Buckeyes take two major awards
The Big Ten honored Ohio State players young and old last night, as senior linebacker James Laurinaitis won defensive player of the year and quarterback Terrelle Pryor was named freshman of the year.
It was Laurinaitis' second straight player of the year honor. He has 121 tackles, four sacks, two interceptions and a forced fumble this season.
"This is a tribute to our defense and the success of our entire team,"
Laurinaitis said. "That starts with our coaches and extends through every player in this program. I am just the face out front. I have been fortunate to contend for many honors during my career, and every time, I am still surprised to hear my name mentioned."
He became the third player to win back-to-back defensive player of the year honors, joining Illinois linebacker Dana Howard (1993 and '94) and Northwestern linebacker (and now coach) Pat Fitzgerald (1995 and '96).
With Laurinaitis' repeat award, OSU now has had a player win top defensive honors in five of the past seven years, dating to safety Mike Doss (coaches, 2002), end Will Smith (2003) and linebacker A.J. Hawk (2005).
Laurinaitis' closest competition for the award likely was from teammate Malcolm Jenkins, a cornerback. Both players were unanimous first-team all-Big Ten selections -- Laurinaitis by the media and Jenkins by the coaches.
Each player received his third straight first-team honor.
Pryor took over as OSU's starter in the fourth game and led the Buckeyes to an 8-1 finish. He is the Big Ten's most efficient passer, completing 62.5 percent of his passes for 1,245 yards and 12 touchdowns with only four interceptions.
"I am surprised, but I think it's great,"
Pryor said. "I have to thank my coaches and all the guys on this team for having confidence in me; this has been a year that I never would have believed would happen, and they have made it possible."
Pryor became the sixth Buckeyes player to win freshman of the year, joining Robert Smith (1990), Korey Stringer (1992), Orlando Pace (1994), Andy Katzenmoyer (1996) and Maurice Clarett (2002).
Besides Laurinaitis and Jenkins, offensive tackle Alex Boone was the only other Ohio State player to be named first team.
Named to the second team were running back Chris "Beanie" Wells, linebacker Marcus Freeman and safety Kurt Coleman (media only). Wells was a first-team pick last season but missed three games because of a foot injury this year.
Penn State's Joe Paterno was the coach of the year. The Nittany Lions, who were 4-4 in the Big Ten last year, went 7-1 this season and are headed to the Rose Bowl.
OSU duo finalists
Laurinaitis and Jenkins were named finalists for national awards and will be part of the Home Depot ESPNU awards show on Dec. 11 in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
Laurinaitis is one of three players up for the Bednarik Award, given to the best defensive player. The other finalists are linebacker Rey Maualuga of Southern California and end Aaron Maybin of Penn State.
Jenkins is a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award, given to the top defensive back. The other finalists are Eric Berry of Tennessee and Taylor Mays of USC.
