T'Vondre Sweat named Outland Trophy semifinalist
Texas Longhorns senior defensive lineman T’Vondre Sweat was named a semifinalist for the 2023 Outland Trophy, the Football Writers Association of America announced Tuesday. The Outland Trophy is awarded annually the nation’s top interior lineman.
[Join Inside Texas and get ONE MONTH of Longhorn intel for just $1!]
Three Longhorns players that have previously won the Outland Trophy include Scott Appleton, 1963; Tommy Nobis, 1965; and Brad Shearer, 1977, and four others have been finalists (Dan Neil, 1996; Leonard Davis, 2000; Justin Blalock, 2006; Malcom Brown, 2014).
Sweat, a Huntsville (Texas) product, has played in all 10 games with five starts for the Longhorns this season. He has established career highs with 35 tackles, 15 solo tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and two sacks while also breaking up two passes. Sweat has been the leader of UT’s dominant defensive line, helping the Longhorns hold six opponents to fewer the 100 yards rushing this season, including each of the last four games.
Sweat and the Longhorns defense rank eighth in the nation and lead the Big 12 Conference, yielding only 90.1 rushing yards per game. Texas also leads the Big 12 in third-down defense (26.5 percent) and red zone defense (66.7 percent) and, ranking second and third in the nation, respectively, and tops the conference in scoring defense (18.4 ppg).
With Sweat providing pressure in the middle, Texas has held four consecutive opponents – Houston, BYU, Kansas State and TCU – to under 100 rushing yards, the Horns’ longest such streak since 2018. On the year, the Longhorns have held six opponents to fewer than 100 yards on the ground.
Top 10
- 1New
Baseball Top 25 projection
Massive Top 10 shakeup
- 2Hot
Shedeur Sanders prank
Son of NFL DC admits guilt, apologizes
- 3
Falcons release statement
Involvement of DC in Sanders prank
- 4Trending
Jalen Milroe warns
Teams that passed on him
- 5
Tyler Warren pranked
Tied to Shedeur Sanders call
Get the On3 Top 10 to your inbox every morning
By clicking "Subscribe to Newsletter", I agree to On3's Privacy Notice, Terms, and use of my personal information described therein.
Sweat has also been named a semifinalist for the Chuck Bednarik Award, honoring college football’s best defensive player.
The recipient of the 78th Outland Trophy will be announced during ESPN’s The Home Depot College Football Awards in December. The official presentation to the winner will be made at the Outland Trophy Awards Dinner sponsored by Werner Enterprises and produced by the Greater Omaha Sports Committee in Omaha, Neb., on Jan. 10, 2024.
The Outland Trophy winner is chosen from three finalists who are a part of the annual FWAA All-America Team. The FWAA All-America Committee, after voting input from the entire membership, selects a 26-man first team and eventually the three Outland finalists. Committee members, then by individual ballot, select the winner. Only interior linemen on offense or defense are eligible for the award; ends are not eligible.
