Tua Tagovailoa named SEC Offensive Player of the Year
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Alabama claimed four of the SEC’s seven individual football awards as voted on by the league’s head coaches, it was announced Wednesday.
Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was named SEC Offensive Player of the Year, while receiver Jaylen Waddle was voted SEC Freshman of the Year. Tight end Hale Hentges was selected as Scholar-Athlete of the Year, and offensive lineman Jonah Williams was named the winner of the Jacobs Blocking Trophy. Kentucky took home a pair of honors as linebacker Josh Allen was named Defensive Player of the Year, while head coach Mark Stoops earned SEC Coach of the Year. Texas A&M punter Braden Mann was voted Special Teams Player of the Year.
Tagovailoa became the fourth Crimson Tide player in five years to earn SEC Player of the Year honors, joining Jalen Hurts (2016), Derrick Henry (2015) and Amari Cooper (2014) as recent winners. Through 13 games, Tagovailoa completed 67.7 percent of his passed for 3,353 yards and 37 touchdowns with four interceptions while adding another 190 yards and five more scores on the ground. The Heisman finalist rewrote Alabama’s record book this season, breaking the single-season marks for combined touchdowns (42) and passing touchdowns (37) as well as the single-game record for combined touchdowns with six against Auburn.
Waddle leads all SEC freshmen with 61.8 receiving yards per game and seven touchdown receptions. He is fourth in the SEC in yards per catch (19.6) and second in punt return average (15.1). Waddle has returned one punt for a touchdown this season.
Hentges graduated Magna Cum Laude in three years and is now pursuing a master's in marketing. He earned a 3.74 GPA as an undergraduate and holds a 4.0 GPA in his master's program. A CoSIDA Academic All-District honoree, Hentges has played in all 13 games this season and has a pair of touchdown receptions.
Williams has started all 13 games this season for Alabama and has helped pave the way for an offense that leads the SEC with 527.6 yards per game. The Crimson Tide leads the FBS with 11 games of 500+ total yards.
Allen set the Kentucky record with 28.5 career sacks, including a school-record 14 in 2018. He is the SEC’s leader in sacks, tackles for loss (18.5) and forced fumbles (5). Allen is tied for first on Kentucky’s all-time career forced fumbles list with 11. He was named winner of the Bronko Nagurski Trophy awarded to the nation’s top defensive player.
Stoops led Kentucky to a 9-3 regular season record, including a 5-3 mark in SEC play, both of which are the best for the Wildcats since 1977. Kentucky earned a bid to the Citrus Bowl for the first time in school history, and the Wildcats will play in a New Year’s Day bowl for the first time since 1998.
Mann is the first Aggie to be named SEC Special Teams Player of the Year. He is the current FBS leader with a 51.15 punting average. He has set a pair of NCAA records in 2018 with a 60.8 gross punt average on five punts against Alabama and 14 60-yard punts for the season. Mann is a finalist for the Ray Guy Award presented to the nation’s top punter.
Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own players.
The SEC All-Freshman Team will be announced Thursday.
SEC Football Awards
Offensive Player Of The Year
Tua Tagovailoa, Alabama
Defensive Player of the Year
Josh Allen, Kentucky
Special Teams Player of the Year
Braden Mann, Texas A&M
Freshman of the Year
Jaylen Waddle, Alabama
Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Hale Hentges, Alabama
Jacobs Blocking Trophy
Jonah Williams, Alabama
Coach of the Year
Mark Stoops, Kentucky