Florida's Aaron Hernandez On John Mackey Award Midseason Watch List
Monday, October 19, 2009 | Football
University of Florida junior tight end Aaron Hernandez (Bristol, Conn.) was among an elite group of college tight ends on the midseason watch list for the 2009 John Mackey Award, announced by the Nassau County Sports Commission Monday. Awarded annually to the best collegiate tight end, the award recipient is selected by vote of the John Mackey Award Selection Committee. The 2009 John Mackey winner will be announced on Dec. 10, 2009.
Hernandez, who was also featured on the 2009 John Mackey Award preseason watch list, came away from No. 1 Florida's 23-20 Saturday victory over Arkansas with a career-best outing. Hernandez grabbed a career-high seven receptions for a career-high 92 yards through the air against the Razorbacks. Hernandez's seven receptions were the third-most in a single game in UF his?tory, tying Gators Jim Yancey, Mike Mularkey and Kirk Kirkpatrick.
Hernandez leads all Southeastern Conference tight ends in re?ceiving yards (360), average yards per game (60.0), receptions (28), and ranks second in average yards per catch (12.9). Additionally, Hernandez ranks first on the Gators' squad in receptions and receiving yards.
The John Mackey Award midseason watch list is an update from the preseason watch list. This list is meant to draw attention to tight ends in contention for the annual award based on their performance in the first half of the active season.
2009 John Mackey Award MIDSEASON Watch List
George Bryan SO NC State
Dorin Dickerson SR Pittsburgh
Ed Dickson SR Oregon
Charlie Gantt JR Mich. St.
Riar Geer SR Colorado
Garrett Graham SR Wisconsin
Ladarius Green SO Louisiana
Aaron Hernandez JR Florida
Jeron Mastrud SR Kansas St
Anthony McCoy SR USC
Mike McNeil JR Nebraska
Kavario Middleton SO Washington
Tony Moeaki SR Iowa
Colin Peek SR Alabama
Dennis Pitta SR BYU
Andrew Quarless JR Penn St
Jesse Rack SR Buffalo
Kyle Rudolph SR Notre Dame
Weslye Saunders JR South Carolina
Cody Slate JR Marshall
Luke Stocker JR Tennessee
DJ Williams JR Arkansas
The Nassau County Sports Commission, a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization created to enhance the quality of life through sports is responsible for the administration of the John Mackey Award and the John Mackey Award Selection Committee. For more information, please visit www.nassausports.org.
The John Mackey Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA). The NCFAA was founded in 1997 as a coalition of the major collegiate football awards to protect, preserve and enhance the integrity, influence and prestige of the game's predominant awards. The NCFAA encourages professionalism and the highest standards for the administration of its member awards and the selection of their candidates and recipients. For more information, visit the association's official website, www.ncfaa.org.
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