The second college football preseason award watch list was released on Tuesday as the 2017 Rimington Trophy revealed early contenders.
Centers are often the most undervalued players on the football field. Sure, you could make that argument for the entire offensive line, but centers do a ton of work for very little praise. Well, that’s what college football’s Rimington Trophy is for.
Not many fans could sit there and talk about the top centers in college football, so the Rimington Trophy compiled a preseason list of names to watch in 2017.
A majority of college football programs are spoken for on the list and well-represented, but who could realistically take home the award given to the nation’s most outstanding center in 2017?
Ohio State’s Billy Price has some big shoes to fill as his predecessor, Pat Elflein, won the trophy in 2016. The year before that, it was Alabama’s Ryan Kelly, so Bradley Bozeman will also have his work cut out for him in 2016, trying to live up to lofty expectations.
Many believe UCLA’s Scott Quessenberry, cool name and all, will take home the trophy in 2017, and you can’t fault that judgement. Standing 6-foot-4 and about 315 pounds, he’s one of the bigger centers in the country and has the ability, and versatility, to play multiple positions. He starred during an otherwise forgettable year for the Bruins.
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Michigan State’s Brian Allen, LSU’s Will Clapp, Auburn’s Austin Golson, Florida State’s Alec Eberle and Arkansas’ Frank Ragnow are other names to watch. Since the first Rimington Trophy was rewarded in 2000, Ohio State, Alabama and Michigan have each had two winners. Will 2017 mark a third for one of those schools?