Senior defensive lineman Caleb Banks and senior edge Tyreak Sapp were both tabbed as Chuck Bednarik Award preseason watch list nominees.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Fifth year seniors Caleb Banks and Tyreak Sapp have both earned a spot on the Chuck Bednarik Award preseason watch list.
The Chuck Bednarik Award was established in 1995 after the award’s namesake, Chuck Bednarik, who is considered to be one of the best defensive linebackers in the history of football. Bednarik played college football at the University of Pennsylvania and played for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1949 to 1962. The award is given to the best defensive player in the NCAA Division I College Football who also shows great skill, leadership and impact in the sport.
Banks created a strong case for the Chuck Bednarik Award preseason watch list following his 2024 performance, where he totaled 21 tackles, 10 of which were solo tackles and seven tackles-for-loss. Banks also recorded 4.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and recovered one fumble across 12 games with 10 starts for the team.
Coming off an impressive 2024 season, Sapp also earned a spot on the Chuck Bednarik Award preseason watch list. In 2024, Sapp played in all 13 games with nine starts for the season. During this time, Sapp led the team with seven sacks, 13 tackles-for-loss and two forced fumbles. Sapp also recorded the highest PFF grade among all qualified Florida players with 90.4, is ranked eighth highest among all FBS edge rushers and fifth highest among all SEC edge rushers. This is the highest ranking of any Florida defender since Jonathon Greenard in 2019 who had a PFF ranking of 90.5.
Click here for more information about the Chuck Bednarik Award and its watch list.
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