The Maxwell Football Club today announced the watch list for the 16th annual Chuck Bednarik Award and Arizona State University sophomore middle linebacker Vontaze Burfict is one of the student-athletes highlighted.
The Chuck Bednarik Award has been presented to the nation's top defensive player since 1995. Mr. Bednarik is a member of both the College Football Hall of Fame 69' and the NFL Hall of Fame 67'.
Earlier, Burfict was named to the watch lists of the 2010 Rotary Lombardi Award and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy.
Burfict (Corona, Calif./Centennial High School) is an athletic and powerful linebacker who has displayed dominance on the field since the first game of his career in 2009.
He had one of the most productive freshman seasons in school history in which he was named Pacific-10 Conference Defensive Freshman of the Year. Selected to the Freshman All-American Team by CollegeFootballNews.com and to the Football Writers Association of America Freshman All- America Team, Burfict also was named a Freshman All- American by Scout.com and earned a spot on The Sporting News All-Pac-10 Freshman Team.
Burfict, who earned the starting middle linebacker spot in the fourth game of the season, finished his freshman season second on the team in total tackles with 69 (40 solo). He added seven tackles for loss, two sacks and two forced fumbles. He led the team with two fumble recoveries and was tops among all linebackers with five pass breakups.
Burfict appeared in all 12 games of the season and started the final nine. He led the team in tackles in five games and collected a season-high 11 tackles (three solo) and one and half tackles for loss at Georgia on Sept. 26.
Semifinalists for the Bednarik Award will be announced on November 8th and three finalists will be announced November 22nd. The winner of the 2010 Bednarik Awards will be announced as part of the Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show which will be held on December 9, 2010.
Offensive line a work in progress
There are still 25 days before ASU opens the 2010 season, and head coach Dennis Erickson plans on using every minute, every second between now and then to figure out his best 11 players on each side of the ball.
That's why, Tuesday, he shuffled up his offensive line.
"We want to get the best five out there to give us the best chance," explained Erickson. "That's why we're experimenting."
With the exception of Garth Gerhart at center, Erickson ran out a brand new line. Dan Knapp, who played tight end during the spring, is now at left tackle and is having a "tremendous camp" according to Erickson. Redshirt freshman Evan Finkenberg moved from left tackle to right tackle while junior college transfer Bryce Schwab slid from right tackle to right guard.
"Whatever I can do to help the team," stated Schwab, who said he hadn't played inside since high school. "And right now our run blocking needs to get better so why not move me. I'm a big body. I can move people."
Kody Koebensky, a redshirt freshman out of Saguaro High School, lined up at left guard.
