DALLAS — BYU safety Tanner Wall has been named to the watch list for the 2025 Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year award.
Now in its ninth season, the award is presented annually to a student-athlete who exhibits exceptional courage, integrity and sportsmanship both on and off the field.
Wall, a 6-1, 205-pound senior from Arlington, Virginia, is a leader on and off the field for BYU, starting at free safety, being elected a team captain, earning Academic All-America honors and leading out in serving and mentoring others.
In September, Wall was named to the prestigious 2025 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team and is also a semifinalist for the Wuerffel Trophy that is presented annually to the player who best combines exemplary community service with leadership achievement on and off the field.
In addition to starting as a senior in 2025, Wall earned a starting role in all 13 games as a junior for BYU in 2024. Last season he was the team co-leader in interceptions with three, ranked fourth in total tackles with 53 and had four pass defection and a pass breakup to help BYU go 11-2 and earn a No. 13 final ranking.
Following the 2024 season, Wall was named CSC Academic All-America First Team for his excellence in the classroom and received All-Big 12 Third Team recognition by College Football Network for his play on the field. In addition, he earned recognition on both the Fall Academic All-Big 12 Team and Commissioner's Honor Roll in both 2023 and 2024. Wall graduated from BYU with a 3.89 GPA in finance and is currently enrolled in the BYU Marriott School MBA program.
In addition to his success on the field and in his academic studies, Wall has been very involved in a variety of community service endeavors. He currently coordinates the BYU football efforts with the BYU-Pathway Worldwide program to help connect with and mentor hundreds of students from across Africa and the South Pacific.
He also served as the co-chair of the BYU Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) Service Committee for three years, which provides service opportunities for student-athletes in the local community.
Wall also speaks regularly at local school events and church devotionals for youth to inspire them to pursue education and value learning and discipline. Along with other members of the BYU football team, he makes regular visits to patients at Utah Valley Hospital who are struggling with illness.
Twenty semifinalists will be selected by a subset of the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Selection Committee and announced on Tuesday, Oct. 14. Three finalists will then be named for the award on Monday, Dec. 15. The winner will be announced at the award ceremony at The Star in Frisco, Texas, on April 16, 2026.
The award, presented by Albertsons and Tom Thumb, is the first college football honor to focus primarily on a player’s leadership, both on and off the field. In addition to becoming one of the best tight ends in the history of the sport. During his 16-year pro career, Witten served as one of football’s most prominent role models. In addition to winning the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award in 2012, Witten also received the Bart Starr Award, Pro Football Weekly’s Humanitarian of the Year Award, Home Depot NFL Neighborhood MVP and the Bob Lilly Award, among many others.
The winner of the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year will receive a $10,000 contribution in his name to his school’s athletic scholarship fund. The contribution is made by the Jason Witten’s SCORE Foundation, the official charity of Jason and his wife Michelle. The foundation operates its SCOREkeepers program, which places trained male mentors on staff to work with children at family violence shelters. Over the last 16 years, the program has impacted tens of thousands of children and families in Texas and Tennessee over the last 16 years.