Every Sunday we'll handicap the major player awards. Follow the standout players at every position all season long. Here's our take following Week 9.
| Heisman -- Outstanding Player |
| PLAYER |
POS |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. Ron Dayne |
RB |
Wisconsin |
Upped season total to 1,234 yards, 15 TDs. |
| 2. Joe Hamilton |
QB |
Georgia Tech |
Idle (vs. N.C. State). |
| 3. Shaun Alexander |
RB |
Alabama |
Has 1,032 yards rushing, 18 TDs. |
| 4. Drew Brees |
QB |
Purdue |
Threw for 380 yards, 2 TDs vs. Penn State. |
| 5. Chad Pennington |
QB |
Marshall |
Threw for 339 yards, 5 TDs vs. Buffalo. |
| |
| Maxwell -- Outstanding Player |
| PLAYER |
POS |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. Shaun Alexander |
RB |
Alabama |
Posted 148 all-purpose yards, 1 TD vs Vols. |
| 2. Ron Dayne |
RB |
Wisconsin |
Rushed for 214 yards, 2 TDs vs. Spartans. |
| 3. Joe Hamilton |
QB |
Georgia Tech |
Idle (vs. N.C. State). |
| 4. Drew Brees |
QB |
Purdue |
Has thrown for 2,712 yards, 18 TDs. |
| 5. Chad Pennington |
QB |
Marshall |
Season passing totals at 2,301 yards, 22 TDs. |
| |
| Walker -- Outstanding Running Back |
| PLAYER |
STATS |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. Ron Dayne |
5-10, 253 |
Wisconsin |
Needs to average 161 yards in final 3 games for NCAA mark. |
| 2. Shaun Alexander |
6-1, 220 |
Alabama |
Rushed for 98 yards vs. Tennessee. |
| 3. Darren Davis |
5-8, 190 |
Iowa State |
Ran for 172 yards on 33 carries vs. Colorado. |
| 4. Travis Prentice |
6-2, 228 |
Miami (Ohio) |
Idle (vs. Cincinnati). |
| 5. Thomas Jones |
5-10, 207 |
Virginia |
Has rushed for 1,109 yards, 5.3 per carry. |
| |
| Outland -- Outstanding Interior Lineman |
| PLAYER |
STATS |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. Chris McIntosh |
6-7, 307 |
Wisconsin |
Badgers rolled to 301 yards rushing vs Spartans. |
| 2. Cosey Coleman |
6-5, 315 |
Tennessee |
Vols controlled clock for 32:22 vs. 'Bama. |
| 3. Jason Whitaker |
6-5, 300 |
Florida State |
DNP (intestinal virus). |
| 4. Richard Mercier |
6-2, 290 |
Miami |
'Canes scored on 5 of final 6 possessions. |
| 5. Brad Bedell |
6-5, 310 |
Colorado |
Buffs' RB rushed for career-high 185 yards . |
| |
| Lombardi -- Outstanding Lineman/Linebacker |
| PLAYER |
POS |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. Courtney Brown |
DE |
Penn State |
Had 1 sack, INT for TD vs. Purdue. |
| 2. Corey Moore |
DE |
Virginia Tech |
Idle (at Pittsburgh). |
| 3. LaVar Arrington |
LB |
Penn State |
Had 2 sacks, forced fumble, returned for TD |
| 4. Alex Brown |
DE |
Florida |
Idle (vs. Georgia at Jacksonville). |
| 5. Corey Simon |
NT |
Florida State |
Helped hold Clemson to 37 yards rushing. |
| |
| Nagurski -- Outstanding Defensive Player |
| PLAYER |
POS |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. Corey Moore |
DE |
Virginia Tech |
Idle (at Pittsburgh). |
| 2. LaVar Arrington |
DE |
Penn State |
Forced fumble returned for TD, 2 sacks. |
| 3. Corey Simon |
NT |
Florida State |
FSU remains unbeaten. |
| 4. Courtney Brown |
DE |
Penn State |
Had 2 tackles
for loss, 1 sack, 1 INT. |
| 5. Brian Urlacher |
SS |
New Mexico |
Idle (vs. UNLV). |
| |
| O'Brien -- Outstanding Quarterback |
| PLAYER |
STATS |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. Joe Hamilton |
5-10, 189 |
Georgia Tech |
Idle (vs. N.C. State). |
| 2. Drew Brees |
6-1, 212 |
Purdue |
Led Purdue offense to 444 yards vs. PSU. |
| 3. Chad Pennington |
6-3, 220 |
Marshall |
QB rating of 161.2 entering weekend. |
| 4. Chris Redman |
6-3, 215 |
Louisville |
Threw for 397 yards, 5 TDs vs. Houston. |
| 5. Kevin Feterik |
6-0, 190 |
BYU |
Has thrown for 2,285 yards, 18 TDs. |
| |
| Biletnikoff -- Outstanding Receiver |
| PLAYER |
STATS |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. JaJuan Dawson |
6-1, 201 |
Tulane |
Had 7 catches for 62 yards, 1 TD. |
| 2. Trevor Insley |
6-1, 195 |
Nevada |
Had 9 catches, 145 yards, 1 TD. |
| 3. Troy Walters |
5-8, 175 |
Stanford |
Had 5 catches for 86 yards. |
| 4. Plaxico Burress |
6-6, 229 |
Michigan State |
Had 5 catches for 58 yards vs. Wisconsin. |
| 5. Kwame Cavil |
6-4, 200 |
Texas |
Had 8 catches , 84 yards, TD vs. Nebraska. |
| |
| Butkus -- Outstanding Linebacker |
| PLAYER |
STATS |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. Brandon Short |
6-3, 246 |
Penn State |
Leads team with 56 tackles. |
| 2. LaVar Arrington |
6-3, 230 |
Penn State |
Has 5½ sacks in last 3 games. |
| 3. Na'il Diggs |
6-4, 235 |
Ohio State |
Minnesota held to 94 yards after half. |
| 4. Mark Simoneau |
6-0, 240 |
Kansas State |
Had INT in the 4th quarter. |
| 5. Barrin Simpson |
5-11, 226 |
Miss. State |
Has 50 tackles, 2 sacks. |
| |
| Bednarik -- Outstanding Defensive Player |
| PLAYER |
POS |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. Corey Moore |
DE |
Virginia Tech |
Has 8 sacks in 6 games. |
| 2. Brandon Short |
DE |
Penn State |
Has team-high 56 tackles. |
| 3. Tyrone Carter |
SS |
Minnesota |
Had 12 tackles vs. Ohio State. |
| 4. Na'il Diggs |
LB |
Ohio State |
Has 64 tackles in 8 games. |
| 5. Dwayne Goodrich |
CB |
Tennessee |
Vols still haven't allowed rushing TD. |
| |
| Thorpe -- Outstanding Defensive Back |
| PLAYER |
POS |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. Dwayne Goodrich |
CB |
Tennessee |
Has 13 career INTs, 4 for TDs. |
| 2. Tyrone Carter |
SS |
Minnesota |
Has 12 tackles vs. Ohio State. |
| 3. Ralph Brown |
CB |
Nebraska |
Had 4 tackles in loss to Texas. |
| 4. Ahmed Plummer |
CB |
Ohio State |
Had team-high 7 tackles. |
| 5. Brian Urlacher |
SS |
New Mexico |
Idle (vs. UNLV). |
| |
| Groza -- Outstanding Kicker |
| PLAYER |
YEAR |
SCHOOL |
COMMENT |
| 1. Sebastian Janikowski |
Jr. |
Florida State |
Kicked 3 FGs (33, 33, 39) |
|
| 2. Terence Kitchens |
Jr. |
Texas A&M |
Had 39-yard FG attempt blocked |
| 3. Shayne Graham |
Sr. |
Virginia Tech |
Idle (at Pittsburgh). |
| 4. Paul Edinger |
Sr. |
Michigan State |
Kicked 1 FG (55), 1 PAT. |
| 5. Sims Lenhardt |
Sr. |
Duke |
Kicked 1 FG (50) 3 PATs |
