The 2017 Rimington Trophy Award watch list was released on Tuesday. Here are the five favorites to win the best center in college football honors.
The Rimington Trophy has been given out annually to the best center in college football. It is named after former Nebraska Cornhuskers’ College Football Hall of Famer and Cincinnati Bengals standout Dave Rimington. Rimington won two Outland Trophies and the Lombardi Award playing for Tom Osborne. It has quickly become one of the most interesting awards in the college football awards season.
On Tuesday, the 2017 Rimington Trophy watch list was released. It was narrowed down to 71 deserving FBS college football centers, many of whom could end up playing at the next level once their college career comes to an end in the next couple of years.
These guys are in charge of keeping their offensive lines in check and setting protection schemes to better serve their starting quarterback. Last winter saw Ohio State’s Pat Elflein win the 17th annual Rimington Trophy. He now plays for the Minnesota Vikings at the professional level. Here are five guys that have to be in the conversation to win the award this December.
The Washington Huskies surprised much of the college football world last fall. They arrived essentially a year early to reach the College Football Playoff by winning the Pac-12. Washington had great players all over its defense, but it might be the offense that carries Chris Petersen’s team this fall.
Washington is still likely the favorite to win the Pac-12 North Division. It helps that junior quarterback Jake Browning has a ton of experience in Petersen’s offense. Let’s not overlook the big return of redshirt senior center Coleman Shelton to the Huskies football program.
Shelton is 6-foot-4, 297 pounds and has started 27 games on Washington’s offensive line the last two years. He has played in 40 games for the Huskies since his redshirt freshman season in 2014. After moving around as a starter along the offensive line as a redshirt sophomore in 2015, Shelton started all 14 games for the Huskies at center, a year where Washington went 12-2.
The Pac-12 should have some of the most explosive offenses in the Power 5. Continuity between Shelton and Browning will be key for either player to win major college football awards as upperclassmen. The more Washington wins, the better the chance that Shelton stands to win the Rimington Trophy.