STAFF REPORTS
Texas State senior Chase Harper is one of 38 tight ends nationally who have been named to the John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List.
Harper recorded 20 receptions for 287 yards and three touchdowns in 2011. He caught two passes for 74 yards, including a 71-yard touchdown reception, at Stephen F. Austin, to earn FCS Independent Player of the Week honors. He earned Player of the Week honors a second time after catching four passes for 66 yards versus Prairie View A&M. He also became the second Bobcat tight end to record two touchdowns in a game when he caught three passes for 56 yards and two TDs against Lamar.
Given annually to the most outstanding collegiate tight end, the John Mackey Award recipient is selected by vote of a selection committee and the 2012 John Mackey winner will be presented live on December 6 at The Home Depot College Football Awards Red Carpet Show on ESPNU. Other key dates include the announcement of the 2012 Mackey semi-finalists on November 12 and the announcement of the 2012 Mackey finalists on November 19, 2012. All future announcements can be found at www.johnmackeyaward.org.
NFL Hall of Fame member John Mackey is considered the best to have played the tight end position. Mackey was a role model on and off the field as demonstrated by his Super Bowl Championship, his commitment to community and his place in history as the first President of the NFL Players Association.
Presented annually since 2000, the John Mackey Award lists eleven NFL players as alumni. They include 2006 Super Bowl champion Dallas Clark (2001) of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; two-time Super Bowl champion Daniel Graham (2002); Kellen Winslow II (2003) of the Seattle Seahawks; two-time Super Bowl champion Heath Miller (2004) of the Pittsburgh Steelers; Marcedes Lewis (2005) of the Jacksonville Jaguars; 2008 Super Bowl champion Matt Spaeth (2006) of the of the Chicago Bears; Fred Davis (2007) of the Washington Redskins; Chase Coffman (2008) of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; Aaron Hernandez (2009) of the New England Patriots; D.J. Williams (2010) of the Green Bay Packers and Dwayne Allen 2011 of the Indianapolis Colts.
The John Mackey Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA). The NCFAA was founded in 1997 as a coalition of the major collegiate football awards to protect, preserve and enhance the integrity, influence and prestige of the game’s predominant awards. The NCFAA encourages professionalism and the highest standards for the administration of its member awards and the selection of their candidates and recipients.
The members of the NCFAA are unveiling their preseason watch lists over a 12-day period this month. Fifteen of the association’s 21 awards select a preseason watch list and the NCFAA has spearheaded a coordinated effort to promote each award’s preseason candidates.
For more information, visit the association’s official website, www.NCFAA.org.