Four Buckeyes earn spots on Walter Camp Award preseason watch list
COLUMBUS — Four Ohio State players have been named to the preseason watch list for the Walter Camp Award: running back TreVeyon Henderson, linebacker Tommy Eichenberg and wide receivers Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka.
The Walter Camp Award is presented annually to the most outstanding player in college football and is voted on by FBS coaches and sports information directors.
USC quarterback Caleb Williams, last year’s Heisman Trophy winner, took home the Walter Camp Award in 2022.
There are 45 players on the watch list for this year’s award. While Ohio State has four watch list nominees, no other school has more than two. Eight schools — Florida State, LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oregon, Penn State, Texas and Washington) do have two players recognized, though.
Of the 45 players on the watch list, 38 play on the offensive side of the ball: 20 quarterbacks, 11 running backs, five receivers/tight ends and two offensive linemen.
That means that Ohio State has one of the seven defensive nominees and two of the five wide receivers on the watch list.
It’s no surprise to see Harrison and Egbuka on the list, given that they were also named to the preseason watch list for the Biletnikoff Award, given annually to the best wideout in the sport. Harrison was a Biletnikoff finalist last year and is already projected to be the highest-drafted receiver since Calvin Johnson went No. 2 overall in 2007. Egbuka, meanwhile, is expected to join Harrison in the first round of the 2024 draft. If they follow through, Ohio State will have five first-round wideouts in a three-year span.
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Harrison and Egubka combined for 151 receptions, 2,414 receiving yards and 24 receiving touchdowns last season, with both of them eclipsing the 1,000-yard receiving mark.
Then there’s Henderson, who is healthy again after fracturing a sesamoid bone in his foot Week 3 against Toledo this past year. That injury was a thorn in Henderson’s side, as it ultimately limited his change of direction and forced him to miss four of the final five games of the season, including the Buckeyes’ Peach Bowl College Football Playoff loss to Georgia.
Henderson led Ohio State in rushing as a true freshman with 1,248 yards and 15 scores on the ground. He also recorded 27 catches for 312 yards and four touchdowns in 2021.
As for the other side of the ball, that’s where Eichenberg comes into play. He’s back after a breakout 2022 campaign that saw him log the fifth-most solo tackles (77) in the country last year. Eichenberg hit the ground running in defensive coordinator Jim Knowles’ 4-2-5 system and finished the year with 49 run stops, tied for the second most of any FBS player at the position, according to Pro Football Focus.
Additionally, he generated 23 pressures, the third most of any Buckeyes defensive player in 2022, and tallied a team-leading 12 tackles for loss.
The 2023 Walter Camp Award watch list will be pared down to 10 semifinalists in mid-November.
