Penn State defensive end [autotag]Abdul Carter[/autotag] has been enjoying a big year at his new position, and his performance is being recognized among the best in the country as the regular season begins winding down. On Wednesday, Carter was named a finalist for this year’s Lombardi Award.
The Lombardi Award is awarded to the nation’s best college football lineman, whether they play on offense or defense. The award has been awarded annually since 1970 by the Rotary Club of Houston. The award is named after legendary football coach Vince Lombardi.
Carter made the move from linebacker to edge this offseason and so far he is currently leading the Big Ten with 18 TFL, and he has added eight sacks and two forced fumbles to his stat line this season.
Penn State has two all-time winners of the Lombardi Award. Defensive tackle Bruce Clark was the first to do so in 1978. Decades later, Carl Nassib became the second Lombardi Award winner in school history. Carter is the first finalist from Penn State since Nassib won the award in 2015.
Last year’s winner of the Lombardi Award was UCLA defensive end Laiatu Latu. Michigan defensive end Aidan Hutchinson was the most recent Big Ten player to win the Lombardi Award, doing so in 2021 (UCLA was a member of the Pac-12 in 2023 when Latu won the award representing UCLA).
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