Illinois Football: Illini players stacking up preseason award watchlists

Illinois football displayed one of the best defenses in all of college football in 2022.

The Illini secondary got most of the shine, as we had multiple NFL Draft picks come from this talented group of ball hawks. But the Illinois defensive line was also special.

That talented front three for the Illini featured a player in Calvin Avery who is now in the NFL trying to stick with the Minnesota Vikings. It also featured two of the best defensive linemen this program has ever seen in Jer’Zhan Newton and Keith Randolph Jr.

Newton would finish the 2022 campaign as a near-unanimous second-team All-American. Randolph also earned some solid accolades, as he was on the All-Big Ten team by numerous outlets.

Entering the 2023 campaign, these two monsters, known as The Law Firm, have extremely high expectations. Both Newton and Randolph are preseason All-Americans by every outlet, and they continue to earn more and more notoriety by the day.

On Monday, the watchlist for the Bednarik Award was released. This award is earned by the best defensive player in college football. On this watchlist, you guessed it, were both Newton and Randolph.

The reason both players are on this prestigious list is the fact they had a great 2022 campaign. Newton would finish last season with 62.0 tackles, 14.0 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, 3.0 pass deflections, and 2.0 fumble recoveries. Randolph’s numbers weren’t too far behind, as he had 53.0 tackles, 13.0 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, 1.0 interceptions, and 1.0 pass deflections.

On top of the individual success, The Law Firm enabled Illinois to have one of the best rush defenses in the nation. Illinois gave up just 102.6 yards per game on the ground, which ranked No. 9 in the country. Opposing teams also averaged just 3.4 yards per carry, which ranked No. 16 in the nation.

Preseason award watchlists are starting to stack up for the Illinois football team

Newton and Randloph making the watchlist for the Bednarik Award is big for these two menaces in the middle, but this wasn’t the only watchlist they have made.

Both players are also on the Bronko Nagurski Award watchlist, which also awards the best defensive player in college football. In addition to those two watchlists, Randolph made the Outland Trophy watchlist, which awards the best interior lineman. Newton is on the watchlist for the Walter Camp Award, which is for the player of the year in college football.

These two aren’t the only Illinois football players who have made watchlists either. Offensive guard Isaiah Adams is also on the Outland Trophy watchlist. Running backs Reggie Love III and Josh McCray made the Doak Walker watchlist, which is given to the best running back in college football.

A couple of big-time pass catchers also earned some preseason recognition. Tight end Tip Reiman is on the Mackey Award watchlist, which is given to the best tight end in the country. Wide receiver Isaiah Williams made both the Maxwell Award watch list, which is given to college football’s most outstanding player, and the Wuerffel Trophy watchlist, which is given to the top community servant of the year.