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Heading into the 2018 college football season, WalterFootball.com will debut our projections for the nation’s leaders during the fall. The All-American teams always have some surprises, and the next fall’s stars could be the headline players next April for the 2019 NFL Draft. We also will project the winners of the postseason awards that are given out to the best of college football.
The Mackey Award is given to the top tight end in college football. I correctly predicted the Mackey Award winner for five straight years, but missed in 2017 with Troy Fumagalli rather than Mark Andrews. I had Andrews as the dark-horse selection with the prediction of Troy Fumagalli winning the award being incorrect.
The Streak
2016: Jake Butt
2015 Hunter Henry
2014: Nick O’Leary
2013: Austin Seferian-Jenkins
2012: Tyler Eifert
Mackey Award Winner:
Noah Fant, Iowa The Mackey Award favors tight ends who are more than just blockers or receivers. It likes the winner to be effective in both aspects of tight end play. With that in mind, Fant makes a lot of sense as the favorite to win the Mackey Award. I think I have a real shot of getting back on track with Fant.
Iowa has produced a lot of good tight end prospects in recent years, and Fant could keep that trend going after a breakout sophomore season. He hauled in 28 passes for 486 yards with 10 touchdowns in 2017. The 6-foot-5, 232-pounder looked like he was just scratching the surface of what he is capable of doing. He has size to his frame and the ability to grow stronger and become a better blocker as he gains experience. The junio should be a vital piece of the Iowa offense as a receiver and blocker in 2018. He could easily be the top tight end in the nation and win the Mackey Award.
Mackey Runner-Up:
Albert Okwuegbunam, Missouri Okwuegbunam was a dangerous red-zone weapon last season, hauling in 11 touchdowns for the Tigers. Missouri opened up its offense in the back half of the 2017 season, and the 6-foot-5, 260-pound redshirt freshman was one of the team’s steady receiving threats with 29 receptions for 415 yards. Okwuegbunam has starting quarterback Drew Lock returning and is definitely capable of producing a huge year as a redshirt sophomore. If Okwuegbunam and Lock both stay healthy, that should definitely make Okwuegbunam one of the finalists for the Mackey Award.
Mackey Dark Horse:
Caleb Wilson, UCLA It was a tough call to have Wilson as the runner-up. I think he is a very gifted receiving tight end with the potential to be the most lethal receiving tight end in the nation. However, Wilson is coming off a season-ending injury and UCLA is transitioning to a new starting quarterback in a completely different offense under Chip Kelly. A new, inexperienced signal-caller could really depress Wilson’s production. Additionally, Kelly often used a heavy rotation at tight end during his time at Oregon, so that could also hurt Wilson’s production.
Wilson was phenomenal in 2017 as the most reliable receiving threat for Josh Rosen. Prior to a season-ending foot injury, Wilson had 38 receptions for 490 yards and one touchdown over less than half a season of play. If he hadn’t been injured, Wilson could have put together a prolific season with Josh Rosen at quarterback. Wilson is very talented and could still produce an impressive year, but he must stay healthy with Kelly and the new UCLA quarterback getting Wilson the ball.
Honorable Mentions: Boston College’s Tomy Sweeney, Kentucky’s C.J. Conrad, USC’s Tyler Petite, Alabama’s Irv Smith Jr. and Stanford’s Kaden Smith.
2018 Preseason All-American Projections:
QB | RB | WR | TE | OT | G | C | DE | DT | OLB | ILB | CB | S | K/P
2018 Preseason Postseason Award Projections:
Thorpe Award | Lombardi Award | Biletnikoff Award | Lott IMPACT Trophy | Outland Trophy | Rimington Trophy | Mackey Award | Maxwell Award | Hendricks Award | O'Brien Award | Doak Walker Award | Bednarik Award | Nagurski Award | Hornung Award | Jet Award | Walter Camp Award | Ray Guy Award | Groza Award | Heisman Trophy |
QB | RB | WR | TE | OT | G | C | DE | DT | OLB | ILB | CB | S | K/P
2018 Preseason Postseason Award Projections:
Thorpe Award | Lombardi Award | Biletnikoff Award | Lott IMPACT Trophy | Outland Trophy | Rimington Trophy | Mackey Award | Maxwell Award | Hendricks Award | O'Brien Award | Doak Walker Award | Bednarik Award | Nagurski Award | Hornung Award | Jet Award | Walter Camp Award | Ray Guy Award | Groza Award | Heisman Trophy |
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