The Bednarik Award is given annually to the best defensive player in college football. Past winners include all-time greats like Charles Woodson, Julius Peppers, and Aaron Donald. Before the season started the Aztecs didn't have anyone on the Watch List of players in consideration for the honor.
Then Trey White happened.
The sophomore edge rusher from Eastlake High School has taken college football by storm, leading the country with 11 sacks. His performance made him one of a handful of players added to the Bednarik Award Watch List, putting White in contention to win it. White's addition is of absolutely no surprise to anyone in the Aztecs athletics department.
"Success is not final for that kid," says Aztecs head coach Sean Lewis. "I think a lot of guys would relax. Human nature would kind of be to get a little bit complacent because of the success, you're leading the nation in sacks. He's as starving as ever, like he doesn't have a single sack on the season. The way that he shows up, the way that he approaches his business, he's going about it the right way."
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White was recruited by the previous coaching regime. When Lewis and his staff took over they thought maybe they might have something special brewing.
"You never know, right? Like I'm humble enough to say that that you don't really know anything. There's surprises every single day in the position that we get to sit in," says Lewis. "But, you know, you have some inkling, right? If you've been around enough good players and you look at their obsession for what they do and the process of how they go about their business, there's some patterns of behavior that you can point to. You're like, all right, this guy's got a chance."
White has taken that chance and run with it, usually into opposing backfields. In addition to the 11 sacks he has 15 tackles for loss (also most in the nation), six quarterback hurries, two pass breakups, and a forced fumble ... and the Aztecs have only played six games. White is on a pace to break the NCAA single-season sacks record, set in 2002 by Arizona State star Terrell Suggs.
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The Aztecs are happy to have him. Now they need to make sure they keep him. In the world of NIL and transfer portals White, who has one more year before being eligible for the NFL Draft, will likely have plenty of suitors from big-time programs.
Lewis is already recruiting his guy to stay in town. A little assist from Aztec Nation would not hurt.
"If you guys haven't already, Aztec Link is our proud collective supporter and we're gonna need some help as we move through this thing to keep these young key pieces that are in place. We all know the landscape of what this is right now in college football, and have to be able to retain and to hold on to our best players as we go forward."
Finalists for the Bednarik Award will be named in late November.
The Aztecs are on their second bye week of the season. Their next game is Saturday, October 26 at Snapdragon Stadium against Washington State. The Cougars, by the way, are allowing a shade less than three sacks a game, which it tied for 17th-most in the country.
