Sports
Baker Mayfield Named AP College Football Player Of The Year
BREAKING: Mayfield joins Josh Heupel (2000), Jason White (2003) and Sam Bradford (2008) as previous winners from Oklahoma.
NORMAN, OK — Baker Mayfield, a former walk-on who has led the No. 2 Sooners to the College Football Playoff and who leads the nation in passer efficiency rating, was named The Associated Press college football Player of the Year on Thursday. He is the fourth Oklahoma quarterback to win the award since it was created 19 years ago.
Mayfield received 51 first-place votes from the 56 AP college football poll voters who submitted player of the year ballots, and a total of 157 points. Stanford running back Bryce Love (83 points) and Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson (39 points) each received two first-place votes, while Penn State running Saquon Barkley received a first-place vote and came in fourth.
Mayfield, Love and Jackson — who won the Heisman Trophy last year — are also the finalists for this year's Heisman, which will be handed out Saturday night in New York.
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The Sooners are slated to play No. 3 Georgia in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1. Mayfield threw for 4,340 yards and 41 touchdowns this season.
He joins Josh Heupel (2000), Jason White (2003) and Sam Bradford (2008) as previous winners from Oklahoma. No other school has had more than two players win AP Player of the Year.
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"I'm on this awards trip right now with a lot of great players from OU and other schools, and every one of them deserves to be recognized. To receive this award is an honor and it's something just a few years ago I never thought would happen," Mayfield said. "Obviously I'm very happy and thankful that I'm being recognized with this."
Mayfield played high school football in Austin, Texas, but did not receive a scholarship offer from the Longhorns. He was at Texas Tech, and played as a freshman, but ended up transferring to Oklahoma. With the Sooners, he has become a three-year starter and one of the most productive passers in college football history.
He has 129 career touchdown passes and 14,320 yards.
The AP award is the first of what could be several won by Mayfield. He was in Atlanta for the ESPN's college football awards show at the Hall of Fame. Mayfield is up for the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award, Maxwell Award and Davey O'Brien Award. He is also a finalist for the Manning Award.
By RALPH D. RUSSO, AP College Football Writer
Photo credit: Sue Ogrocki/Associated Press