Kenny Pickett has officially been recognized among the very best players in college football this season.
While the Heisman Trophy is the premier college football award in college football, and Pickett still has a strong chance of being nominated, he’s also been named as one of the three finalists for two of the top honors in the sport.
Pickett is firmly a strong contender for the Maxwell Award (college player of the year) and the Davey O’Brien Award (nation’s best quarterback) — and he’s already a finalist for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award.
Pitt has soared to new heights with Pickett under center this season, with the chance to win 10 games for the first time since 1981 on Saturday against Syracuse, and he’s led the charge as college football’s most improved player this season — making the leap from a Day 3 draft prospect to a potential Top 15 pick.
Pickett has thrown for 3,857 yards and 36 touchdowns on 286-of-426 passing attempts. He’s completed 67.1 percent of his attempts at 9.1 yards per attempt with only six interceptions. He’s also added 209 yards and four more touchdowns on the ground.
With a 38-28 win over Virginia last Saturday, Pickett and Pitt clinched the ACC Coastal division and secured a spot in the ACC championship game on Dec. 4 in Charlotte, North Carolina. It’s been a dream season for Pickett, but there’s still a lot to play for over the coming weeks.
With Michigan State’s Kenneth Walker III and Alabama’s Bryce Young also nominated for the Maxwell, Pickett will have to stave the nation’s top running back and another of the nation’s top passers.
Young and Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, the betting Heisman favorites, have also been nominated for the Davey O’Brien Award, so Pickett, obviously, faces stiff competition in the quest for national honors this season.
The winners will be announced at The Home Depot College Football Awards on Dec. 9 at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
