DALLAS (FWAA) The 15th annual Football
Writers Association of America Freshman All-America Team
has a southern feel to it and includes four players who will
help decide the College Football Playoff National Championship
tonight in Glendale, Ariz.
Alabama wide receiver Calvin Ridley and cornerback Marlon
Humphrey face off against Clemson defensive tackle Christian
Wilkins and offensive tackle Mitch Hyatt when their teams meet
at University of Phoenix Stadium. Ridley and Humphrey are among
eight players from the Southeastern Conference on the Freshman
All-America team, the most of any conference. Alabama and
Clemson led the list with two players each, along with fellow
SEC member Missouri and Texas.
The Big 12 had five players on the team, with the Pac-12, Big
Ten and ACC earning three slots. Each of the Division I
conferences is represented on the team along with Notre Dame.
There are 24 different schools represented on the 29-man team.
The First Year Coach of the Year went to Houstons Tom
Herman, who guided the Cougars to a 13-1 record and a 38-24 win
over Florida State in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. Herman was the
offensive coordinator at Ohio State during its 2014 national
championship season, and drew praise from the FWAA panel with
his high-scoring attack that took Houston to the American
Athletic Conference title in his first season.
Incoming FWAA president Mark Anderson led the 10-person panel
of nationally-prominent writers that represent each of the FBS
conferences in the selecting the team. Both true freshmen (19
players) and redshirt freshmen (10 players) were considered for
the team and are so noted on the list below.
2015 FWAA
FRESHMAN ALL-AMERICA TEAM |
OFFENSE (12) |
Pos. |
Player, School |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Hometown |
QB |
Josh Rosen,
UCLA |
6-4 |
210 |
Manhattan Beach,
Calif. |
RB |
Saquon
Barkley, Penn State |
5-11 |
222 |
Coplay, Pa. |
RB |
Myles
Gaskin, Washington |
5-9 |
192 |
Lynnwood, Wash. |
RB |
Mike Warren,
Iowa State |
6-0 |
200 |
Lawton, Okla. |
WR |
Penny Hart,
Georgia State |
5-9 |
170 |
Buford, Ga. |
WR |
Richie James,
Middle Tennessee |
5-9 |
171 |
Sarasota, Fla. |
WR |
Calvin
Ridley, Alabama |
6-1 |
188 |
Coconut Creek, Fla. |
OL |
William Clapp,
LSU |
6-5 |
303 |
New Orleans, La. |
OL |
Will Noble,
Houston |
6-4 |
290 |
Leander, Texas |
OL |
Mitch Hyatt,
Clemson |
6-5 |
295 |
Suwanee, Ga. |
OL |
Max Scharping,
Northern Illinois |
6-6 |
311 |
Green Bay, Wis. |
OL |
Connor
Williams, Texas |
6-5 |
283 |
Coppell, Texas |
DEFENSE (12) |
Pos. |
Player, School |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Hometown |
DE |
Walter
Brady, Missouri |
6-3 |
255 |
Florence, Ala. |
DE |
Jaylon
Ferguson, Louisiana Tech |
6-5 |
256 |
St. Francisville, La. |
DT |
Terry
Beckner Jr., Missouri |
6-4 |
300 |
East St. Louis, Ill. |
DT |
Christian
Wilkins, Clemson |
6-4 |
315 |
Springfield, Mass. |
LB |
T.J. Edwards,
Wisconsin |
6-1 |
238 |
Lake Villa, Ill. |
LB |
Dre
Greenlaw, Arkansas |
6-0 |
222 |
Fayetteville, Ark. |
LB |
Malik
Jefferson, Texas |
6-3 |
232 |
Mesquite, Texas |
DB |
Marlon
Humphrey, Alabama |
6-1 |
192 |
Hoover, Ala. |
DB |
Kareem Orr,
Arizona State |
5-11 |
195 |
Chattanooga, Tenn. |
DB |
Jabrill
Peppers, Michigan |
6-1 |
205 |
East Orange, N.J. |
DB |
Andrew
Wingard, Wyoming |
6-0 |
194 |
Arvada, Colo. |
DB |
Jordan
Whitehead, Pittsburgh |
5-11 |
185 |
Aliquippa, Pa. |
SPECIALISTS (5) |
Pos. |
Player, School |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Hometown |
K |
Justin Yoon,
Notre Dame |
5-10 |
185 |
Nashville, Tenn. |
P |
Austin
Seibert, Oklahoma |
5-10 |
210 |
Belleville, Ill. |
AP |
Christian
Kirk, Texas A&M |
5-11 |
200 |
Scottsdale, Ariz. |
KR |
Kavontae
Turpin, TCU |
5-9 |
152 |
Monroe, La. |
PR |
Antonio
Callaway, Florida |
5-11 |
198 |
Miami, Fla. |
HEAD COACH |
Tom Herman, Houston (Finalists: Jim Harbaugh,
Michigan and Pat Narduzzi, Pittsburgh). |
Denotes
true freshman |
Celebrating its 75th season, the Football Writers Association
of America, a non-profit organization, consists of more
than 1,400 men and women who cover college football. The membership
includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key
executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works
to govern areas that include game-day operations, major awards and
its annual All-America team. For more information about the FWAA
and its award programs, contact Steve Richardson at
tiger@fwaa.com or 214-870-6516.
All-Time FWAA Freshman All-America Teams
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
2009 |
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014
2015 FWAA FRESHMAN
ALL-AMERICA COMMITTEE |
Mark Anderson, Las Vegas Review Journal
(MWC) |
Ron Higgins, NOLA.com (SEC) |
Mark Blaudschun, AJerseyGuy.com (ACC) |
Blair Kerkhoff, Kansas City Star (Big
12) |
Andrew Greif, OregonLive.com (Pac-12) |
Doug Smock, Charleston Gazette (American
Athletic) |
Mike Griffith, MLive Media Group (Big
Ten/Independents) |
Phil Stukenborg, Memphis Commercial
Appeal (C-USA) |
Tommy Hicks, Call News (Sun
Belt) |
John Wagner, Toledo Blade (MAC) |
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