Award watch list season has begun in earnest and two of LSU’s top defenders have made the Bednarik Award Watch List.
Cornerbacks Derek Stingley Jr. and Eli Ricks were named to the watch list, the Maxwell Football Club announced on Monday.
The Bednarik Award is presented annually to the outstanding defensive player in college football. LSU has had two Bednarik Award winners as Patrick Peterson (2010) and Tyrann Mathieu (2011) captured the honor in back-to-back years.
Stingley is coming off of a sophomore season that fell below expectations with 27 total tackles, 2.5 for loss and no interceptions in the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign.
Ricks meanwhile had a breakout freshman campaign with four interceptions, two of which were returned for touchdowns.