July 8, 2013
2013 Maxwell Award Watch List
2013 Bednarik Award Watch List
Philadelphia, Pa.-----For the first time, a San José State University football team will have players listed on the Maxwell Football Club's (www.maxwellfootballclub.org) preseason watch lists for its prestigious Maxwell and Chuck Bednarik Awards.
Quarterback David Fales, the most accurate passer last year in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), is on the watch list for the 77th annual Maxwell Award given to "America's College Player of the Year."
Coming off of breakthrough seasons, defensive tackle Travis Raciti, a junior from Pleasant Hill, Calif., and defensive back Bené Benwikere, from Los Angeles, are on the Chuck Bednarik Award watch list. The Bednarik Award is the Club's honor to the College Defensive Player of the Year.
Raciti contributed 13.0 tackles for loss and 8.5 quarterback sacks to a San José State team that ranked nationally 24th in total defense and tied for sixth with 42 quarterback sacks. Benwikere finished tied for third nationally with seven interceptions and was among a select group of defensive players to score a touchdown on an interception and a fumble return in 2012. Overall, the Spartans tied for ninth nationally taking away the football 32 times either on an interception or fumble recovery.
San Jose State is one of 15 programs with more than one player on the Bednarik Award watch list of 75 players. Raciti and Benwikere account for two of the four Mountain West Conference players on the watch list.
The three Spartans were part of the University's first team to finish in the Bowl Championship Series standings (24th), win a bowl game and be ranked in the top-25 (21st) in the final balloting of the Associated Press and USA Today/ESPN coaches polls. San Jose State had an 11-2 win-loss record and won the Military Bowl in 2012.
The Maxwell Club will announce the semifinalists for both awards on October 29 and finalists on November 18. The award winners will be presented on the December 12 Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show.