Press release from Texas A&M Athletics:
PHILADELPHIA – Texas A&M’s Nic Scourton and Shemar Turner were named to the preseason watch list for the Chuck Bednarik Award, which annually honors the nation’s top college defensive player, the Maxwell Football Club announced Monday morning. The two linemen were also named to the preseason watch list for the Nagurski Trophy and received Preseason All-SEC Second Team honors from the league’s media.
Scourton arrived in Aggieland in January after leading the Big Ten with 10.0 sacks and ranking fourth with 15.0 tackles for loss as a sophomore at Purdue last season. Scourton started all 11 games he played in and was fifth on the team with 50 tackles. He also forced a fumble and defended three passes. He finished the year with Second Team All-Big Ten honors. A native of Bryan, Texas, Scourton impressed in the Maroon & White Game this spring, recording seven tackles, including 3.5 for loss, and contributing for both teams.
Turner returns for his final season after helping the Aggies have the best rush defense in the SEC and rank third in the league in total defense (316.2) last season. Texas A&M limited opponents to just 108.8 rushing yards per game and nine touchdowns on the ground, led the league in sacks (42.0) and ranked second in tackles for loss (99.0). Turner has started every game the past two seasons. The DeSoto, Texas, native was among the team’s top three in sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss last year, ranking eighth and ninth, respectively, among SEC defensive linemen. As a junior, he totaled 33 tackles and blocked two kicks. At the end of the season, he was named to the All-SEC Second Team.
The Bednarik Award has been given to the college defensive player of the year since 1994 and is named after Chuck “Concrete Charlie” Bednarik, who was an All-American at the University of Pennsylvania and later an All-Pro linebacker and center for the Philadelphia Eagles for several years. He is a member of the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame and was the last NFL player to play both offense and defense full-time.
The semifinalists for the Chuck Bednarik Award will be announced on November 12, while the three finalists will be revealed on November 26. The winners of the 30th The Chuck Bednarik Award will be announced during the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards show on December 12. The official presentation of the Chuck Bednarik Award will take place on Friday, March 14, 2025, at the Maxwell Football Club Awards at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, Georgia.
