Burlsworth Foundation founder and CEO Marty Burlsworth is a little relieved he isn’t part of the eight-man selection committee tasked with choosing the winner of the fourth annual Burlsworth Award.
AT A GLANCE
BURLSWORTH AWARD FINALISTS
JARED ABBREDERIS
SCHOOL: Wisconsin POSITION: Receiver YEAR: Senior HEIGHT: 6-2 WEIGHT: 190 NOTABLE: Three-time Burlsworth Award nominee and two-time semifinalist. ... Has a team-best 73 catches for 1,051 yards and seven touchdowns for the 9-3 Badgers. Those stats are third, fourth and tied for seventh in the Big Ten, respectively. ... Has for 197 catches for 3,110 yards and 23 touchdowns in his Wisconsin career. ... Is two catches away from tying Lee Evans’ single-season school receptions record and five away from tying Brandon Williams’ career record.
... Was a mid-season top five pick for the Biletnikoff Award, given annually to the nation’s top receiver.
MAX COPELAND
SCHOOL: Missouri POSITION: Offensive guard YEAR: Senior HEIGHT: 6-3 WEIGHT: 300 NOTABLE: Serves as an anchor on the offensive line for a Tigers team that went 11-1 in the regular season and played Auburn in the SEC Championship a year after going 5-7 overall and 2-6 in their first season in the Southeastern Conference. ... Missouri offense ranked in the top 20 nationally in scoring, rush offense and total offense entering the SEC title game. ... Turned down scholarship offer from home-state Montana to walk-on at Missouri, where his father, Michael, attended college. ... Awarded Missouri’s Unsung Hero Award for his dedication to the program following his junior season.
TREY WATTS
SCHOOL: Tulsa POSITION: Running back YEAR: Senior HEIGHT: 5-11 WEIGHT: 190 NOTABLE: Leads Conference USA rushing yards (1,329) and all- purpose yards (2,057) this season. His 171.4 all-purpose yards per game ranks seventh in the nation, while his 110.8 rushing yards per game ranks 17th. He rushed for 11 touchdowns. ... Finished his career with 6,246 all-purpose yards, which ranks second in school history. ... Rushed for more than 1,000 yards each of his last two seasons and his 3,515 career yards rank third in school history. ... Was named MVP of the Conference USA championship game and Liberty Bowl as a junior. ... Son of former Oklahoma quarterback and Oklahoma member of the U.S. House of Representatives J.C. Watts.
More than 50 nominees have been trimmed down to three finalists for the award, presented in memory of former Arkansas walk-on turned All-American Brandon Burlsworth to college football’s top player who began his career as a walk-on.
Wisconsin receiver Jared Abbrederis, Missouri off ensive guard Max Copeland and Tulsa running back Trey Watts comprise the strong trio of finalists. One of them will take home the trophy Monday in a ceremony at the Holiday Inn Northwest Arkansas Convention Center in Springdale.
“Luckily I have no vote in it, so that keeps me clear,” Burlsworth said. “It’s a very strong field. I talked to our selection committee, and a lot of them said they think this is the strongest class we’ve ever had. So that makes it extra, extra tough.”
Past recipients of the award include Penn State quarterback Matt McGloin (2012), Southern Mississippi quarterback Austin Davis (2011) and Georgia Tech center Sean Bedford (2010). This year’s crop of finalists ensures there will be another accomplished player added to that list.
“Abbrederis from Wisconsin is a two-time semifinalist,” Burlsworth said. “Trey Watts, you just look at his numbers out of Tulsa; you can see what type of player he has been.
“Max Copeland is just your great offensive lineman that works hard. He’s something else. He’s quite a character and a fan favorite. … They’re all similar in a lot of ways. Most of them were offered scholarships at smaller schools.”
A fan vote counts for 5 percent during each round of voting and is combined with the results from the selection committee. The winner of the fan vote will receive a separate trophy, but the committee is chiefly responsible for determining the Burlsworth Award winner.
The committee is comprised of a who’s who of football figures, including former Arkansas coaches Frank Broyles, Danny Ford and Ken Hatfield; former Alabama coach Gene Stallings; former NFL coach Dan Reeves; Huntsville High School coach Tommy Tice; former NFL offensive line coach Howard Mudd; and University of Arkansas Board of Trustees member Jim Lindsey.
“We’ve got a selection committee that’s very knowledgeable about football,” Burlsworth said. “We’ve got a group of guys that you trust and work really, really hard at trying to select the cream of the crop. It’s hard to narrow that list down to your 10 semifinalists and now down to our final three. It’s tough.”
Tickets for the award ceremony are $50. All proceeds benefit the Burlsworth Foundation, which serves underprivileged children.
“We have two or three major events every year,” Burlsworth said. “And this is one of those. I want to recognize the Springdale Rotary Club and what they do to make this event possible. We couldn’t do it without them. It is one of our major events and allows us to continue our programs that we do. So I’m real excited.”