Awards have already been rolling in for Tennessee freshman defensive end Derek Barnett (Second Team All-SEC; Freshman All-SEC), but arguably his biggest one came in on Friday, being named Grantland.com’s “Rookie of the Year” for all of college football.
Here’s an excerpt of what Grantland’s Matt Hinton had to say about the job Barnett did this year:
“Tennessee played 23 true freshmen this season, most in the nation by far. … In Barnett’s case, though, the playing time wasn’t a product of necessity: He was Tennessee’s best edge rusher right out of the gate, surpassing Jadeveon Clowney’s SEC mark for sacks by a freshman with 10 on his way to finishing fourth nationally with 20.5 tackles for loss.”
On a less serious note, Grantland also honored Tennessee freshman running back Jalen Hurd for his hair, awarding him with the “Best Campus Lyfe Haircut.”
“Hurd arrived in Knoxville straight from an All-4-One video circa 1994,” Hinton wrote. “Hurd is a big, physical runner with a likely NFL future, and you know his dorm room smells amazing.”
Click here for the full list of college football awards from Grantland
