Big 12 Football: Media announces preseason football team
The Big 12 football preseason team has been released, headlined by the preseason offensive player of the year, Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield.
Right in the middle of SEC Media Days the Big 12 delivered some offseason news of their own. There will be more to discuss when Big 12 Media Days arrive on Jul 17 and 18. For now let’s take a closer look at the honorees
Related Story: What are the biggest storylines entering conference media days?
Offense
If everything falls right for Mayfield he’ll earn a trip to New York as a Heisman Trophy finalist. But he’s not the only potential award-winner to be honored on this list. In a league known for its offensive firepower, the skill players selected are the cream of the crop. Allen Lazard and James Washington will contend for All-American status. Justice Hill topped 1,000 yards rushing as a freshman in 2016 and will look to build on that this year.
| Pos | Name | School |
| QB | Baker Mayfield | Oklahoma |
| RB | Justice Hill | Oklahoma State |
| RB | Justin Crawford | West Virginia |
| FB | Winston Dimel | Kansas State |
| WR | James Washington | Oklahoma State |
| WR | Allen Lazard | Iowa State |
| WR | Keke Coutee | Texas Tech |
| TE | Mark Andrews | Oklahoma |
| OL | Orlando Brown | Oklahoma |
| OL | Connor Williams | Texas |
| OL | Dalton Risner | Kansas State |
| OL | Austin Schlottmann | TCU |
| OL | Zach Crabtree | Oklahom State |
| PK | Clayton Hatfield | Texas Tech |
| KR/PR | KaVontae Turpin | TCU |
Defense
You won’t find many linebackers in the country than Malik Jefferson and Travin Howard. For all the knocks that the Big 12 gets on their lack of defense, there are several guys on this list that would start at most every program in the country, save perhaps Alabama and Ohio State.
| Pos | Name | School |
| DL | Dorance Armstrong Jr. | Kansas |
| DL | K.J. Smith | Baylor |
| DL | Reggie Walker | Kansas State |
| DL | Poona Ford | Texas |
| DL | Malcolm Roach | Texas |
| LB | Travin Howard | TCU |
| LB | Ogbonnia Okoronkwo | Oklahoma |
| LB | Malik Jefferson | Texas |
| DB | D.J. Reed | Kansas State |
| DB | Jordan Thomas | Oklahoma |
| DB | Tre Flowers | Oklahoma State |
| DB | Kamari Cotton-Moya | Iowa State |
| DB | Nick Orr | TCU |
| P | Michael Dickson | Texas |
Players of the Year
- Offensive Player of the Year: Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma, QB,
- Defensive Player of the Year: Dorance Armstrong Jr., Kansas, DE
- Newcomer of the Year: Will Grier, West Virginia, QB
Next: Ranking the 10 can't miss Big 12 games in 2017
There were three unanimous selections to the preseason team: Dorance Armstrong Jr. on the defensive line, Orlando Brown on the offensive line and receiver James Washington.
Who just missed the cut? FanSided’s Michael Collins cast his specialist vote for Kansas State wide receiver Byron Pringle. The shifty speedster could make it into onto the list before the year is through.
***Stats from Sports Reference***