The Penn State Nittany Lions, recently named the No. 9 team in the country, have plenty of star players, especially on defense.
On Tuesday, the leader of Penn State’s defense lineback, [autotag]Kobe King[/autotag], was named to the Butkus Award Watch List. The award is in its 40th year and is presented to the top linebacker in the country.
The Detroit native earned All-Big Ten honorable mention in 2023 and has appeared in 30 career games including 11 starts. King is set up for another jump-up in production in 2024. Last season, King tallied 59 tackles to go along with six tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, one fumble recovery and one hurry. Pro Football Focus graded King as the Big Ten’s best-run defender at the linebacker position last year.
Butkus Award Watch List ➡️ @KobekingCTFB
🏈 All-B1G HM in 2023
🏈 59 tackles, 6 TFL, 1.5 Sacks, 1 FF last year
🏈 85.3 run defense grade by PFF, led Big Ten linebackers (min. 200 run defense snaps)#WeAre pic.twitter.com/tuucF3DFGm— Penn State Football Communications (@PennStFBComms) August 13, 2024
The 51 linebackers named to the watch list, a nod to Butkus’s 51 jersey, will be trimmed to a semifinalist list on November 4. The finalist for the Butkus Award will be named on November 25, and the winner will be named on December 10.
Check out all the other Penn State players named to preseason watch lists in our award tracker.