Sixteen Semifinalists For 2019 Davey O’Brien Award Revealed
FORT WORTH, Texas – After tabulating the results of the Davey O’Brien National Selection Committee’s ballots as well as votes cast courtesy of the Fan Vote, the 16 semifinalists for the 2019 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award have been determined.
The semifinalists, in alphabetical order, are: Charlie Brewer (Baylor), Shane Buechele (SMU), Joe Burrow (LSU), Sam Ehlinger (Texas), Justin Fields (Ohio State), Jake Fromm (Georgia), Anthony Gordon (Washington State), Justin Herbert (Oregon), Tyler Huntley (Utah), Jalen Hurts (Oklahoma), Trevor Lawrence (Clemson), Tanner Morgan (Minnesota), Malcolm Perry (Navy), Brock Purdy (Iowa State), Tua Tagovailoa (Alabama) and Brady White (Memphis).
Five of the quarterbacks—Fromm, Herbert, Hurts, Lawrence and Tagovailoa—have previously been Davey O’Brien Award semifinalists. Tagovailoa ultimately earned finalist accolades a year ago, while Hurts is the lone two-time semifinalist (2016, 2017).
The collection of semifinalists is comprised of six seniors, six juniors and four sophomores. The group combined to win 37 Davey O’Brien “Great 8” weekly honors this year and also collected seven National Quarterback of the Week accolades.
The quarterbacks’ 16 teams own a combined record of 125-20 (.862) this season. In addition, 13 of the schools are currently ranked in the most recent College Football Playoff top 25 ranking, including each of the top eight.
Schools from six conference affiliations make up the list. Five of those leagues had multiple honorees, led by the Big 12 Conference with four.
Six universities represented are home to previous Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award winners (Baylor, Clemson, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon and Texas).
The Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award is presented annually to the best college quarterback, and is the nation’s oldest and most prestigious national quarterback award.
The Davey O’Brien Fan Vote counts as five percent during each round of the voting process, and is combined with the results from the Foundation’s national selection committee, which is comprised of journalists, broadcasters, commentators and former winners.
After clearing the first round totals, the Fan Vote at VoteOBrien.org will reopen today (Nov. 13) and remain open until 9 p.m. (CT) on Sunday, Nov. 24, for the second round of balloting. Fans are invited to cast their vote for the nation’s best college quarterback once daily per email address.
In conjunction with ESPN, the Davey O’Brien Foundation and its National Selection Committee will release the names of the three finalists on Monday, Nov. 25. The 2019 Davey O’Brien winner will be announced live on The Home Depot College Football Awards Thursday, Dec. 12.
Previous winners include: Jim McMahon (BYU, 1981), Todd Blackledge (Penn State, 1982), Steve Young (BYU, 1983), Doug Flutie (Boston College, 1984), Chuck Long (Iowa, 1985), Vinny Testaverde (Miami, 1986), Don McPherson (Syracuse, 1987), Troy Aikman (UCLA, 1988), Andre Ware (Houston, 1989), Ty Detmer (BYU, 1990-91), Gino Torretta (Miami, 1992), Charlie Ward (Florida State, 1993), Kerry Collins (Penn State, 1994), Danny Wuerffel (Florida, 1995-96), Peyton Manning (Tennessee, 1997), Michael Bishop (Kansas State, 1998), Joe Hamilton (Georgia Tech, 1999), Chris Weinke (Florida State, 2000), Eric Crouch (Nebraska, 2001), Brad Banks (Iowa, 2002), Jason White (Oklahoma, 2003-04), Vince Young (Texas, 2005), Troy Smith (Ohio State, 2006), Tim Tebow (Florida, 2007), Sam Bradford (Oklahoma, 2008), Colt McCoy (Texas, 2009), Cam Newton (Auburn, 2010), Robert Griffin III (Baylor, 2011), Johnny Manziel (Texas A&M, 2012), Jameis Winston (Florida State, 2013), Marcus Mariota (Oregon, 2014), Deshaun Watson (Clemson, 2015-16), Baker Mayfield (Oklahoma, 2017) and Kyler Murray (Oklahoma, 2018).
The 43rd Annual Davey O’Brien Awards Dinner will be held Monday, Feb. 17, 2020, at The Fort Worth Club in Fort Worth, Texas.
2019 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award Semifinalists
Charlie Brewer, Baylor, Jr., 6-1, 206, Austin, Texas
Shane Buechele, SMU, Jr., 6-1, 207, Arlington, Texas
Joe Burrow, LSU, Sr., 6-4, 216, Athens, Ohio
Sam Ehlinger, Texas, Jr., 6-3, 230, Austin, Texas
Justin Fields, Ohio State, So., 6-3, 223, Kennesaw, Ga.
Jake Fromm, Georgia, Jr., 6-2, 220, Warner Robins, Ga.
Anthony Gordon, Washington State, Sr., 6-3, 210, Pacifica, Calif.
Justin Herbert, Oregon, Sr., 6-6, 237, Eugene, Ore.
Tyler Huntley, Utah, Sr., 6-1, 205, Dania, Fla.
Jalen Hurts, Oklahoma, Sr., 6-2, 218, Houston, Texas
Trevor Lawrence, Clemson, So., 6-6, 220, Cartersville, Ga.
Tanner Morgan, Minnesota, So., 6-2, 215, Union, Ky.
Malcolm Perry, Navy, Sr., 5-9, 190, Clarksville, Tenn.
Brock Purdy, Iowa State, So, 6-1, 210, Gilbert, Ariz.
Tua Tagovailoa, Alabama, Jr., 6-1, 281, Ewa Beach, Hawaii
Brady White, Memphis, Jr., 6-3, 215, Newhall, Calif.