The watch list is out for the Butkus Award, which is an annual honor given the nation’s best linebacker, and two Georgia players were named. Senior inside linebacker Monty Rice and redshirt sophomore outside linebacker Azeez Ojulari both made the list.
Both players were statistical leaders in Georgia’s defense last year. That unit finished ranked No. 1 in scoring defense and rushing defense in 2019, respectively. The unit also finished third in total defense and eighth in pass efficiency defense.
Rice led the team in tackles last season with 89 total stops with 50 of them being solo. He also had three tackles for loss, three pass breakups and eight quarterback hurries. He started all 14 games after battling a pair of injuries in 2018. Rice had the opportunity to turn pro at the end of last year but decided to come back for his senior campaign.
Last season as a redshirt freshman, Ojulari led the team with 5.5 sacks. He also recorded 36 total tackles, six tackles for loss, a forced fumble and led the team in quarterback hurries with 18. He suffered a torn ACL in 2017 and had to have another surgery done in the summer of 2018 to help heal his knee. As a freshman in 2018, he appeared in three games but took a redshirt that year.
Apparently he took advantage of his opportunity during bowl practices when UGA was preparing for Texas that year, and had a very strong offseason heading into the spring of 2019. Last season, Kirby Smart had nothing but high praise about Ojulari last season during press conferences.
“He’s on the field a lot because we feel like he’s our best either-or player,” Smart said in October. “He can stand up. He can rush. He communicates well. He plays really physical. He strains, rushes the passer. So when you start talking about the attributes of an outside backer, first down is very different than third down. And you want somebody that can do it all.”
The last Georgia player to take home the honor was in 2017 when current Chicago Bears linebacker Roquan Smith won the award. During that season, he racked up 137 total tackles (85 solo) in 15 games. He also had 14 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks, leading the team in all three of the aforementioned categories. In the 2017 SEC Championship game, Smith had two pass breakups, one forced fumble and eight quarterback hurries. He was named the MVP of the game in that 28-7 win over Auburn. Smith was also the Defensive MVP of the Rose Bowl in Georgia’s overtime win over Oklahoma.
Here is the list of the entire watch list:
Blaze Alldredge, Rice
Troy Andersen, Montana State
Rayshard Ashby, Virginia Tech
Derrick Barnes, Purdue
Terrel Bernard, Baylor
Nick Bolton, Missouri
Tuf Borland, Ohio State
K.J. Britt, Auburn
Baron Browning, Ohio State
Damone Clark, LSU
Riley Cole, South Alabama
Jabril Cox, LSU
Kuony Deng, California
Paddy Fisher, Northwestern
Jake Hansen, Illinois
Treshaun Hayward, Western Michigan
Lakia Henry, Mississippi
Anthony Hines, Texas A&M
Riko Jeffers, Texas Tech
Buddy Johnson, Texas A&M
Nate Landman, Colorado
Shane Lee, Alabama
Devin Lloyd, Utah
Carlton Martial, Troy
Cameron McGrone, Michigan
Ventrell Miller, Florida
Dimitri Moore, Vanderbilt
Dylan Moses, Alabama
Amen Ogbongbemiga, Oklahoma State
Azeez Ojulari, Georgia
Joseph Ossai, Texas
Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Notre Dame
Micah Parsons, Penn State
Hamilcar Rashed Jr., Oregon State
Monty Rice, Georgia
Max Richardson, Boston College
Merlin Robertson, Arizona State
Malcolm Rodriguez, Oklahoma State
Mike Rose, Iowa State
Jack Sanborn, Wisconsin
James Skalski, Clemson
Isaac Slade-Matautia, Oregon
Charles Snowden, Virginia
Chazz Surratt, North Carolina
Erroll Thompson, Mississippi State
Henry To’o To’o, Tennessee
Joe Tryon, Washington
Garret Wallow, TCU
Pete Werner, Ohio State
DaShaun White, Oklahoma
Jahad Woods, Washington State