The Outland Trophy, given annually to college football's best interior lineman (offense or defense) has released its 71-man watch list.
Seven players from the Big 12 made the cut. Here they are:
Blaize Foltz, guard, TCU
Ben Habern, center, Oklahoma
Gabe Ikard, guard, Oklahoma
Cyril Richardson, guard, Baylor
Lane Taylor, guard, Oklahoma State
LaAdrian Waddle, guard, Texas Tech
Mason Walters, guard, Texas
That's a pretty good list, but I probably would have liked to see Kansas State center B.J. Finney crack the list, too. The Outland Trophy is only for interior linemen, meaning no offensive tackles or defensive ends. These are truly the big uglies in the middle. Their names don't get mentioned enough.
Ndamukong Suh (2009) was the last Big 12 talent to win the award. Before him, it was Jammal Brown at Oklahoma in 2004.
Nebraska's nine and Oklahoma's five Outland Trophies are the most in college football.
The Big 12's seven candidates are fourth-most of the major conferences, led by the SEC's 19.
