Purdue Quarterback Aidan O'Connell Named to 2022 Davey O'Brien Award Preseason Watch List
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue sixth-year senior quarterback Aidan O'Connell was among 35 quarterbacks named to the 2022 Davey O'Brien Award watch list. The honor is given annually to the nation's best quarterback, as judged by the Davey O'Brien Foundation.
O'Connell, who is entering his final collegiate season with the Boilermakers' football program, was one of five Big Ten quarterbacks to make the list. He was also named to the 2022 Maxwell Award watch list.
2021 National Rankings
— Purdue Football (@BoilerFootball) July 19, 2022
Completion Percentage - 4th (71.8%)
Completions Per Game - 6th (26.3)
Passing Yards - 11th (3,712)
Passing TDs - 17th (28)
O'Brien Award Watch List - no doubt pic.twitter.com/qCizyh03OL
The list will be updated throughout the 2022 season, and an official midseason watch list will be released on Oct. 18. Last season, Alabama quarterback Bryce Young was named the recipient of the Davey O'Brien Award.
During the 2021 season, O'Connell was a second-team All-Big Ten selection by the conference's coaches and media. He finished the year with 3,178 yards, 23 touchdowns and eight interceptions while ranking fourth in the nation by completing 71.8% of his passes.
O'Connell registered six 300-yard performances, including a career-high 536 yards in a victory against No. 3 Michigan State. He also ended the year by accounting for 534 yards and five touchdowns in a 48-45 overtime win over Tennessee in the Music City Bowl. O'Connell is the only quarterback in program history to ever have two 500-yard passing games in a single season.
Purdue is scheduled to kick off the 2022 season against Penn State on Thursday, Sept. 1, at Ross-Ade Stadium. The matchup will be broadcast at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.
Here is the full list of players named to the 2022 Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award Preseason watch list:
- Brennan Armstrong, Virginia
- Stetson Bennet, Georgia
- Gerry Bohanon, South Florida
- Logan Bonner, Utah State
- Chase Brice, Appalachian State
- Sean Clifford, Penn State
- Malik Cunningham, Louisville
- Brett Gabbert, Miami (OH)
- Dillon Gabriel, Oklahoma
- Jake Haener, Fresno State
- Jaren Hall, BYU
- Frank Harris, UTSA
- Sam Hartman, Wake Forest
- Hendon Hooker, Tennessee
- KJ Jefferson, Arkansas
- Devin Leary, N.C. State
- Will Levis, Kentucky
- Grayson McCall, Coastal Carolina
- Tanner McKee, Stanford
- Tanner Mordecai, SMU
- Bo Nix, Oregon
- Adian O'Connell, Purdue
- Spencer Rattler, South Carolina
- Chris Reynolds Charlotte
- Cameron Rising, Utah
- Will Rogers, Mississippi State
- Spencer Sanders, Oklahoma State
- C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
- Taulia Tagovailoa, Maryland
- Dorian Thompson-Robinson, UCLA
- Payton Thorne, Michigan State
- Clayton Tune, Houston
- Tyler Van Dyke, Miami (FL)
- Caleb Williams, USC
- Bryce Young, Alabama
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- O'CONNELL NAMED TO MAXWELL AWARD WATCH LIST: Purdue quarterback Aidan O'Connell was among 13 Big Ten players named to the 2022 Maxwell Award watch list. He recorded 3,178 yards, 23 touchdowns and eight interceptions during the 2021 season for the Boilermakers. CLICK HERE
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D.J. Fezler is a staff writer for BoilermakersCountry.com. Hailing from The Region, he is from Cedar Lake in Northwest Indiana and has spent the last two years covering Purdue football and basketball.