Georgia Tech's Haynes King and Jamal Haynes Named to The Maxwell Award Watch List

Haynes King and Jamal Haynes are two of the top players in the ACC heading into the 2024 season

Dec 22, 2023; Tampa, FL, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King (10). attempts a pass against the UCF Knights during the first half of the Gasparilla Bowl at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports / Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Georgia Tech is going to have one of the top offenses in the ACC this season and leading the charge for the Yellow Jackets will be quarterback Haynes King and running back Jamal Haynes. They are two of the top players in the ACC heading into the season and today, they were named to the Maxwell Award watch list, the national player of the year award in college football.

Jamal Haynes x Haynes King

Two of the best players in college football.

🏆 https://t.co/eVGwTsSHyw pic.twitter.com/G4jaanfeZ0

— Georgia Tech Football (@GeorgiaTechFB) July 29, 2024

Georgia Tech is one of just 17 teams with multiple representatives on the Maxwell Award watch list.

King accounted for 3,729 yards of total offense (2,842 passing, 737 rushing) and 37 touchdowns (27 passing, 10 rushing) in his first season as the Yellow Jackets’ starting quarterback in 2023. He was one of only two Power Five conference players with at least 2,800 passing yards, 700 rushing yards, 25 touchdown passes and 10 touchdown runs in 2023, joining Heisman Trophy winner and eventual No. 2 overall pick in the NFL Draft, Jayden Daniels of LSU, while he became only the fourth Atlantic Coast Conference player since 2000 to reach those plateaus in a single season, joining Clemson’s Deshawn Watson (2015), Louisville’s Lamar Jackson (2016 and 2017) and Virginia Tech’s Jerod Evans (2016).

Haynes, who made the switch from wide receiver to running back during Georgia Tech’s fall camp in 2023, became the Yellow Jackets’ first 1,000-yard rusher in five years when he ran for 1,059 yards last season. He capped four 100-yard games with a career-high 128 en route to being named MVP of the Jackets’ 30-17 win over UCF in the Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl. In addition to his 1,059 rushing yards (the 15th-most in Georgia Tech single-season history), Haynes also caught 20 passes for 151 yards and returned two kickoffs for 47 yards, totaling 1,257 all-purpose yards and earning all-ACC recognition as both a running back and all-purpose performer.

Led by King and Haynes, Georgia Tech ranked third in the ACC and among the top 35, nationally, in total offense last season (424.6 ypg). Tech led the conference/ranked 12th nationally in rushing offense (203.8 ypg). The Yellow Jackets return eight starters from last season’s prolific offense in 2024.

Georgia Tech is in the midst of fall camp right now and begin their 2024 season in Ireland vs defending ACC champion Florida State on August 24th.