Four Mustangs On 2011 Rotary Lombardi Award Official Watch List
HOUSTON (SMU) – SMU Mustangs Kelvin Beachum, Ja’Gared Davis, Taylor Reed and Taylor Thompson have been named to the Official Watch List for the 2011 Rotary Lombardi Award, the Rotary Lombardi Award Committee announced today. With four nominees, SMU tied with Alabama, Boise State, Florida State, Miami and North Carolina for the most players on the list.
Eligibility for the Rotary Lombardi Award is limited to down linemen, end-to-end, either on offense of defense, who set up no farther than 10 yards to the left or right of the ball, and linebackers who set up no father than five yards deep from the line of scrimmage. This is the 42nd year that the Rotary Lombardi Award has named the nation’s college lineman of the year.
The candidates earned a place on the Official Watch List by earning All-American honors last season, by being named to their respective all-conference first team last season as selected by the conference’s head coaches, by being projected to be an All-American or first team all-conference player for the coming season, or by nomination approved by the nominations committee.
Beachum, a Mexia native, has started every game since for SMU over the past
three seasons, twice earning All-C-USA honors. In 2011, Beachum blocked for an offense that totaled a school-record 3,861 passing yards and added 1,943 yards on the ground.
Davis started 13 games in 2010 and saw action in all 14. The Crockett, Texas, native was named first-team Conference USA and was tabbed a CollegeFootballNews.com honorable mention All-American. He totaled 90 tackles, including 62 solos, and amassed nine sacks and 16 TFLs on the season.
Reed started all 14 games and was named All-Conference USA honorable mention in 2011. He posted 145 tackles (seventh highest total in the NCAA), averaging 10.4 tackles per game. The Beaumont native posted double-digit tackle totals in seven games.
Thompson, a native of Prosper, Texas, started in all 14 games last season and was named All-Conference USA First Team. An anchor in SMU’s 3-4 defense, he posted 32 tackles, 5.5 tackles-for-loss, 4.5 sacks and three QB hurries on the season.
The 42nd Rotary Lombardi Award will be held on December 6-7, 2011 at Reliant Center in Houston, Texas.
This continues a string of Mustangs on pre-season award Watch Lists. So far, Beachum has been named to the Outland List, Thompson has made the Nagurski Award List, Cole Beasley and Darius Johnson were named to the Biletnikoff Award Watch List, Zach Line was named to the Watch List for the Maxwell Award, Thompson And Margus Hunt were selected to the Pony Express Award Watch List and Blake McJunkin was named to the Rimington Trophy Watch List.
SMU opens the season Sept. 4 at Texas A&M.
