Draft Insiders' Digest Premier NFL Draft and Free Agency Publication
Arizona’s Antoine Cason Heads Jim Thorpe '07 Award 12 Semi-Finalists
The Jim Thorpe Association announced this week the 12 semi-finalists for its 2007 Jim Thorpe Award. The award is presented annually to the nation’s best college defensive back.
On Nov. 19, the list will be trimmed to three finalists who will be invited to the Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show on Dec. 6. The winner will be announced on the show. The official presentation of the Jim Thorpe Award will be at a formal banquet in Oklahoma City on Feb. 12, 2008.
The 2007 award marks the 21st anniversary of the trophy, first presented in 1986 to Baylor’s Thomas Everett. Last year’s winner was University of Texas standout Aaron Ross, now playing for the New York Giants after being selected in the first round of the NFL Draft ‘07.
Jim Thorpe Award winners are selected for performance on the field, athletic ability and character.
The 2007 Semi-finalists are:
Trey Brown, Sr., UCLA
Antoine Cason, Sr., Arizona
Vontae Davis, Soph., Illinois
Malcolm Jenkins, Jr., Ohio State
Mike Jenkins, Sr., South Florida
Kenny Phillips, Jr., Miami
James Silva, Sr., Boston College
Reggie Smith, Jr., Oklahoma
Craig Steltz, Sr., LSU
Julius Stinson, Sr., Wyoming
Aqib Talib, Jr., Kansas
Tom Zbikowski, Sr., Notre Dame
The Thorpe Award preseason Watch List was determined on a point system based on preseason All-America teams. Other players were added to the list based on their performance during the season.
Of this year’s semi-finalists, Trey Brown, Vontae Davis, Mike Jenkins, James Silva, Craig Steltz and Julius Stinson were not on the preseason Thorpe Watch List.
Frank Coyle is a longtime member of the FWAA and votes in all the major college awards - the Heisman Trophy and Jim Thorpe awards. He is also a voter for the FWAA on the College team polls, the Grantland Rice Polls. He is a nationwide radio and TV personality and makes frequent appearances on sports talk shows from coast to coast. He has been a regular guest on major radio shows such as the Score in Chicago, Sporting News Radio, ESPN Radio nationwide, WEEI Boston, WFAN in New York and Sports Extra in San Diego as well as every major sports talk show nationwide. His Heisman Trophy and Jim Thorpe Award ballots are released annually in early Dec. He is the main consultant for the Senior Bowl, in addition to several other postseason All-star classics.