2020 Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award Watch List Issued
College Sports Information Directors of America
Related Content
CoSIDA Members: There will be another Mayo Comeback Player of the Year Award Watch List generated. Please be sure to email nominations for the next Watch List to CFBComebackPOY@gmail.com. The deadline for nominations is Friday, November 20.
The College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) in association with The Associated Press (AP) and the Fiesta Bowl Organization, released its initial watch list of college football student-athletes under consideration for the 2020 Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award. The Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award Watch List includes 53 players from 44 schools.
Since 2018, a panel of writers, editors and sports information directors from CoSIDA, AP and Touchdown Illustrated have recognized 30 college football student-athletes each season from all divisions of college football for overcoming injury or illness, by sharing their remarkable comeback stories throughout the season. At the conclusion of the season, three college football student-athletes were honored as Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award winners during an on-field presentation at the PlayStation® Fiesta Bowl.
There have been many changes to college football, this season, so rather than recognize college football student-athletes from all divisions of play each week during the season, several watch lists of Division 1 football student-athletes playing in the fall are being issued throughout the season. The three overall winners will be announced timed with the 2020-21 PlayStation® Fiesta Bowl, held on January 2, 2021.
The initial watch list includes the following breakdown per conference: American Athletic Conference (3), Atlantic Coast Conference (7), Big 12 (4), Big Ten (6), Conference USA (4), Independent (2), Mid-American (4), Mountain West (3), Pac-12 (5), Southeastern Conference (9), Sun Belt (6).
| Conference | Player | School |
|---|---|---|
| AAC | Charles McLelland, RB Jr. | Cincinnati |
| AAC | Sean Dykes, TE, Sr. | Memphis |
| AAC | McKenzie Milton, QB, Sr. | Central Florida |
| ACC | Jarrid Williams, OL, Sr. | Miami |
| ACC | Jarrett Gardner, WR, So. | Duke |
| ACC | Jashuan Corbin, RB, Jr. | Florida State |
| ACC | Kenny Cooper, C, Sr. | Georgia Tech |
| ACC | Tre Tipton, WR, Sr. | Pittsburgh |
| ACC | Rashad Weaver, DE, Sr. | Pittsburgh |
| ACC | Darius Bratton, CB, Jr. | Virginia |
| BIG 12 | Tre Norwood, DB, Jr. | Oklahoma |
| BIG 12 | Jack Anderson, OL, Sr. | Texas Tech. |
| BIG 12 | Justin Hughes, LB, Sr. | Kansas State |
| BIG 12 | Tylan Wallace, WR, Sr. | Oklahoma State |
| BIG Ten | Mike Epstein, RB, Sr. | Illinois |
| BIG Ten | Marquez Beason, CB, So. | Illinois |
| BIG Ten | Coy Cronk, OL, Sr. | Iowa |
| BIG Ten | Jake Funk, RB, Sr. | Maryland |
| BIG Ten | Jeshaun Jones, WR, Sr. | Maryland |
| BIG Ten | Rondale Moore, WR, So. | Purdue |
| C-USA | Brontae Harris, CB, Sr. | UAB |
| C-USA | DeVaughn Cooper WR, Sr. | UTEP |
| C-USA | Eric Kenzidor, DL, Sr. | Louisiana Tech |
| C-USA | Jakairi Moses, RB, Jr. | Western Kentucky |
| Independent | Daelin Hayes, DE, Sr. | Notre Dame |
| Independent | Bennett Skowronek, WR, Sr. | Notre Dame |
| Mtn. West | Ezekiel Noa, LB, Jr. | Boise State |
| Mtn. West | Jordan Mims, RB, Jr. | Fresno State |
| Mtn. West | Brandt Hughes, QB, Jr. | New Mexico |
| MAC | Andrew Clair, RB, Jr. | Bowling Green |
| MAC | Evan Finegan, P, Jr. | Buffalo |
| MAC | Kyle Pugh, LB, Sr. | Northern Illinois |
| MAC | Bryce Harris, C, Sr. | Toledo |
| Pac-12 | Jack Broussard, RB, So. | Colorado |
| Pac-12 | Chris Miller, CB, Jr. | Colorado |
| Pac-12 | Cade Cote, OL, Sr. | Arizona State |
| Pac-12 | Jake Bentley, QB, Sr. | Utah |
| Pac-12 | Andrzej Hughes-Murray, LB, Sr. | Oregon State |
| SEC | Dylan Moses, LB, Jr. | Alabama |
| SEC | Trey Sanders, RB, So. | Alabama |
| SEC | Feleipe Franks, QB, Sr. | Arkansas |
| SEC | Noah Gatlin, OL, So. | Arkansas |
| SEC | Ali Stove, WR, Sr. | Auburn |
| SEC | JT Daniels, QB, So. | Georgia |
| SEC | Terry Wilson, QB, Sr. | Kentucky |
| SEC | Kenneth Horsey, OL, So. | Kentucky |
| SEC | Collin Hill, QB, Sr. | South Carolina |
| Sun Belt | Camerun Peoples, RB, So. | Appalachian State |
| Sun Belt | Ryan Graham, RB, Jr. | Arkansas State |
| Sun Belt | Logan Wright, RB, Jr. | Georgia Southern |
| Sun Belt | Brian Miller, OT, Jr. | Georgia Southern |
| Sun Belt | Ken Marks, OL, Sr. | Louisiana |
| Sun Belt | BJ Smith, RB, Sr. | Troy |
“Our goal is to help fans better appreciate the roads these student-athletes have traveled. says Doug Vance, executive director of CoSIDA. “We hope these stories of achievement can inspire other people to meet the challenges in their own lives.”
Previous winners of the Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award have been: 2018 - Antwan Dixon (Kent State University), Seth Simmer (Dartmouth College); Antonio Wimbush (Carson-Newman University); 2019 – Jake Luton (Oregon State University); Drew Wilson (Georgia Southern University) and Octavion Wilson (Salisbury University). For a complete list of past honorees, visit www.Comeback-Player.com.
About Mayo Clinic: Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization committed to innovation in clinical practice, education and research, and providing compassion, expertise and answers to everyone who needs