Saquon Barkley, Trace McSorley named to Maxwell Award watch list

Saquon Barkley and Trace McSorley were already Heisman Trophy contenders — but now, unsurprisingly, they’re in the running for college football’s second-biggest award.

Barkley and McSorley were named to the Maxwell Award watch list on Monday morning. The Maxwell Award, named in honor of Robert W. “Tiny” Maxwell, has been given to the National Player of the Year since 1937.

Barkley and McSorley — among 85 candidates for the award — were obvious choices for the watch list.

The star running back is a preseason first-team All-American for Athlon Sports, Sporting News and Lindy’s. That list should grow as the season nears.

Barkley was the 2016 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, Big Ten Running Back of the Year, and a unanimous first-team all-conference choice. The junior’s 22 total touchdowns led the Big Ten and ranked fifth nationally.

McSorley’s 2016 campaign was decorated, too. A second-team All-Big Ten choice by the coaches and media, the big-play quarterback was the Maxwell Football Club’s Brian Westbrook Tri-State Player of the Year.

McSorley — the MVP of Penn State’s Big Ten Championship win over Wisconsin — also set Penn State single-season records in passing yards (3,614) and passing touchdowns (29).

And if McSorley and Barkley continue to set new standards in 2017, one of them could be the first Nittany Lion since Larry Johnson in 2002 to hoist the Maxwell Award trophy.

This story was originally published July 10, 2017 at 10:44 AM with the headline "Saquon Barkley, Trace McSorley named to Maxwell Award watch list."