Nov. 22, 2011
Tulsa, Okla. -
University of Tulsa defensive end Tyrunn Walker was named to the Ted Hendricks Mid-Season Watch List, which is now in its final form and includes 19 players. The Ted Hendricks Award recognizes the nation's top defensive end.
This list will be shortened to include five to six finalists in the coming week, and the final vote will be concluded on December 5th. The 2011 Hendricks Award winner will be announced Dec. 7th.
Walker is one of four Conference USA players named to the top-19 list, as Marshall's Vinny Curry, Rice's Scott Solomon and SMU's Taylor Thompson have also been named to the Mid-Season Watch List.
Walker, a 6'3" senior from New Iberia, La., has 32 tackles, and team-bests of 11.5 stops for -69 yards and 7 sacks for -54 yards, as well as five pass breakups and two forced fumbles. He has also blocked two field goals -- against North Texas and UCF.
The 2011 Final Mid-Season Watch List includes the following players:
FRANK ALEXANDER, OKLAHOMA
JAMIE BLATNICK, OKLAHOMA STATE
ANDRE BRANCH, CLEMSON
NORLY CAPI, COLORADO STATE
VINNY CURRY, MARSHALL
ADRIAN HAMILTON, PRAIRIE VIEW
TRAVIS JOHNSON, SAN JOSE STATE
BRANDON JOINER, ARKANSAS STATE
MARIO KURN, SAN DIEGO
CHRISTIAN LACEY, LOUISIANA TECH
COREY LEMONIER, AUBURN
STANSLY MAPONGA, TCU
WHITNEY MERCILUS, ILLINOIS
SAM MONTGOMERY, LSU
NICK PERRY, USC
SCOTT SOLOMON, RICE
TAYLOR THOMPSON, SMU
Tyrunn Walker, TULSA
TREVARDO WILLIAMS, CONNECTICUT
Now in its tenth season, the Ted Hendricks Award is named in honor of college football's first three-time first-team All-American. On-field performance, exceptional winning attitude, leadership abilities, contributions to school and community and academic preparedness are some of the criteria used to determine the Award's winner. Members of the national media, head coaches, professional scouts and former winners are included in the Award's voting committee. Candidates may represent any class (Freshman through Senior) as well as any four-year NCAA accredited school. The candidate's primary position must be Defensive End.
Previous recipients of the Hendricks Award include: Terrell Suggs (Arizona State), David Pollack (Georgia),Elvis Dumervil (Louisville), LaMarr Woodley (Michigan), Chris Long (Virginia), Brian Orakpo (Texas), Jerry Hughes (TCU) and DaQuan Bowers (Clemson).
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