Uiagalelei, Ross named to Maxwell Award Watch List
The Maxwell Football Club announced today that Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei and wide receiver Justyn Ross have been named to the Maxwell Award watch list.
The Maxwell Football Club today announced its watch lists for the 85th Maxwell Award presented annually to the outstanding player in college football, and for the 27th annual Chuck Bednarik Award presented annually to the outstanding defensive player in college football. Both awards are proudly sponsored by Mammoth Tech and The Athletes’ Corner, which are Executive Partners of the Maxwell Football Club.
The Maxwell Award has been presented to the College Player of the Year since 1937 and is named in honor of Robert “Tiny” Maxwell who was a former standout at the Swarthmore College and a renowned sports writer and football official.
The Maxwell Award watch list will once again incorporate a broad spectrum of Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) programs and conferences from coast to coast, and will feature fresh faces, as 2020 winner DeVonta Smith (Alabama) and finalists Trevor Lawrence (Clemson) and Mac Jones (Alabama) have all moved on to the NFL.
The list features six returning semifinalists from 2020 including Desmond Ridder (Cincinnati), Grayson McCall (Coastal Carolina), Breece Hall (Iowa State), D’Eriq King (Miami), Sam Howell (North Carolina), and Dillon Gabriel (UCF). The full list consists of 80 players, with 14 schools having two players represented.
Smith joins A.J. McCarron, Derrick Henry and Tua Tagovailoa as the fourth Crimson Tide player to be selected as the Maxwell Award winner. He was chosen in the first round of the NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Maxwell Football Club has once again partnered with Pro Football Focus (PFF), XOS ThunderCloud and Phil Steele Publications as selection committee partners. PFF provides detailed metrics and performance-based assessments to selection committee staff, and several senior PFF analysts are members of our selection committee. Phil Steele’s College Football Preview is generally recognized as the most complete preseason magazine. XOS ThunderCloud provides the Maxwell Club selection committee with access to game footage from all FBS colleges.
Semifinalists for the Maxwell Award will be announced November 1, 2021, while the three finalists for the Maxwell Award will be unveiled November 22, 2021. The winners of the 2021 Maxwell and Bednarik Awards will be announced as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show held on December 9, 2021. The formal presentations of the Maxwell Award will be made at the Maxwell Football Club Awards Gala hosted by Tropicana Hotel & Casino Atlantic City on March 11, 2022.
2021 MAXWELL AWARD WATCH LIST
RB Brian Robinson, Alabama
WR John Metchie, Alabama
RB Camerun Peoples, Appalachian State
QB Jayden Daniels, Arizona State
WR Treylon Burks, Arkansas
QB Layne Hatcher, Arkansas State
QB Bo Nix, Auburn
RB Tank Bigsby, Auburn
WR Khalil Shakir, Boise State
QB Phil Jurkovec, Boston College
WR Zay Flowers, Boston College
RB Kevin Marks, Buffalo
RB Tyler Allgeier, BYU
QB Chris Reynolds, Charlotte
QB Desmond Ridder, Cincinnati
QB D.J. Uiagalelei, Clemson
WR Justyn Ross, Clemson
QB Grayson McCall, Coastal Carolina
RB Mataeo Durant, Duke
QB Preston Hutchinson, Eastern Michigan
QB McKenzie Milton, Florida State
RB Ronnie Rivers, Fresno State
QB JT Daniels, Georgia
QB Michael Penix, Indiana
WR Ty Fryfogle, Indiana
RB Tyler Goodson, Iowa
QB Brock Purdy, Iowa State
RB Breece Hall, Iowa State
QB Skylar Thompson, Kansas State
RB Deuce Vaughn, Kansas State
QB Dustin Crum, Kent State
RB Chris Rodriguez, Kentucky
QB Malik Willis, Liberty
QB Levi Lewis, Louisiana
QB Malik Cunningham, Louisville
WR Kayshon Boutte, LSU
QB Grant Wells, Marshall
QB Taulia Tagovailoa, Maryland
WR Calvin Austin, Memphis
QB D'Eriq King, Miami
QB Tanner Morgan, Minnesota
RB Mohamed Ibrahim, Minnesota
RB Zonovan Knight, NC State
QB Adrian Martinez, Nebraska
QB Carson Strong, Nevada
WR Romeo Doubs, Nevada
QB Sam Howell, North Carolina
RB Kyren Williams, Notre Dame
WR Chris Olave, Ohio State
WR Garrett Wilson, Ohio State
QB Spencer Rattler, Oklahoma
WR Marvin Mims, Oklahoma
QB Matt Corral, Ole Miss
RB Jerrion Ealy, Ole Miss
WR Jahan Dotson, Penn State
QB Kenny Pickett, Pittsburgh
WR David Bell, Purdue
RB Greg Bell, San Diego State
QB Nick Starkel, San Jose State
RB Ulysses Bentley, SMU
WR Reggie Roberson, SMU
WR Jalen Tolbert, South Alabama
RB Kevin Harris, South Carolina
RB Frank Gore, Southern Miss
RB Austin Jones, Stanford
QB Max Duggan, TCU
RB Bijan Robinson, Texas
RB Isaiah Spiller, Texas A&M
WR Erik Ezukanma, Texas Tech
QB Dillon Gabriel, UCF
QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson, UCLA
QB Kedon Slovis, USC
QB Charlie Brewer, Utah
RB Sincere McCormick, UTSA
QB Brennan Armstrong, Virginia
WR Jaquarii Roberson, Wake Forest
QB Jarret Doege, West Virginia
RB Leddie Brown, West Virginia
QB Kaleb Eleby, Western Michigan
RB Xazavian Valladay, Wyoming