Eathyn Manumaleuna named to Outland Trophy watch list

Eathyn Manumaleuna named to Outland Trophy watch listEathyn Manumaleuna named to Outland Trophy watch list

Four-year BYU starter among 75 players selected to the preseason list

PROVO, Utah – BYU defensive lineman Eathyn Manumaleuna has been named to the 2013 OutlandTrophy Watch List, announced today by the Football Writers Association of America.

The BYU senior is one of 75 players on the watch list. The Outland Trophy is awarded annually to the best interior lineman in college football. BYU boasts two previous Outland Trophy winners with defensive lineman Jason Buck earning the award in 1986 and offensive lineman Mohammed Elewonibi receiving the honor in 1989.

Manumaleuna enters the 2013 season slated as the starter at defensive tackle for BYU. The versatile lineman has started 38 games for BYU at both nose tackle and end. A four-year starter, he is returning from a season-ending injury that sidelined him after four starts last year. He has 96 tackles, including 10 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks, and one interception during his career. Among his many career highlights, he blocked a field goal attempt from his nose tackle position in the closing moments of the 2007 Las Vegas Bowl to give BYU a win over UCLA.  

Florida State, USC, Stanford and Tennessee combined to put 13 players on the watch list.Florida State and Stanford have never had an Outland winner in the 67-year history of the award. USC has had onewinner (Ron Yary, 1967), and Tennessee has had two interior linemen claim the prestigious bronzed trophy (SteveDeLong, 1964 and John Henderson, 2000).

The Outland Trophy winner is chosen from three finalists who are part of the FWAA All-America Team. The FWAAAll-America Committee, after voting input from the entire membership, selects the 25-man team and eventuallythe three Outland finalists. Committee members, then by individual ballot, select the winner. Only interior linemenon offense or defense are eligible for the award; ends are not eligible.

The list will be trimmed to six or seven semifinalists on Nov. 20. Five days later three Outland Trophy finalists willbe named by the FWAA. The winner of the 68th Outland Trophy, named after the late John Outland, an All-Americalineman at Penn at the turn of the 20th century, will be announced on ESPN on The Home Depot College FootballAwards on Dec. 12 from Disney’s Boardwalk in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

The Outland Trophy presentation banquet, sponsored by the Greater Omaha Sports Committee, will be held onJan. 9, 2014 in Omaha, Neb. This year, North Carolina State center Jim Ritcher, the 1979 Outland Trophy winner,will be honored and presented an Outland Trophy, which was not given in the era in which he won the award.

The Football Writers Association of America, a non-profit organization founded in 1941, consists of more than1,300 men and women who cover college football for a living. The membership includes journalists, broadcastersand publicists, as well as key executives in all areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas thatinclude gameday operations, major awards and its annual All-America team. For more information about the

FWAA and its award programs, contact Steve Richardson at tiger@fwaa.com or 972-713-6198.

 

2013 OUTLAND TROPHY PRESEASON WATCH LIST

The Outland Trophy is presented to the nation’s most outstanding

interior lineman by the Football Writers Association of America.

 

Offensive Tackles (25)

Le’Raven Clark, Texas Tech

La’el Collins, LSU

Anthony Dima, Massachusetts

Cameron Erving, Florida State

Cameron Fleming, Stanford

Kevin Graf, USC

Ryan Groy, Wisconsin

James Hurst, North Carolina

Ja’Wuan James, Tennessee

Kaleb Johnson, Rutgers

Wesley Johnson, Vanderbilt

Tyler Johnstone, Oregon

Cyrus Kouandjio, Alabama

Eric Lefeld, Cincinnati

Charles Leno, Boise State

Taylor Lewan, Michigan

Cornelius Lucas, Kansas State

Zack Martin, Notre Dame

Jake Matthews, Texas A&M

Jack Mewhort, Ohio State

Morgan Moses, Virginia

Antonio Richardson, Tennessee

Jeremiah Sirles, Nebraska

Brandon Thomas, Clemson

Austin Wentworth, Fresno State

 

Offensive Guards (20)

Austen Bujnoch, Cincinnati

Chris Burnette, Georgia

A.J. Cann, South Carolina

Kevin Danser, Stanford

Trey Hopkins, Texas

Tré Jackson, Florida State

Gabe Jackson, Mississippi State

Brandon Linder, Miami

Spencer Long, Nebraska

Antwan Lowery, Rutgers

John Martinez, USC

Andrew Norwell, Ohio State

Cyril Richardson, Baylor

Will Simmons, East Carolina

Anthony Steen, Alabama

Xavier Su’a-Filo, UCLA

Laken Tomlinson, Duke

John Urschel, Penn State

Mason Walters, Texas

David Yankey, Stanford

 

Centers (11)

BJ Finney, Kansas State

Hroniss Grasu, Oregon

Gabe Ikard, Oklahoma

Zac Kerin, Toledo

Tyler Larsen, Utah State

Andrew Miller, Virginia Tech

Weston Richburg, Colorado State

Isaac Seumalo, Oregon State

Bryan Stork, Florida State

Travis Swanson, Arkansas

Brandon Vitabile, Northwestern

 

Defensive Tackles (19)

Calvin Barnett, Oklahoma State

Ryan Carrethers, Arkansas State

Deandre Coleman, California

Aaron Donald, Pittsburgh

Dominique Easley, Florida

Ra’Shede Hageman, Minnesota

Chucky Hunter, TCU

Kerry Hyder, Texas Tech

Timmy Jernigan, Florida State

Anthony Johnson, LSU

DaQuan Jones, Penn State

Eathyn Manumaleuna, BYU

Daniel McCullers, Tennessee

Louis Nix III, Notre Dame

Roosevelt Nix, Kent State

Kelcy Quarles, South Carolina

Will Sutton, Arizona State

Nikita Whitlock, Wake Forest

Leonard Williams, USC