Georgia’s Roquan Smith has been named one of three finalists for the 2017 Bednarik Award as well as the 2017 Butkus Award.

 

The Bednarik Award is given annually to the nation’s most outstanding defensive player while the Butkus Award is given to the nation’s best collegiate linebacker. Smith joins North Carolina State’s Bradley Chubb and Alabama’s Minkah Fitzpatrick as finalists for the Bednarik Award, and he joins Michigan’s Devin Bush, Virginia Tech’s Tremaine Edmunds, Wisconsin’s T.J. Edwards and Clemson’s Dorian O’Daniel as finalists for the Butkus Award.

Roquan is a junior inside linebacker with the Bulldogs who has made plays all over the field for Georgia this season, racking up a team-leading 91 tackles through 11 games including 5.5 tackles for a loss, 3.5 QB sacks, 6 QB hurries, 1 forced fumble, and 2 passes broken up. Smith signed with the University of Georgia in the Class of 2015 recruiting class for the Bulldogs out of Macon High School in Montezuma, GA. During his three years at UGA, he has played in 36 games, 21 of them as a starter.

The winner of the Butkus Award will be announced on or before December 6. The winner of the 23rd Chuck Bednarik Award will be announced as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show on December 7. The formal presentation of the award will be made at the Maxwell Football Club’s Awards Gala, which will be held at the Tropicana Casino Resort in Atlantic City, N.J., on March 9, 2018.

Smith and his 2017 Bulldog teammates will play in their last regular season home game versus in-state rival Georgia Tech this Saturday, on November 25th at 12 Noon in Atlanta at Bobby Dodd Stadium before facing the SEC Western Division winner in the conference championship game, also in Atlanta, in the Mercedes-Benz Stadium on December 2nd the following week.

 
 
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