Time to slide open the glass casing and add ink to the archive pages. College football’s annual awards find their recipients this weekend.

Before the Heisman Trophy presentation goes down on Saturday, there’s a Friday telecast for positional honors and individual achievement from the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA).

How to watch the 2025 College Football Awards

Kevin Negandhi, Molly McGrath and Booger McFarland anchor this two-hour program from the Bristol, Conn., network studio. Jen Lada will report with player interviews from nearby New York City, the site of Saturday’s Heisman fanfare.

A few of these NCFAA distinctions have already been settled. Texas Tech senior linebacker Jacob Rodriguez claimed the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and the Butkus Award earlier this week. Those awards won’t get full presentations, but the winners will still be honored during Friday’s show.

In the past decade, there have been three discrepancies between Heisman and Maxwell verdicts. While both celebrate the top player in college football, their voting pools are a bit different. The Heisman Trophy is decided by 930 ballots — 870 media members, evenly distributed across six geographic regions, plus the former Heisman winners (59 living) and one ceremonial fan vote. Though the Maxwell Award also features input from selected members of the media, its other votes are split between college football head coaches, sports information directors and the titular Maxwell Football Club (membership begins at $50 per year).

In 2018, Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa won the Maxwell, while Oklahoma QB Kyler Murray took home the Heisman. In 2023, Washington QB Michael Penix Jr. was the Maxwell recipient, but he lost his Heisman bid to LSU counterpart Jayden Daniels. And the winners were split again last year: Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty lifted the Maxwell as Colorado’s two-way star Travis Hunter got Heisman honors.

On the other side of the ball, there’s been a similar recent split between the Nagurski Trophy (Football Writers Association of America) and the Bednarik Award (Maxwell Football Club). The last time a player earned both trophies was 2022, when Alabama edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. showed out in sheer dominance. Hunter was the 2024 Bednarik winner as a lockdown cornerback, but South Carolina edge Kyle Kennard was the Nagurski recipient.

Here’s the full list of positional awards in Friday’s program. Nominees are listed alphabetically by last name:

Maxwell Award

Player of the year, from Maxwell Football Club

Jeremiyah Love, Notre Dame
Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
Julian Sayin, Ohio State
Chuck Bednarik Award

Defensive player of the year, from Maxwell Football Club

Caleb Downs, Ohio State
Cashius Howell, Texas A&M
Jacob Rodriguez, Texas Tech
Bronko Nagurski Trophy

Defensive player of the year, from Football Writers Association of America

Winner: Jacob Rodriguez, Texas Tech

Davey O’Brien Award

Best quarterback 

Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
Marcel Reed, Texas A&M
Julian Sayin, Ohio State
Doak Walker Award

Best running back

Ahmad Hardy, Missouri
Kewan Lacy, Ole Miss
Jeremiyah Love, Notre Dame
Biletnikoff Award

Best receiver

Skyler Bell, UConn
Makai Lemon, USC
Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State
John Mackey Award

Best tight end

Kenyon Sadiq, Oregon
Eli Stowers, Vanderbilt
Michael Trigg, Baylor
Rimington Trophy

Best center

Logan Jones, Iowa
Iapani Laloulu, Oregon
Jake Slaughter, Florida
Outland Trophy

Best interior lineman, offense or defense

Spencer Fano, Utah
Logan Jones, Iowa
Kayden McDonald, Ohio State
Butkus Award

Best linebacker

Winner: Jacob Rodriguez, Texas Tech

Jim Thorpe Award

Best defensive back

Mansoor Delane, LSU
Caleb Downs, Ohio State
Leonard Moore, Notre Dame
Lou Groza Award

Best placekicker

Aidan Birr, Georgia Tech
Kansei Matsuzawa, Hawaii
Tate Sandell, Oklahoma
Ray Guy Award

Best punter

Evan Crenshaw, Troy
Brett Thorson, Georgia
Palmer Williams, Baylor
Burlsworth Trophy

Best player who began as a walk-on

Winner: Drew Mestemaker, North Texas

In addition to the Walter Camp All-America Team, here’s the list of awards for coaching, local impact and academic achievement that will be announced Friday:

Coach of the Year
Buddy Teevens Award (coaching leadership)
Contributions to College Football Award
Spirit Award
AFCA Good Works Team
William V. Campbell Trophy (scholastics)
Wuerffel Trophy (community service)

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