Derrick Henry of Alabama and Deshaun Watson of Clemson each claimed top awards during the The Home Depot 25^th Anniversary College Football Awards hosted by Chris Fowler, and joined by Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, Tom Rinaldi and Samantha Ponder on ESPN Thursday night live from the College Football Hall of Fame and Chick-fil-A Fan Experience in Atlanta.

Henry, a junior from Yulee, Fla., took home two awards during the show – the Maxwell Award for the college player of the year and the Doak Walker Award for the nation’s premier running back.  This marks the fifth time a running back has won both the Maxwell Award and Doak Walker Award in the same year, the last being Larry Johnson in 2002.  Three players that have won the Maxwell and Doak have gone on to win the Heisman Trophy.  Watson, a sophomore from Gainesville, Ga., claimed the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award.  He is the first Clemson quarterback to win the award and the fifth quarterback to win the award while playing in the ACC.

Tyler Matakevich won the Chuck Bednarik Award for the college defensive player of the year; Corey Coleman won the Biletnikoff Award for the outstanding receiver; Ka’imi Fairbairn claimed the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award; Tom Hackett repeated as the Ray Guy Award winner for college punter of the year; Joshua Garnett won the Outland Trophy for the nation’s most outstanding interior lineman; and Desmond King won the Jim Thorpe Award for the nation’s best defensive back.

Other notable awards included the presentation of Clemson’s Dabo Swinney with The Home Depot Coach of the Year Award; former Oklahoma head coach Barry Switzer was honored with the NCFAA Contributions to College Football Award; Concordia University-St. Paul defensive lineman Hank Goff received the Disney Spirit Award; Oklahoma center Ty Darlington was featured as the National Football Foundation’s William V. Campbell Trophy (academic success) recipient; Georgia wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell was named Allstate AFCA Good Works Team^®  captain – one of college football’s most prestigious off-the-field honors – for his standout community service and off-the-field contributions.

THE HOME DEPOT 25^th ANNIVERSARY COLLEGE FOOTBALL AWARDS WINNERS – (winner in bold)

The following players were also announced for the Walter Camp All-America Team:

Three additional awards were announced during The Red Carpet Special at The Home Depot College Football Awards hosted by Ponder, Rinaldi and Danny Kanell on ESPNU:

• Rimington Trophy (nation’s outstanding center): Ryan Kelly, Alabama

Kelly is the second Alabama player to win award (2012 Barrett Jones)

• John Mackey Award (nation’s outstanding tight end): Hunter Henry, Arkansas

Henry is the second winner from Arkansas (2010 D.J. Williams).  Arkansas is the only school with two winners.

• Wuerffel Trophy (community service): Ty Darlington, Oklahoma

Darlington is the second Oklahoma player to win award (2013 Gabe Ikard)

Several other awards were recognized during this year’s show:

• The Butkus Award (top linebacker): Jaylon Smith, Notre Dame
• Bronko Nagurski Trophy (nation’s outstanding defensive player): Tyler Matakevich, Temple
• Frank Broyles Award (top assistant coach): Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma offensive coordinator / quarterbacks coach
• Rotary Lombardi Award (nation’s outstanding lineman): Carl Nassib, Penn State

National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA)

The NCFAA encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football.  The 21 awards boast 678 years of tradition-selection excellence.  Visit www.NCFAA.org to learn more about our story.

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Notes:

Tyler Matakevich, Temple, winner of the Chuck Bednarik Award (College Defensive Player of the Year)

– the first player from Group-of-5 school to win award

– the first Temple player to win award

– the second straight linebacker and third in four seasons to win award (2014 Scooby Wright III – Arizona, 2012 Manti Te’o – Notre Dame)

Corey Coleman, Baylor, winner of the Biletnikoff Award (Nation’s Outstanding College Receiver)

– the first Baylor player to win award

– the third different Big 12 player to win award (2007 & ’08 Michael Crabtree – Texas Tech, 2010 & ’11 Justin Blackmon – Oklahoma State)

Ka’imi Fairbairn, UCLA, winner of Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award (Nation’s Outstanding Placekicker)

–  joins Kai Forbath (2009) as only UCLA players to win award

–  the fifth player to win award while playing in Pac-12/10, tying the ACC for most from one conference (membership at time award was won)

Tom Hackett, Utah, winner of the Ray Guy Award (College Punter of the Year)

–  the second player to win award in consecutive seasons (2011 & ’12 Ryan Allen – Louisiana Tech)

–  joins Louisiana Tech’s Ryan Allen (2011 & ’12) and Baylor’s Daniel Sepulveda (2004 & ’06) as the only two-time winners of the award

Derrick Henry, Alabama, winner of the Maxwell Award (College Player of the Year)

– the second Alabama player to win award (2013 AJ McCarron)

– the 10^th SEC player to win award (last was Alabama QB AJ McCarron in 2013)

– the first running back to win award since 2002 (Larry Johnson – Penn State)

– broke SEC single-season rushing record (1,986 yards)

– tied SEC single-season record for most 200+ Rush yard games (4)

Deshaun Watson, Clemson, winner of the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award

– the first Clemson quarterback to win award

– the second ACC quarterback to win award in 3 seasons (2013 Jameis Winston – Florida State)

– the fifth quarterback to win award while playing in ACC

Joshua Garnett, Stanford, winner of the Outland Trophy (Nation’s Most Outstanding Interior Lineman)

– the first Stanford player to win award

– the seventh Pac-12 player to win award and first since 2002 (DT Rein Long – Washington State)

Desmond King, Iowa, winner of the Jim Thorpe Award (Nation’s Best Defensive Back)

– the first Iowa player to win award

– the seventh Big Ten player to win the award, tying the SEC for most from a conference (membership at time award was won)

Derrick Henry, Alabama, winner of the Doak Walker Award (Nation’s Premier Running Back)

– the second Alabama running back to win award (2011 Trent Richardson)

– the fourth different SEC running back to win award (1992 Garrison Hearst – Georgia, 2006 & ’07 Darren McFadden – Arkansas, 2011 Trent Richardson – Alabama)

Contacts:

Derek Volner, ESPN Communications, 860-766-8019, [email protected]

Liz McCollum, Brener Zwikel & Associates on behalf of ESPN Events, 813-421-0550 or [email protected]