Four Buffs Earn Watch List Designation As NCFAA Announcements Begin
July 15, 2019 | Football
BOULDER—Signaling that the 2019 season is quickly approaching, four Colorado Buffaloes were named to watch lists for the Bednarik Award and the Maxwell Award Monday. The two awards are the first of 16 award watch lists that will be released the next two weeks by the National College Football Awards Association.
Junior DE Mustafa Johnson and junior LB Nate Landman were both names to the Bednarik Award Watch List, presented to the college football qw defensive player of the year. Senior QB Steven Montez and junior WR Laviska Shenault were named to the Maxwell Award, presented to the college football player of the year. Both are presented by the Maxwell Football Club.
Johnson was an All-Pac-12 performer and the team's co-defensive MVP, bursting onto the scene last season as a sophomore in his first season after junior college. He had 73 tackles, the most for a defensive lineman in the past 21 seasons, led the Buffs with 8.5 sacks and 18 total tackles for loss and 16 quarterback hurries. His 18 TFL's is the seventh-most in CU history and most in the last 25 seasons and his 8.5 sacks led the Pac-12.
Landman assumes the defensive play-calling duties after also bursting onto the college football scene as a sophomore last season. A midseason first-team All-American and All-Pac-12 Performer, he led the team with 123 tackles including 25 at or behind the line of scrimmage. He was all over the field as evidence by his 10 third down stops (including two on fourth down), five pass breakups, three quarterback hurries, four sacks, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
Montez returns as a fifth-year senior and two-year starter who is already in the top five in most passing and total offense categories in CU history. He ranks third in CU history with 7,648 yards of total offense and fourth in career passing yards with 6,841. He has 27 starts to his credit and has started the last 22 games. He has two of the top five seasons in CU history for passing yards and two of the top four for total offense.
The nation's returning leading receiver and one of the most dynamic players in the country, Shenault is yet another Buff that burst onto the scene as a sophomore last season. He was a midseason first-team All-American by just about every publication before being injured and missing three games of action the second half of the season. Still, he led the nation in receptions (9.6 per game). He was the only player in the nation to record five receiving and rushing touchdowns (six and five, respectively) and against Arizona State became the first CU player to have multiple receiving and rushing touchdowns in the same game. Projected as a high first round draft pick next season, he's ranked the No. 2 wide receiver in the nation by USA Today and the No. 6 prospect for the 2020 NFL Draft by Bleacher Report.
The calendar for the remaining award watch lists include: Davey O'Brien Award (July 16, top quarterback), Doak Walker Award (July 17, top running back), Biletnikoff Award (July 18, top receiver), Mackey Award (July 19, top tight end), Rimington Trophy (July 19, top center), Jim Thorpe Award (July 22, top defensive back), Butkus Award (July 22, top linebacker), Outland Trophy (July 23, interior lineman), Bronko Nagurski Trophy (July 23, top defensive player), Lou Groza Award (July 24, top place kicker), Ray Guy Award (July 24, top punter), Paul Hornung Award (July 25, most versatile player), Wuerffel Trophy (July 25, community service and academic achievement) and the Walter Camp Award (July 26, top player).
