THE FLATS – Georgia Tech football standouts TaQuon Marshall and KirVonte Benson are among 85 student-athletes on the official watch list for the 2018 Maxwell Award, the Maxwell Football Club announced on Monday. The Maxwell Award has been given to “America’s College Player of the Year” since 1937. The award will be presented for the 82nd time this season.
With Marshall, a senior quarterback, and Benson, a junior B-back, both being recognized among the 85 top candidates for the 2018 Maxwell Award, Georgia Tech is one of only 16 schools with multiple representatives on the initial watch list.
Last season, Marshall (1,146 rushing yards) and Benson (1,053 rushing yards) became only the second set of teammates in Georgia Tech history to both rush for 1,000 yards in a season and the first Yellow Jackets duo to ever record four games in a single season with 100 rushing yards apiece.
Marshall’s 1,146 rushing yards in 2017 were the most by a quarterback and 12th-most overall in Georgia Tech history, while his 17 touchdown runs were the third-most by a QB and the fourth-most ever by a Yellow Jacket. Having never started at quarterback in his collegiate career, he burst on the national scene by running for 249 yards (a GT QB record) and five touchdowns (a school record, regardless of position) in the season opener against Tennessee. He went on to top the 100-yard rushing mark in six games and finish the season ranked among the top 30 nationally in five different statistical categories – scoring (11th – 9.5 ppg), rushing touchdowns (12th – 17), total touchdowns (15th – 17), points responsible for (24th – 14.9 ppg) and rushing (25th – 104.2 ypg).
Marshall is a returner to the Maxwell Award watch list after being added to the list early in the 2017 campaign.
Benson, who entered 2017 without a collegiate carry, rushed for 100 yards five times in 11 games as a sophomore. He also carried the ball 20 times or more on five occasions and averaged 6.8 yards per carry or better three times. With 129 yards on just 16 carries at Clemson (Oct. 28), he was the only individual to rush for 100 yards or better than eight yards per carry (8.1) against the eventual Atlantic Coast Conference champions in 2017. He finished the season ranked fourth in the ACC and 35th nationally in rushing (95.7 ypg).
Semifinalists for the 2018 Maxwell Award will be announced on Oct. 29 and three finalists will be unveiled on Nov. 19. The winner will be announced as part of the 2018 Home Depot College Football Awards Show on Dec. 6 and be presented at the Maxwell Football Club Awards Gala on March 8, 2019 in Atlantic City.
Georgia Tech opens the 2018 season on Saturday, Sept. 1 when it hosts Alcorn State at Bobby Dodd Stadium. The Yellow Jackets’ six-game home slate also includes four ACC contests against teams that advanced to the postseason last year, including highly anticipated matchups against defending ACC division champions Clemson (Sept. 22) and Miami (Nov. 10). There are two ways to catch all of the exciting action of Georgia Tech football at Bobby Dodd Stadium this season – full season tickets, which guarantee the best seats for all six home games starting at just $219, or the brand-new Georgia Tech football Stinger Pass, a flexible, mobile-only ticket option that guarantees a seat for all six contests for just $149. For more information and to purchase tickets online, click HERE.
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