College football mid-season awards

    Louisville+quarterback+Lamar+Jackson+runs+for+a+touchdown+against+Auburn+on+Sept.+5%2C+2015.

    Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution/TNS

    Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson runs for a touchdown against Auburn on Sept. 5, 2015.

    College football is at its halfway point. There are currently nine undefeated teams left in college football: Alabama, Clemson, Michigan, Washington, Nebraska, Baylor, West Virginia, Boise State and Western Michigan. With the season half over, here’s a look at some midseason awards.

    Heisman Trophy:

    Lamar Jackson, Quarterback, Louisville

    Jackson has been unbelievable for Louisville this season. He came into the season as one of the preseason favorites for the Heisman trophy and is playing like it. He has accounted for 34 touchdowns already this season: 18 through the air and running for 16. Jackson is the human highlight reel in college football this season. Before week eight, Jackson had scored more points by himself than 61 FBS teams all season. Based on the average points per game this season, if Jackson played by himself with Louisville they would finish with an 8-4 record.

    Honorable Mention: Jabrill Peppers, Linebacker, Michigan

    Most Underrated Player:

    Donnel Pumphrey, Running back, San Diego State

    There are great running backs in college football this year: Dalvin Cook, Christian McCaffery and Leonard Fournette just to name a few so the average fan would expect one of those three to be leading the NCAA in rushing yards right? Wrong. Pumphrey is currently leading the NCAA in rushing yards with 1246 and is second in the NCAA in rushing touchdowns with 12 trailing only Lamar Jackson. Pumphrey gets better as the game goes on and his stats prove that, he is averaging a full two yards per carry more in the second half compared to the first and is averaging 7.8 yards per carry in the fourth quarter. He is also on pace to break the all time NCAA record for rushing yards in a career.

    Honorable mention: Patrick Mahomes, Quarterback, Texas Tech

    Best Pro Prospect:

    Myles Garrett, Defensive end, Texas A&M

    Garrett has everything a coach would want in a defensive end: size, strength and speed. He has four sacks this season in five games and 26.5 sacks in his career. He has great speed for his    six-foot-five 262 pound frame having clocked a 4.5 40 yard dash this past summer. Pro football scouts have compared his collegiate to career to Jadeveon Clowney’s collegiate career at South Carolina where he went number one overall in the 2014 draft.

    Honorable Mention: Leonard Fournette, Running back, LSU

    Best Name:

    Lion King, Defensive end, Eastern Michigan

    90’s kids love this name as it reminds them of a movie that was their childhood. While King has only played in one game this season, but like they say in the movie hakuna matata it means no worries.

    Honorable Mention: Jake Butt, Tight end, Michigan

    Most athletic player:

    Jabrill Peppers, Linebacker/Safety, Michigan

    Peppers could be a legitimate Heisman candidate. He is one of those modern linebackers that is built like a safety. Deone Buccannon and Darron Lee are good NFL comparisons to Peppers based on position, but playing style he is the modern day Charles Woodson. He has played 13 different positions this season including playing at receiver and running back at times for Michigan. In a 78-0 Michigan win over Rutgers this season Peppers showed how athletic he is rushing for 74 yards and two touchdowns, returning and covering kickoffs and punts and had three tackles including a tackle for a loss.

    Honorable mention: Christian McCaffery, Running back, Stanford

    Coach of the Year:

    P.J. Fleck, Western Michigan

    Fleck has done a great job this season at Western Michigan. They are currently ranked number 20 in the AP poll and number 21 in the Coaches poll. Fleck led them to two wins over Big 10 schools Northwestern and Illinois in nonconference play. Their 8-0 start is the best in school history and this is the first time in school history that Western Michigan has been ranked. Fleck is one of the best young coaches in college football at only 35 years old and has been linked to go to power five schools to be their head coach at the end of this season. His mantra for the football team is “Row The Boat” which has been as predominant in the program as the Bronco logo itself.

    Honorable mention: Bryan Harsin, Boise State

    College football is only at its halfway point so a lot can happen in the next seven weeks, but those are the main storylines through the first eight weeks.