Bronko Nagurski Trophy watch list released, can Arizona’s Scooby Wright do it again?

Written by Ryan Wright

The preseason Bronko Nagurski Trophy watch list was released on Friday naming a ridiculous 88 players as potential candidates. Among the 88 players compiled as potential candidates to win the award given to the best defender in college football was 2014 award winner Scooby Wright.

Wright took college football by storm in 2014 coming up with an amazing 163 tackles that included 29 tackles for a loss, and 14 sacks. At the end of the season the Pac-12 honored the nation’s leading tackler with their Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year award.

Wright was a relative unknown out of high school capturing the nation’s attention as a Rocky Balboa type fighting off all odds to succeed, and succeed he did. Thanks in part to the play of the 6’1”, 240 pound, linebacker, Arizona went 10-4 in 2014 with wins at Oregon and Utah, and beat in-state rival Arizona State. End of the game heroics by the California native secured wins against the Ducks and the Sun Devils.

Arizona has a nice mix of returning talent in the back seven of the Wildcats’ 3-4 defense. The amount of returning talent could mean less pressure for Wright to perform at such an elite level and could mean another preseason watch list candidate could contend for the 2015 honors.

Two players that might be deserving of the award but more than likely will get bypassed due to conference ties includes UMass’ Jovan Santos-Knox and Great Ibe (Eastern Michigan). Both are tackling machines, Santos-Knox with 143 last year and Ibe with 132.

Somehow Duke safety DeVon Edwards was left off the list despite coming up with 133 tackles in 2014 and Utah State’s Nick Vigil who had 123 stops last season.

Contenders on everybody’s All-American list include Ohio State defensive end Joey Bosa, Alabama linebacker Reggie Ragland, Florida State safety Jalen Ramsey, Florida corner Vernon Hargreaves III, Michigan State defensive end Shilique Calhoun, and UCLA linebacker Myles Jack.

Wright does not have history on his side. The only player to ever win the award twice was Pat Fitzgerald (Northwestern).

The Bronko Nagurski Trophy is overseen by the Charlotte Touchdown Club and was created by the Football Writers Association of America in 1993.

Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List
LB Dominique Alexander, Oklahoma
DE Jonathan Allen, Alabama
DB Budda Baker, Washington
DB Dante Barnett, Kansas State
DE Derek Barnett, Tennessee
LB Kendell Beckwith, LSU
DB Vonn Bell, Ohio State
LB Vince Biegel, Wisconsin
DT Andrew Billings, Baylor
DB Quin Blanding, Virginia
DB Briean Boddy-Calhoun, Minnesota
DE Joey Bosa, Ohio State
LB Kentrell Brothers, Missouri
DE DeForest Buckner, Oregon
LB James Burgess, Louisville
DE Shilique Calhoun, Michigan State
DB Maurice Canady, Virginia
DB Michael Caputo, Wisconsin
DB Jeremy Cash, Duke
DT Kenny Clark, UCLA
DT Maliek Collins, Nebraska
DB Tony Conner, Ole Miss
DE Kamalei Correa, Boise State
LB Su’a Cravens, USC
DT Sheldon Day, Notre Dame
DE Ken Ekanem, Virginia Tech
LB Kyler Fackrell, Utah State
LB Leonard Floyd, Georgia
DB Kendall Fuller, Virginia Tech
DE Myles Garrett, Texas A&M
DT Adam Gotsis, Georgia Tech
DB Vernon Hargreaves III, Florida
LB Myles Jack, UCLA
DB William Jackson, Houston
DB Adoree’ Jackson, USC
DE Jordan Jenkins, Georgia
DT Gerrand Johnson, ULM
DB Jonathan Jones, Auburn
DT Chris Jones, Mississippi State
DB Karl Joseph, West Virginia
DE Bronson Kaufusi, BYU
DE Carl Lawson Auburn
LB Darron Lee, Ohio State
DB William Likely, Maryland
DB Jordan Lucas, Penn State
DT Luther Maddy, Virginia Tech
LB Curt Maggitt, Tennessee
DT Corey Marshall, Virginia Tech
LB Blake Martinez, Stanford
LB Tyler Matakevich, Temple
DB Danzel McDaniel, Kansas State
DB Adrian McDonald, Houston
LB Cassanova McKinzy, Auburn
DB Jalen Mills, LSU
DB Fabian Moreau, UCLA
LB Antonio Morrison, Florida
DB Eric Murray, Minnesota
DE Dadi Nicolas, Virginia Tech
DT Robert Nkemdiche, Ole Miss
LB Jared Norris, Utah
DE Shawn Oakman, Baylor
DE Pat O’Connor, Eastern Michigan
DE Emmanuel Ogbah, Oklahoma State
DE Drew Ott, Iowa
LB Joshua Perry, Ohio State
LB Reggie Ragland, Alabama
DB Jalen Ramsey, Florida State
DE Sheldon Rankins, Louisville
DB Will Redmond, Mississippi State
DE Pete Robertson, Texas Tech
DT A’Shawn Robinson, Alabama
DB KeiVarae Russell, Notre Dame
DB Zack Sanchez, Oklahoma
LB Jovan Santos-Knox, Massachusetts
LB Joe Schmidt, Notre Dame
DE Ian Seau, Nevada
LB Terrance Smith, Florida State
LB Jaylon Smith, Notre Dame
LB Eric Striker, Oklahoma
DE Charles Tapper, Oklahoma
DB Darian Thompson, Boise State
LB Jeremy Timpf, Army
DT Travis Tuiloma, BYU
DT Adolphus Washington, Ohio State
DB Xavier Woods, Louisiana Tech
LB Scooby Wright III, Arizona
DB Ronald Zamort, Western Michigan
DT Anthony Zettel, Penn State

Photo credit: azcentral.com; No. 33 Scooby Wright