LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas senior cornerback Cobee Bryant has earned a spot on the watch list for the 30th Chuck Bednarik Award, which is presented annually to the most outstanding defensive player in college football.
This is the second consecutive year that Bryant has been honored by the Bednarik Award in the preseason and it becomes the third watch list for him this season. He has previously received watch list selections from the Bronko Nagurski Award and the Paycom Jim Thorpe Award.
The Bednarik Award has been presented to the College Defensive Player of the Year since 1994 and is named in honor of Chuck “Concrete Charlie” Bednarik who was an All-American player at the University of Pennsylvania and later a multiple year All Pro linebacker and center for the Philadelphia Eagles. He is a member of both the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame and was the last NFL player to be a full-time player on both offense and defense.
From Evergreen, Alabama, Bryant is a Preseason All-Big 12 selection this season after earning All-Big 12 First Team honors in each of the past two years. He has become the first Kansas defensive back to earn first team all-conference honors in consecutive seasons since Aqib Talib in 2006-07.
Bryant is tied for the school record with two career interceptions returned for a touchdown and he is eighth in school history with nine career interceptions. He has scored four touchdowns in his career, adding a fumble return and blocked field goal return to his two interception returns. Bryant finished the 2023 season with 32 tackles, four interceptions and 9 pass breakups.
The Maxwell Football Club has once again partnered with Pro Football Focus (PFF) and Phil Steele Publications as selection committee partners. PFF provides detailed metrics and performance-based assessments to selection committee staff, with 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.
Semifinalists for the Chuck Bednarik Award will be announced November 12, 2024, while the three finalists for the Maxwell Award will be unveiled November 26, 2024. The winners of the 30th Chuck Bednarik Award will be announced as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show held on December 12, 2024. The formal presentations of the Chuck Bednarik Award will be made at the Maxwell Football Club Awards on Friday March 14, 2025 at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, Georgia.
2024 Kansas Football Preseason Watch Lists:
Maxwell Award – QB Jalon Daniels, RB Devin Neal
Patrick Mannelly Award – LS Luke Hosford
Bronko Nagurski Award – CB Cobee Bryant
Paycom Jim Thorpe Award – CB Cobee Bryant
Allstate Wuerffel Trophy – TE Jared Casey
Walter Camp Award – QB Jalon Daniels
Doak Walker Award – RB Devin Neal, RB Daniel Hishaw Jr.
Comeback Player of the Year – QB Jalon Daniels
Biletnikoff Award – WR Lawrence Arnold
Davey O’Brien Award – QB Jalon Daniels
Chuck Bednarik Award – CB Cobee Bryant
