HOUSTON – Old Dominion University Football linebacker Jason Henderson was added to the Lombardi Award Watch List, the Rotary Club of Houston announced.
An All-American in 2022 after leading the country in tackles, Henderson recorded 11 double-digit tackle games and was the only player in the country to record multiple 20+ tackle games. He finished the year with 186 tackles, seven shy of the single season held by Lawrence Flugence of Texas Tech (2002). He earned All-America honors from five publications last season.
The Lombardi Watch List is one of several for Henderson, as he was also named to the preseason lists for the Bednarik, Nagurski and Butkus Awards.
To be considered for the Lombardi Award™, players must be an NCAA FBS College Football team member and meet the following qualifications:
- Be a down Lineman, end to end, either on offense or defense, setting up no further than ten (10) yards to the left or right of the ball at the time of the snap.
- Be a Linebacker on defense, setting up no further than five (5) yards deep from the line of scrimmage.
- Must not come out of the offensive backfield and set up on the line of scrimmage as a Blocker or a Receiver or listed in the program as an Offensive Back or Receiver.
- Be eligible to participate in the current season.
A total of 80 players are on the watch list, including four players from the Sun Belt: Henderson, Owen Porter (Marshall), JT Killen (Coastal Carolina) and AJ Gillie (Louisiana).