Malik Hooker Named Thorpe Award Semifinalist

By D.J. Byrnes on October 24, 2016 at 10:23 am
Malik Hooker in action against Penn State.
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The Thorpe Award, named after legendary footballer Jim Thorpe and given every year since 1986 to the top defensive back in college football, named its 2016 semifinalists Monday afternoon.

Naturally, the list included Ohio State redshirt sophomore Malik Hooker, a former three-star recruit from New Castle, Pennsylvania.

In his first year starting with the Buckeyes, Hooker is tied for sixth nationally with four interceptions. He has 22 solo tackles, 36 total tackles, and four tackles for a loss. He led the defense Saturday night with seven tackles against Penn State. An NFL scout and BTN analyst Matt Millen already see Ed Reed comparisons.

All semifinalists:

2016 Thorpe Award Semifinalists
PLAYER SCHOOL YEAR
JAIRE ALEXANDER LOUISVILLE SO.
BUDDA BAKER WASHINGTON JR
TRAVON BLANCHARD BAYLOR JR
JUSTIN EVANS TEXAS A&M SR
MINKAH FITZPATRICK ALABAMA SO
MALIK HOOKER OHIO STATE SO
ADOREE' JACKSON SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA JR
DESMOND KING IOWA SR
JOURDAN LEWIS MICHIGAN SR
KAI NACUA BRIGHAM YOUNG SR
JABRILL PEPPERS MICHIGAN JR
WESTON STEELHAMMER AIR FORCE SR
CORDREA TANKERSLEY CLEMSON SR
TRE'DAVIOUS WHITE LOUISIANA STATE SR
XAVIER WOODS LOUISIANA TECH SR
ANDREW WINGARD WYOMING SR

Three finalists will be named Nov. 21, with the winner announced live on the College Football Awards Show Dec. 8 on ESPN.

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