advertisement

NIU, Northwestern quarterbacks on Unitas list

Northern Illinois University quarterback Jordan Lynch and Northwestern QB Kain Colter were named to the 2013 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Watch List.

The Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award marks the sixth preseason watch list on which Lynch's name has appeared, and 30 quarterbacks made the preseason list.

Lynch has been on the lists released by the Manning Award (top quarterback including bowl performance), the Walter Camp Award (most outstanding player), Maxwell Award (college player of the year), the Paul Hornung Award (most versatile player and the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award (top quarterback).

Last season, the Chicago native ranked fourth in the nation in rushing and had more 100-yard games (12) than any other player in Division I. Lynch became the first Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) in NCAA history to pass for more than 3,000 yards (3,138) and rush for more than 1,500 yards (1,815) in a single season. He broke 14 NIU school records and four NCAA marks a year ago.

Colter combined for nearly 2,000 yards last season as a quarterback and receiver for Northwestern, starting all but one game behind center for the Wildcats' offense.

NIU has launched a Heisman Trophy campaign for Lynch for 2013 centered around the theme, “Jordan Lynch for 6,” including a website, www.JordanLynchfor6.com, Facebook page, Jordan Lynch for 6 and Twitter account, @LynchFor6. Lynch finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy voting last year.

Here is the 2013 Top 30 Watch List for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award:

Blake Bortles, UCF

Tajh Boyd, Clemson

Kolton Browning, ULM

Kain Colter, Northwestern

Derek Carr, Fresno State

Jeff Driskel, Florida

Cody Fajardo, Nevada

David Fales, San Jose State

James Franklin, Missouri

Cody Green, Tulsa

Brendon Kay, Cincinnati

Taylor Kelly, Arizona State

Jordan Lynch, Northern Illinois

Sean Mannion, Oregon State

Taylor Martinez, Nebraska

Jeff Mathews, Cornell

Andrew Maxwell, Michigan State

Keith Price, Washington

AJ McCarron, Alabama

Stephen Morris, Miami

Aaron Murray, Georgia

Bryn Renner, North Carolina

Chase Rettig, Boston College

Corey Robinson, Troy

Tyler Russell, Mississippi State

Connor Shaw, South Carolina

Joe Southwick, Boise State

Tyler Tettleton, Ohio

Logan Thomas, Virginia Tech

Keith Wenning, Ball State

Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.