The official presentation to the winner will be made in Omaha (Neb.) But Williams immediately became a dominant presence on a front line that has held its opponents to 117.0 rushing yards per game and helped the Crimson Tide’s defense rank fourth in the nation, allowing only 14.8 points per game, and ninth in the nation, giving up 295.4 yards per game.
Heading into the regular-season finale against Oklahoma on Saturday, the durable Okung is slated for his 46th consecutive start for the Cowboys. Sewell and the rest of the Ducks up front racked up a lot of knockdowns during the team’s 22-point win over Utah in the Pac-12 Championship game in which Oregon rushed for 239 yards and three TDs.Despite being in the middle of the line, Williams is third on the team with 66 total tackles and tied for the team lead with 42 unassisted tackles. Today, the Outland Trophy, founded in 1946, is recognized as one of the nation's most prestigious awards, given to the nation's most outstanding interior lineman. The Portland, Oregon, native, a top NFL prospect, heads up the nation’s third-ranked scoring defense that has propelled the Cornhuskers to an 8-3 regular-season record heading into the regular-season finale at Colorado on Friday.Still, a 6-5, 310-pound senior from Wilmington, Del., has led a Penn State defense that ranks third nationally in points against (13.0 per game), trailing only Alabama and LSU. He is the first Outland finalist from UNC.“Defensively, it all starts with their defensive tackle, Ed Oliver, who I think is probably the most impactful player in our conference, and one of the most impactful defensive linemen in the country,” said Memphis coach Mike Norvell. And when you take a phenomenal player and you surround him with so many other explosive athletes that can create problems with their defensive scheme, it leads you to some sleepless nights.”Oregon is 17-3 over the last two seasons with Sewell in the starting lineup. Based solely on the composition of the field, the winner of this year’s Outland Trophy could very well have an offensive tilt to it. Buck, a 6-6, 270, senior from St. Anthony, Idaho, was a quarterback going into junior college at Ricks College.
He is a technician. One of only a few players ever to be named All-America at two positions, Outland garnered consensus All-America honors in 1898 at tackle and consensus All-America honors at halfback in 1899. He works to hone those skills every day. He was also a co-recipient of the Greg Biekert Award for attention to detail.The Outland Trophy, which has been awarded annually by the FWAA since 1946, is named after the late John Outland, an All-America lineman at Pennsylvania in the late 1800s. A true sophomore in 2017, Oliver will return next season to the Cougars as a junior. He has established himself as arguably the nation’s top defensive player as a sophomore playing the nose tackle position in the Cougars’ three-man front.