Big 12 announces 2023 preseason All-Conference honors, teams

The Big 12 announced its 2023 preseason all-conference team and awards on Wednesday with plenty of surprises. Kansas quarterback Jalon Daniels has been named the preseason Offensive Player of the Year, while Texas linebacker Jaylan Ford claimed Defensive Player of the Year.

Kansas State running back Treshaun Ward, who transferred in from Florida State, was dubbed the preseason Newcomer of the Year.

Daniels returns to the Jayhawks after leading them to a 5-0 start to last season and their first AP poll ranking since 2009. Unfortunately, that hot start was cut short when he suffered an injury and missed more than a month. He returned near the end of the season and broke the KU record with 544 yards in the Liberty Bowl against Arkansas while also scoring six total touchdowns.

Ford is the Big 12’s leading returning tackler with 119 this past season. Not only that, he finished with four interceptions, three forced fumbles and two sacks. He returns to anchor a Longhorns defense with its sights set on a conference championship in their last year of Big 12 play.

Ward comes to K-State after finishing this past season as the Seminoles’ second-leading rusher with 628 yards and seven touchdowns. He expects to step in to fill the void left behind by Deuce Vaughn, who is on to the NFL.

Texas leads all schools in the conference with five players to make the Big 12 preseason all-conference team. Kansas and Kansas State were right behind the Longhorns with four apiece. Among the four new schools to join the conference for this season, Cincinnati leads with two players while BYU has one. Neither Houston nor UCF had any players listed.

You can view the full 2023 Big 12 preseason all-conference team below.

2023 Big 12 preseason all-conference team

Offense

QB: Jalon Daniels, Kansas
RB: Richard Reese, Baylor
RB: Devin Neal, Kansas
FB: Ben Sinnott, Kansas State
WR: Brennan Presley, Oklahoma State
WR: Xavier Worthy, Texas
WR: Jerand Bradley, Texas Tech
TE: Ja’Tavion Sanders, Texas
OL: Kingsley Suamataia, BYU
OL: Mike Novitsky, Kansas
OL: Cooper Beebe, Kansas State
OL: Kelvin Banks Jr., Texas
OL: Zach Frazier, West Virginia
PK: Griffin Kell, TCU
KR/PR: Phillip Brooks, Kansas State

Defense

DL: Dontay Corleone, Cincinnati
DL: Ethan Downs, Oklahoma
DL: Damonic Williams, TCU
DL: Byron Murphy II, Texas
DL: Jaylon Hutchings, Texas Tech
LB: Collin Oliver, Oklahoma State
LB: Johnny Hodges, TCU
LB: Jaylan Ford, Texas
DB: TJ Tampa, Iowa State
DB: Cobee Bryant, Kansas
DB: Kobe Savage, Kansas State
DB: Kendal Daniels, Oklahoma State
DB: Josh Newton, TCU
P: Mason Fletcher, Cincinnati