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Earlier today, I mentioned that Pitt sophomores Tyler Boyd and James Conner were both named to the preseason Maxwell Award watch list. The duo was also given more consideration for another award on Monday - the Paul Hornung Award, given to the most versatile player.
Both players making this list makes some sense. Boyd is a wide receiver, but also can line up in the backfield and get some carries (last year, he had 11 rushes for 108 yards and a touchdown). In addition, Boyd also has value in the return game with the ability to return kickoffs and punts. Realistically, how much he does that in 2014 is anybody's guess since the team really can't afford to lose him with an injury on special teams. But the ability is there and, overall, he can contribute in a variety of ways. Seeing Boyd even attempt some passes on trick plays probably isn't too far out of the realm of possibility, either.
Conner may get even more notoriety than Boyd when it comes to his versatility as he's expected to play on both offense and defense. He has established goals of double-digit sacks and touchdowns in addition to 1,300 rushing yards. Those are lofty goals, but the fact that he's throwing them out there makes it seem like he'll be playing quite a bit on both sides of the ball.
Here's the full list of players on the watch list from CBS Sports.
Ameer Abdullah, Nebraska
Nelson Agholor, Southern California
Kenny Bell, Nebraska
V'Angelo Bentley, Illinois
Victor Bolden, Oregon State
Tyler Boyd, Pittsburgh
Shilique Calhoun, Michigan State
B.J. Catalon, TCU
Rashon Ceaser, Louisiana Monroe
Stacy Coley, Miami (FL)
James Conner, Pittsburgh
Pharoh Cooper, South Carolina
Jamison Crowder, Duke
Stefon Diggs, Maryland
Chris Dunkley, South Florida
DeVon Edwards, Duke
D.J. Foster, Arizona State
Charles Gaines, Louisville
Rannell Hall, Central Florida
Scott Harding, Hawaii
Justin Hardy, East Carolina
Akeem Hunt, Purdue
Myles Jack, UCLA
Christion Jones, Alabama
Jameon Lewis, Mississippi State
Tommylee Lewis, Northern Illinois
Tyler Lockett, Kansas State
T.J. Logan, North Carolina
Venric Mark, Northwestern
Kevonte Martin-Manley, Iowa
J.D. McKissic, Arkansas State
Ty Montgomery, Stanford
Khalfani Muhammad, California
Marcus Murphy, Missouri
Jamarcus Nelson, UAB
Levi Norwood, Baylor
Ryan Switzer, North Carolina
Shaq Thompson, Washington
Antonio Vaughan, Old Dominion
Levonte "Kermit" Whitfield, Florida State
Carlos Wiggins, New Mexico
Kenny Williams, Texas Tech
Shane Williams-Rhodes, Boise St.
Myles Willis, Boston College
Dontre Wilson, Ohio State
Aaron Wimberly, Iowa St.
Shane Wynn, Indiana
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