PHILADELPHIA — UTSA senior defensive end Marcus Davenport has been added to the Chuck Bednarik Award watch list, the Maxwell Football Club announced Wednesday.
Davenport has posted 32 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, seven quarterback hurries, four pass breakups and two forced fumbles to go along with a 34-yard fumble return for a touchdown this season. In his last two games, the preseason All-Conference USA selection has registered 19 tackles, 7.5 TFLs, 4.5 sacks, one PBU and the fumble return TD in the 20-7 victory over Rice.
Davenport, who was named C-USA Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against Rice, ranks second among FBS players with a league-leading 2.0 tackles for loss per game and he is fifth nationally with 1.08 sacks per contest. The San Antonio native has broken three UTSA career records with 32.5 tackles for loss, 20 sacks and 20 QB pressures, and he already has set a pair of single-season marks with 12 TFLs and eight QB hurries through just six games.
The Bednarik Award is presented annually to the best defensive player in college football.
Semifinalists for the Bednarik Award will be announced on Oct. 30 and three finalists for each award will be announced Nov. 20. The winner of the 2017 Bednarik Award will be announced as part of the Home Depot College Football Awards Show, which will be held on Dec. 7 at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta. The formal presentation of the award will be made at the Maxwell Football Club Awards Gala hosted by Tropicana Hotel & Casino Atlantic City on March 9, 2018.
The watch list candidates have been chosen by the Maxwell Football Club's Selection Committee and the Maxwell Club reserves the right to make additions and subtractions to these lists as the 2017 season unfolds. All members of the Maxwell Football Club, NCAA Sports Information Directors, Head Coaches and selected national media are eligible to vote for these awards.
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