Andrew Rodriguez

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Derrick Henry and Keenan Reynolds are finalists for Sullivan Award

By Kevin McGuireMar 18, 2016, 10:16 AM EDT
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Alabama running back Derrick Henry added a truckload of awards last season while powering Alabama to a national championship run. Henry won the Heisman Trophy, Maxwell Award, Doak Walker Award and the Walter Camp Award in addition to being named a unanimous All-American and taking home SEC Offensive Player of the Year and SEC Championship Game MVP honors. Henry may be focusing on the NFL now, but he may not be done collecting hardware for his most recent season with the Crimson Tide.

Henry is one of seven finalists for the Sullivan Award, awarded to the top amateur athlete across all amateur sports. Navy’s Keenan Reynolds was also named a finalist. Henry and Reynolds are the only two college football players left standing.Clemson’s Deshaun Watson and Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey were semifinalists for the award.

A college football player has won the award three out of the last four years. Last year saw Ohio State running back Ezekiel Elliott win the award. The year before that it was Penn State offensive lineman John Urschel. Army’s Andrew Rodriguez won the award two years prior to that, with Olympic star Missy Franklin taking home the award in 2013 following her dominant showing in the 2012 summer Olympics (four gold medals, one bronze). Other past winners from the college football gridiron include Tim Tebow and Peyton Manning.

Fans can cast their vote for their Sullivan Award pick online until Wednesday, March 23 at 11:59 p.m. ET.

Deshaun Watson, Christian McCaffrey semifinalists for Sullivan Award

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By John TaylorMar 7, 2016, 11:51 AM EDT
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A college football player has claimed the past two Sullivan Awards, one of the most prestigious honors in amateur athletics.  In going for three straight, the sport will have a quartet of opportunities to extend what would be a first-of-its-kind streak.

Monday, a total of 16 semifinalists for the 2016 Sullivan Award were announced.  Of those 16, four are current or former college football players — Alabama running back Derrick Henry, Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey, Navy quarterback Keenan Reynolds and Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson.

Henry, who opted to leave the Tide early for the NFL, was the 2015 Heisman Trophy winner while McCaffrey and Watson, who will be juniors in 2016, were second and third, respectively, in the Heisman voting.  Reynolds put the finishing touches on what will be a Hall of Fame career by becoming the all-time FBS leader in total touchdowns.

Ohio State running back Ezekiel Elliott was the 2015 winner of the Sullivan, while Penn State offensive lineman John Urschel claimed the 2014 honor.  Six other college football players have earned an honor handed out annually since 1930: Felix “Doc” Blanchard (Army, 1945), Arnold Tucker (Army, 1946), Charlie Ward (Florida State, 1993), Peyton Manning (Tennessee, 1997), Tim Tebow (Florida, 2007) and Andrew Rodriguez (Army, 2011)

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The remaining dozen semifinalists for the 87th Sullivan are Andrew Benintendi (Arkansas baseball), Ben Simmons (LSU basketball), Nirra Fields (UCLA basketball), Kelsey Minato (Army basketball), Breanna Stewart (UConn basketball), Mikaela Foecke (Nebraska volleyball), Ashleigh Johnson (USA Water Polo), Jordan Burroughs (USA Wrestling), Adeline Gray (USA Wrestling), Jamie Greubel Poser (USA Bobsled), Jordan Wilimovsky (USA Swimming), Brittany Bowe (USA Speed skating) and Simone Biles (USA Gymnastics).

Akron tops Utah State, wins first bowl game in program history

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By JJ StankevitzDec 22, 2015, 7:01 PM EDT
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For the first time in Akron’s 30-year history at college football’s top level, it won a bowl game.

The 8-5 Zips shut down Utah State’s offense and capitalized on a few mistakes en route to a 23-21 win in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Tuesday afternoon in Boise. It was only the second bowl game in Akron history, with the first was the 2005 Motor City Bowl, a 38-31 loss to Memphis.

The win over Utah State was the culmination of an impressive turnaround engineered by fourth-year coach Terry Bowden. Akron had back-to-back-to-back 1-11 seasons from 2010-2012, a stretch which includes Bowden’s first year at the helm. After going 5-7 in both 2013 and 2014, Bowden steered Akron to seven regular-season wins, and the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl win gave the Zips a program-best eight victories.

It’s remarkable Bowden is the one leading this turnaround, too. The former Auburn coach — he was there from 1993-1998 and led the Tigers to five top-25 finishes in six seasons, including a No. 4 final ranking in 1993. But he hadn’t worked as an FBS head coach in 14 years when Akron hired him before the 2012 season, and his last bowl win came 18 years ago.

Utah State took a one-point lead early in the third quarter when quarterback Kent Myers found receiver Hunter Sharp for a 19-yard touchdown. After forcing a three-and-out on Akron’s next possession, Utah State had a chance to pull away a bit, but receiver Andrew Rodriguez lost a fumble at the Aggies’ 40-yard line. Akron promptly marched into the end zone in eight plays, and in the fourth quarter added a field goal that proved to be necessary late in the game.

With Chuckie Keeton back at quarterback — Kent Myers also played — Utah State drove into the end zone with 72 seconds remaining, cutting Akron’s lead to two. The Zips recovered an onside kick, though, and successfully stuffed a few last-ditch Aggie laterals to seal their victory.

Akron quarterback Thomas Woodson completed 14 of 29 passes for 168 yards, rushed 16 times for 47 yards and caught a touchdown from receiver Tyrell Goodman on a slick gadget play in the first quarter.

The bowl game was the final one on the Utah State sidelines for offensive coordinator Josh Heupel, who was hired as Mizzou’s offensive coordinator earlier this month.