2020 Chuck Bednarik Award: Hamilcar Rashed Jr. On Preseason Watch List

Oregon State linebacker Hamilcar Rashed Jr. has had one heck of a preseason so far.

In June, Rashed Jr. was named to both the 2020 Lott IMPACT Trophy Award Watch List and selected as a preseason Walter Camp First-Team All-American, in addition to becoming an incredibly trendy riser on 2021 NFL Draft boards, where he ranks as both a top five linebacker prospect and a top sixty prospect overall.

On Monday, he gained more national acclaim, when he was named to the 2020 Chuck Bednarik Award Watch List, an accolade which is given each year to college football’s top defensive player.

During his time in Corvallis, the 6’ 4”, 240-pound linebacker has started 21 games, tallying 120 tackles, 34 tackles for loss, 16.5 sacks, 6 pass deflections and 3 forced fumbles. In 2019 alone, Rashed Jr. led the country with 22.5 tackles for loss and was top three nationally in sacks, with 14 key wrap-ups.

The 2020 Chuck Bednarik Award winner will be announced on December 10th. Past notable winners of the award include college football legends, such as Pat Fitzgerald (Northwestern - 1995, 1996), Charles Woodson (Michigan - 1997), LaVarr Arrington (Penn State - 1999), Julius Peppers (North Carolina - 2001), Paul Posluszny (Penn State - 2005, 2006), Ndamukong Suh (Nebraska - 2009), Patrick Peterson (LSU - 2010), Tyrann Mathieu (LSU - 2011), Manti Te’o (Notre Dame - 2012) and Aaron Donald (Pittsburgh - 2013).

The most recent Pac-12 player to claim the award was Arizona’s Scooby Wright III in 2014. Last year’s award went to Ohio State defensive end Chase Young.