.

 

The second of the senior trio to make the cut includes Neal, currently on the watch list for the Nagurski and Hendricks Awards. Neal’s 8.0 sacks in 2015 tied for the 10^th most in a single year for an LSU defender, starting all 12 games at defensive end where he was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Week after registering three sacks against Florida.

 

The final Tiger to make the cut is Pocic who twice last season was named the SEC’s Offensive Lineman of the Week, making all 12 starts at center in helping LSU’s potent rushing attack rank as high as seventh nationally with over 250 yards per game.

 

Following the preliminary watch list, a nomination period will open to the internal selection committee to add additional players who meet the skill and leadership standards set forth for the Rotary Lombardi Award. The award ceremony date will be announced later in the football season along with updated lists of award candidates.

 

Name, Position, School

Montravius Adams, DT, Auburn

Otaro Alaka, OLB, Texas A&M

Brian Allen, OG, Michigan State

Jonathan Allen, DE, Alabama

Ryan Anderson, OLB, Alabama

Zach Banner, OT, USC

Saquon Barkley, RB, Penn State

Derek Barnett, DE, Tennessee

J.T. Barrett, QB, Ohio State

C.J. Beathard, QB, Iowa

Kendell Beckwith, ILB, LSU

Vince Biegel, OLB, Wisconsin

Adam Bisnowaty, OT, Pittsburgh

Ben Boulware, ILB, Clemson

Caleb Brantley, DT, Florida

Matt Breida, RB, Georgia Southern

DeAngelo Brown, DT, Louisville

Orlando Brown, OT, Oklahoma

Jake Browning, QB, Washington

Riley Bullough, ILB, Michigan State

Jake Butt, TE, Michigan

Tom Cameron, C, Southern Miss

Josh Carraway, DE, TCU

Lorenzo Carter, OLB, Georgia

Nick Chubb, RB, Georgia

Corey Clement, RB, Wisconsin

Mason Cole, C, Michigan

James Conner, RB, Pittsburgh

Dalvin Cook, RB, Florida State

Tyrell Crosby, OT, Oregon

Troy Crowder, OG, Clemson

Zach Cunningham, ILB, Vanderbilt

Ed Davis,  OLB, Michigan State

Jarrad Davis, OLB, Florida

J.J. Dielman, OT, Utah

Josh Dobbs, QB, Tennessee

Evan Engram, TE, Ole Miss

Pat Elflein, C, Ohio State

Luke Falk, QB, Washington State

Folorunso Fatukasi, DT, Connecticut

Dan Feeney, OG, Indiana

Devonte Fields, DE, Louisville

Salamo Fiso, OLB, Arizona State

Kylie Fitts, DE, Vanderbilt

Reuben Foster, ILB, Alabama

Leonard Fournette, RB, LSU

Royce Freeman, RB, Oregon

Kyle Fuller, C, Baylor

Wayne Gallman, RB, Clemson

Myles Gaskin, RB, Washington

Myles Garrett, DE, Texas A&M

Avery Gennesy, OT, Texas A&M

Ryan Glasgow, DT, Michigan

Davon Godchaux, DT, LSU

Colby Gossett, OT, Appalachian State

Jay Guillermo, C, Clemson

Daeshon Hall, DE, Texas A&M

Darius Hamilton, DT, Rutgers

Da’Shawn Hand, DT, Alabama

Charles Harris, DE, Missouri

Marquis Haynes, DE, Ole Miss

Jon Heck, OT, North Carolina

Bucky Hodges, TE, Virginia Tech

Deon Hollins, OLB, UCLA

Elijah Hood, RB, North Carolina

O.J. Howard, TE, Alabama

Sam Hubbard, DE, Ohio State

Jalen Hurd, RB, Tennessee

Maurice Hurst, DT, Michigan

Mitch Hyatt, OT, Clemson

Martez Ivey, OG, Florida

Malik Jefferson, ILB, Texas

Josey Jewell, ILB, Iowa

Dorian Johnson, OG, Pittsburgh

Jaleel Johnson, DT,  Iowa

Roderick Johnson, OT, Florida State

D.J. Jones, DT, Ole Miss

Jarron Jones, DT, Notre Dame

Nazair Jones, DT, North Carolina

Brad Kaaya, QB, Miami

Kyle Kalis, OG, Michigan

Chad Kelly, QB, Ole Miss

Keith Kelsey, ILB, Louisville

Arden Key, DE, LSU

Micah Kiser, ILB, Virginia

George Kittle, TE, Iowa

Forrest Lamp, OT, Western Kentucky

Harold Landry, DE, Boston College

Carl Lawson, DE, Auburn

Elijah Lee, OLB, Kansas State

Jordan Leggett, TE, Clemson

Tyquan Lewis, DE, Ohio State

Nick Linder, C, Miami

Shock Linwood, RB, Baylor

Lowell Lotulelei, DT, Utah

Patrick Mahomes, QB, Texas Tech

Damien Mama, OG, USC

Jamal Marcus, DE, Akron

Hercules Mata’afa, DE, Washington State

Jaylen Reeves-Maybin, OLB, Tennessee

Baker Mayfield, QB, Oklahoma

Christian McCaffrey, RB, Stanford

Conor McDermott, OT, UCLA

Malik McDowell, DT, Michigan State

James McFarland, DE, TCU

Mike McGlinchey, OT, Notre Dame

Takkarist McKinley, DE,  UCLA

Raekwon McMillan,  ILB, Ohio State

Matt Milano, OLB, Boston College

Calvin Munson, OLB,  San Diego State

Lewis Neal, DE, LSU

Hardy Nickerson, ILB, Illinois

Tyler Orlosky, C, West Virginia

Daron Payne, DT, Alabama

Samaje Perine, RB, Oklahoma

Caleb Peterson, OG, North Carolina

Harrison Phillips, DT, Stanford

Ethan Pocic, C, LSU

Billy Price, OG, Ohio State

Donnel Pumphrey, RB, San Diego State

Greg Pyke, OG, Georgia

Jake Replogle, DT, Purdue

Cam Robinson, OT, Alabama

Isaac Rochell, DE, Notre Dame

Larry Rose III, RB, New Mexico State

Josh Rosen, QB, UCLA

Chase Roullier, OG, Wyoming

Mason Rudolph, QB, Oklahoma State

Seth Russell, QB, Baylor

Jaylen Samuels, TE/FB, North Carolina State

Nico Siragusa, OG, San Diego State

Dan Skipper, OT, Arkansas

Braden Smith, OG, Auburn

Cameron Smith, ILB, USC

Dawuane Smoot, DE, Illinois

Steven Taylor, OLB, Houston

Chad Thomas, DE, Miami

Solomon Thomas, DE, Stanford

Dalvin Tomlinson, DT, Alabama

Eddie Vanderdoes , DT, UCLA

Anthony Walker, ILB, Northwestern

Charles Walker, DT, Oklahoma

DeMarcus Walker, DE, Florida State

Greg Ward, Jr., QB, Houston

Carlos Watkins, DT,  Clemson

Deshaun Watson, QB, Clemson

Davis Webb, QB, California

Sean Welsh, OG, Iowa

Christian Wilkins, DT, Clemson

Connor Williams, OT, Texas

Tim Williams, OLB, Alabama

Tre Williams, OLB, Auburn

Deatrich Wise, Jr., DE, Arkansas

Chris Wormley, DT, Michigan

Taylor Young, OLB, Baylor