2025 Maxwell Award Preseason Watch List

July 31, 2025 by Maxwell Football Club and CollegeFootballPoll.com staff

The Maxwell Football Club has announced its watch list for the 89th Maxwell Award presented annually to the outstanding player in college football. The Maxwell Award has been presented to the College Player of the Year since 1937 and is named in honor of Robert “Tiny” Maxwell who was a former standout at Swarthmore College and a renowned sportswriter and football official.

CollegeFootballPoll.com's Dave Congrove is a voting member of the Maxwell Award.

Running back Ashton Jeanty (Boise State) won the 2024 Maxwell Award winner and was selected by the Las Vegas Raiders in the 1st round of the NFL draft.

The Maxwell Award watch list will once again incorporate a broad spectrum of Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) programs and conferences from coast to coast. The list includes quarterbacks Cade Klubnik Clemson and Diego Pavia of Vanderbilt, both of whom were semifinalists a year ago..

Penn State leads the 80-player list with 3 candidates while 16 schools have two players represented. The SEC and ACC boast 17 candidates, followed by the Big12 (15) and Big10 (14).

See the complete list of major 2024 award winners.

Candidates are listed alphabetically by their own last name, showing position and school at the time of the announcement.. 

• QB Drew Allar, Penn State
• RB Kaytron Allen, Penn State
• QB Luke Altmyer, Illinois
• QB Jackson Arnold, Auburn
• QB CJ Bailey, NC State
• QB Alonza Barnett III, James Madison
• QB Rocco Becht, Iowa State
• QB Carson Beck, Miami
• QB Braylon Braxton, Southern Miss
• RB Isaac Brown, Louisville
• RB Jalen Buckley, Western Michigan
• QB Tommy  Castellanos, Florida State
• RB Demond Claiborne, Wake Forest
• WR Cam Coleman, Auburn
• RB Jonah Coleman, Washington  
• QB Devon Dampier, Utah
• QB Kyron Drones, Virginia Tech
• RB Caden Durham, LSU
• RB Dylan Edwards, Kansas State
• QB Noah  Fifita, Arizona
• RB Nate Frazier, Georgia
• QB Tucker Gleason, Toledo
• QB Taylen Green, Arkansas
• QB Mark Gronowski, Iowa
• RB Anthony Hankerson, Oregon State
• RB Ahmad Hardy, Missouri
• RB Jamal Haynes, Georgia Tech
• RB Justice  Haynes, Michigan
• RB Al-Jay Henderson, Buffalo
• QB Eli Holstein, Pitt
• QB Josh Hoover, TCU
• QB Blake Horvath, Navy
• RB Makhi Hughes, Oregon
• QB Nico Iamaleava, UCLA
• QB Keyone Jenkins, FIU
• QB Kevin Jennings, SMU
• QB Avery Johnson, Kansas State
• QB Haynes King, Georgia Tech
• QB Cade Klubnik, Clemson
• QB DJ Lagway, Florida  
• QB Sam Leavitt, Arizona State
• RB Jeremiyah Love, Notre Dame
• QB Maddux Madsen, Boise State
• QB Arch Manning, Texas
• QB John Mateer, Oklahoma
• QB Owen McCown, UTSA
• QB Maverick McIvor, WKU
• QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
• QB Darian Mensah, Duke
• QB Chandler Morris, Virginia
• QB Behren Morton, Texas Tech
• RB Le’Veon Moss, Texas A&M
• QB Miller Moss, Louisville
• QB Maalik Murphy, Oregon State
• QB Parker Navarro, Ohio  
• RB Jaden Nixon, UCF
• QB Garrett  Nussmeier, LSU
• RB Jaydn Ott, Oklahoma
• QB Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt
• QB Dylan Raiola, Nebraska
• QB Marcel Reed, Texas A&M
• RB Desmond Reid, Pitt
• QB Sawyer Robertson, Baylor
• WR Corey Rucker, Arkansas State
• WR Elijah Sarratt, Indiana
• QB LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina
• RB Nicholas Singleton, Penn State
• WR Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State
• QB Brendan Sorsby, Cincinnati
• RB Terion Stewart, Virginia Tech
• RB Darius Taylor, Minnesota
• RB Jai’Den Thomas, UNLV
• WR Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State
• QB Caden Veltkamp, Florida Atlantic
• RB Bryson Washington, Baylor
• RB Jahiem White, West Virginia 
• WR Antonio Williams, Clemson
• WR Ryan Williams, Alabama
• QB Demond Williams Jr., Washington
• RB Quintrevion Wisner, Texas

About the MFC

The Maxwell Football Club has once again partnered with Pro Football Focus (PFF) and Phil Steele Publications as selection committee partners. PFF provides detailed metrics and performance-based assessments to selection committee staff, with several senior PFF analysts are members of our selection committee. Phil Steele’s College Football Preview is generally recognized as the most complete preseason magazine.

Semifinalists for the Maxwell Award will be announced November 11, 2025, while the three finalists for the Maxwell Award will be unveiled November 25, 2025. The winner of the 89th Maxwell Award will be announced as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show held on December 11, 2025. The formal presentations of the Maxwell Award will be made at the Maxwell Football Club Awards on Friday March 13, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Past Maxwell Award Winners

Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty was voted as the 2024 Maxwell Award winner and was selected by the Las Vegas Raiders in the 1st round of the NFL draft with the 6th over-all pick.

2024 - Ashton Jeanty, Boise State, RB
2023 - Michael Penix Jr., QB, Washington
2022 - Caleb Williams, QB, USC
2021 - Bryce Young, Alabama, QB
2020 - DeVonta Smith, Alabama, WR
2019 - Joe Burrow, LSU, QB
2018 - Tua Tagovailoa, Alabama, QB
2017 - Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma, QB
2016 - Lamar Jackson, Louisville, QB
2015 - Derrick Henry, Alabama, RB
2014 - Marcus Mariota, Oregon, QB
2013 - A.J. McCarron, Alabama, QB
2012 - Manti Te'o, Notre Dame, LB
2011 - Andrew Luck, Stanford, QB
2010 - Cameron Newton, Auburn, QB
2009 - Colt McCoy, Texas, QB
2008 - Tim Tebow, Florida, QB
2007 - Darren McFadden, Arkansas, RB
2006 - Brady Quinn, Notre Dame, QB
2005 - Vince Young, Texas, QB
2004 - Jason White, Oklahoma, QB
2003 - Eli Manning, Mississippi, QB
2002 - Larry Johnson, Penn State, RB
2001 - Ken Dorsey, Miami (FL), QB
2000 - Drew Brees, Purdue, QB
1999 - Ron Dayne, Wisconson, RB
1998 - Rickey Williams, Texas, RB
1997 - Peyton Manning, Tennessee, QB
1996 - Danny Wuerffel, Florida, QB
1995 - Eddie George, Ohio State, RB
1994 - Kerry Collins, Penn State, QB
1993 - Charlie Ward, Florida State, QB
1992 - Gino Torretta, Miami (FL), QB
1991 - Desmond Howard, Michigan, WR/KR
1990 - Ty Detmer, BYU, QB
1989 - Anthony Thompson, Indiana, RB
1988 - Barry Sanders, Oklahoma State, RB
1987 - Don McPherson, Syracuse, QB
1986 - Vinny Testaverde, Miami (FL), QB
1985 - Chuck Long, Iowa, QB
1984 - Doug Flutie, Boston College, QB
1983 - Mike Rozier, Nebraska, RB
1982 - Herschel Walker, Georgia, RB
1981 - Marcus Allen, USC, RB
1980 - Hugh Green, Pittsburgh, LB
1979 - Charles White, USC, RB
1978 - Charles Fusina, Penn State, QB
1977 - Ross Browner, Notre Dame, DE
1976 - Tony Dorsett, Pittsburgh, RB
1975 - Archie Griffin, Ohio State, RB
1974 - Steve Joachim, Temple, QB
1973 - John Cappelletti, Penn State, RB
1972 - Brad Van Pelt, Michigan State, DB
1971 - Ed Marinaro, Cornell, RB
1970 - Jim Plunkett, Stanford, QB
1969 - Mike Reid, Penn State, DT
1968 - O. J. Simpson, USC, RB
1967 - Gary Beban, UCLA, QB
1966 - Jim Lynch, Notre Dame, LB
1965 - Tommy Nobis, Jr., Texas, LB/OG
1964 - Glenn Ressler, Penn State, OL
1963 - Roger Staubach, Navy, QB
1962 - Terry Baker, Oregon State, QB
1961 - Bob Ferguson, Ohio State, RB
1960 - Joe Bellino, Navy, RB
1959 - Richie Lucas, Penn State, QB
1958 - Pete Dawkins, Army, RB
1957 - Bob Reifsnyder, Navy, DE
1956 - Tommy McDonald, Oklahoma, WR
1955 - Howard "Hopalong" Cassidy, Ohio State, RB
1954 - Ron Beagle, Navy, WR
1953 - John Lattner, Notre Dame, RB
1952 - John Lattner, Notre Dame, RB
1951 - Dick Kazmaier, Princeton, RB
1950 - Francis "Reds" Bagnell, Pennsylvania, RB
1949 - Leon Hart, Notre Dame, E
1948 - Chuck Bednarik, Pennsylvania, LB/C
1947 - Doak Walker, SMU, RB/DB/PK
1946 - Charley Trippi, Georgia, QB/HB/DB/KR/PR/P
1945 - Felix Blanchard, Army, RB
1944 - Glenn Davis, Army, RB
1943 - Bob Odell, Pennsylvania, RB (multi-purpose)
1942 - Paul Governali, Columbia, QB/P
1941 - Bill Dudley, Virginia, RB/K/P
1940 - Tom Harmon, Michigan, RB/K
1939 - Nile Kinnick, Iowa, RB/P
1938 - Davey O'Brien, TCU, QB
1937 - Clinton Frank, Yale, RB