With the 2024 college football campaign on our doorstep, another season is already upon us. It’s one that sets the table for the feast we’re about to consume, preparing us for the top players we will witness in action these coming fall Saturdays.
That’s right, it’s award watch list season, and earlier this week, the Maxwell Football Club released the Maxwell Award watch list. While the ACC traverses stormy waters off the field, standouts like Cam Ward and Grayson McCall help the conference to dominate the 2024 edition with a nation-high 20 players featured.
Which ACC Players Are on the 2024 Maxwell Award Watch List?
A longstanding tradition in the sport, the Maxwell Award has been awarded since 1937, and the 2024 season will mark the 88th edition of its presentation. Honoring the College Football Player of the Year, previous winners include Michael Penix Jr., Caleb Williams, and Bryce Young. However, a player from the ACC hasn’t scooped the award since Lamar Jackson in 2016.
That could be set to change this fall. The ACC has 20 representatives on the Maxwell Award watch list ahead of the 2024 college football season, five more than any other conference. Meanwhile, no single team has more nominations than the Miami Hurricanes, who have three players vying for national attention in a season with high expectations.
Transfer quarterback Ward and running back Damien Martinez arrive from the ruins of the Pac-12, looking to wreak havoc from coast to coast, and are joined by returning wide receiver Xavier Restrepo in a strong Hurricanes contingent. Only the Ohio State Buckeyes match Miami with a trio of representatives.
There are 15 schools with two representatives nationwide, and the ACC has a good chunk of those, too. The Clemson Tigers, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, Syracuse Orange, and Virginia Tech Hokies all have two players featured on the 2024 Maxwell Award watch list.
Newcomers to the conference have significantly contributed to the ACC’s Maxwell Award watch list ranks. Between the transfer portal and college football realignment, nine of the 20 players featured did not play their football in the conference last fall, headlined by new NC State quarterback McCall. Every ACC member of the Maxwell Award watch list can be found below.
- Thomas Castellanos, QB, Boston College
- Jaydn Ott, RB, Cal
- Cade Klubnik, QB, Clemson
- Phil Mafah, RB, Clemson
- Jordan Moore, WR, Duke
- DJ Uiagalelei, QB, Florida State
- Haynes King, QB, Georgia Tech
- Jamal Haynes, RB, Georgia Tech
- Tyler Shough, QB, Louisville
- Xavier Restrepo, WR, Miami (FL)
- Damien Martinez, RB, Miami (FL)
- Cam Ward, QB, Miami (FL)
- Grayson McCall, QB, NC State
- Omarion Hampton, RB, North Carolina
- Preston Stone, QB, SMU
- Elic Ayomanor, WR, Stanford
- Kyle McCord, QB, Syracuse
- LeQuint Allen, RB, Syracuse
- Kyron Drones, QB, Virginia Tech
- Bhayshul Tuten, RB, Virginia Tech
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