Northwestern University Athletics
Anthony Walker, Jr. Named to Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List
7/8/2016 8:35:00 AM | Football
The announcement comes just three days after Walker was named to the Chuck Bednarik Award watch list, given annually to the National Defensive Player of the Year as selected by the Maxwell Football Club.
The list includes 13 players from the Big Ten including seven linebackers. Other Big Ten linebackers on the list include Vince Biegel (Wisconsin), Riley Bullough (Michigan State), Josey Jewell (Iowa), Raekwon McMillan (Ohio State), Hardy Nickerson (Illinois) and Jabrill Peppers (Michigan).
Walker was a Consensus First Team All-Big Ten selection, Second Team Sports Illustrated All-American and Third Team All-American by the Associated Press after leading one of the nation's top defenses with 122 tackles, including 20.5 for loss, in 2015. His 20.5 tackles for loss were the second most in the country and rank second in NU single-season history. The Miami, Florida, native was a three-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week and earned National Defensive Player of the Week honors after making a career-high 19 tackles in a 19-10 victory at Duke on Sept. 19.
The Wildcats finished the season ranked 12th in the country in scoring defense (18.6 points/gm.) and 13th in total defense (318.9 yards/gm.).
Dan and Susan Jones Family Head Football Coach Pat Fitzgerald was the recipient of the Bronko Nagurski Trophy in 1995 and 1996 and remains the only player in the award's 23-year history to win the award multiple times.
Season tickets are on sale now for the 2016 Northwestern football season at Ryan Field by visiting NUSports.com or calling 888-GO-PURPLE. On the heels of a 10-win campaign, the Wildcats kick off the 2016 season on Saturday, September 3, when they welcome Western Michigan to Ryan Field. The home slate for Chicago's Big Ten Team this year features Big Ten rivals Nebraska, Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana, as well as ACC foe Duke.
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Players may be added or removed from the watch list during the course of the season. Once again, the FWAA will announce a National Defensive Player of the Week from early September through mid November. If not already on the watch list, the honored player will be added at that time. The FWAA and the Charlotte Touchdown Club will announce five finalists for the 2016 Bronko Nagurski Trophy on Thurs., Nov. 17.
The Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner will be chosen from those five finalists who are part of the 2016 FWAA All-America Team. The FWAA All-America Committee, after voting input from the association's entire membership, selects a 26-man All-America Team and eventually the Nagurski Trophy finalists. Committee members, then by individual ballot, select the winner, the best defensive player in college football.
The annual Bronko Nagurski Trophy Banquet, presented by ACN, will be held on Mon., Dec. 5 at the Westin Hotel in Charlotte. In addition to the 2016 Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner's announcement, the banquet will also celebrate the recipient of the Bronko Nagurski Legends Award, sponsored by the CTC and Florida East Coast Railway. Navy's Chet Moeller, a member of the FWAA's 1975 All-America Team and a College Football Hall of Famer, will be honored. Duke head coach David Cutcliffe will be the keynote speaker at the banquet.
The FWAA has chosen a National Defensive Player of the Year since 1993. In 1995, the FWAA named the award in honor of the legendary two-way player from the University of Minnesota. Nagurski dominated college football then became a star for professional football's Chicago Bears in the 1930s. Bronislaw "Bronko" Nagurski is a charter member of both the College Football and Pro Football Halls of Fame.
The Bronko Nagurski Trophy is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA) which encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football. The 22 awards boast over 722 years of tradition-selection excellence. Visit ncfaa.org to learn more about our story.
