The final preseason watch list for the upcoming college football season arrived on Friday, and as always it was the University of Alabama leading the pack with nominees.
According to an announcement from the Walter Camp Football Foundation, the quartet of Tua Tagovailoa, Najee Harris, Jerry Jeudy and Dylan Moses were all named to the Walter Camp Player of the Year award watch list. The honor is bestowed upon the player of the year in college football and for Tagovailoa, he is currently the reigning winner from last season.
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A returning junior, the native Hawaiian can become the fourth player in history to win the award twice – joining Colt McCoy of Texas (2008-09), Archie Griffin of Ohio State (1974-75) and O.J. Simpson of University of Southern California (1967-68). He was the fourth 3,000-yard passer of the Nick Saban era at Alabama, tossing for 3,966 yards with 43 scoring passes in 2018.
Tagovailoa set single-season school marks for yards, touchdown passes and total scores (48), while navigating the No. 3 scoring offense (45.6 ppg), No. 6 total offense (522 ypg) and No. 1 pass efficiency (197.34 rating) in the nation.
Tagovailoa finished the year as an All-American and a Heisman finalist.
Along with Walter Camp, he is a preseason honoree for Maxwell and Davey O’Brien awards.
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Harris finds himself on a third preseason watch list, as he is also a nominee for both Maxwell and Doak Walker awards. The California native and former five-star was second on the team in rushing last year (783 yards) and totaled four touchdowns on 117 carries.
He boasted a team-high 6.69 yards per carry and looks to have a monster junior season.
Jeudy is all focus this fall, seeing how he has been named to Fred Biletnikoff, Maxwell and Walter Camp preseason lists. He comes off a year where he won the Biletnikoff honor, tallying 1,315 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns on 68 catches.
Jeudy led Alabama in receptions, receiving yards and scores as a sophomore and like Tagovailoa, he has a shot to maintain his crown as the top receiver in the game.
As for Moses, he has landed on Dick Butkus, Chuck Bednarik and Walter Camp lists for preseason watch.
For the new leader on the Tide’s defense, Moses finished 2018 as a finalist for the Butkus Award – which is presented to the nation’s top linebacker.
He amassed a team-high 86 tackles, with 10 coming for loss and 3.5 sacks.
The former five-star from Louisiana is in position to be a top-10 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, should he produce an impactful season.
All four players were selected first-team All-SEC via the media at SEC Media Days.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
