Stanford WR Elic Ayomanor Lands on Maxwell Award Watch List

Jason Burke | Aug 1, 2024

Oct 21, 2023; Stanford, California, USA; Stanford Cardinal wide receiver Elic Ayomanor (13) during the third quarter against the UCLA Bruins at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports / Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports

The Maxwell Award watch list has been released, and Stanford Cardinal wide receiver Elic Ayomanor is one of 20 ACC players to have made the cut. Among the ACC players to make the list, Ayomanor is the only sophomore, with 10 juniors and nine seniors also making it.

The Maxwell Football Club website states its purpose as, "Recognizing talented players at the earliest stages of their careers has been a Maxwell standard. In fact, a majority of our Maxwell Award winners have experienced continued success at the professional level with several going on to be legends of the game." Last year's award winner was Washington QB Michael Penix Jr., who was selected eighth overall by the Atlanta Falcons.

Ayomanor missed his entire redshirt freshman season in 2022, but returned to the field in 2023 and put up 62 receptions for 1,013 yards, along with six touchdowns in his first taste of college ball. His breakout game came on the road against Colorado where he hauled in 13 passes for 294 yards and three TDs--all in the second half of a thrilling come-from-behind win.

Before coming to Stanford he was a top-10 recruit, and he's certainly looking to build off his season last year as the 2024 campaign rolls around. He said at ACC Media Day, "I'm not really the type of person to set benchmarks in terms of yards, or catches, or touchdowns. But, one thing I want to do, or come away with this season is going into the film room every Sunday and thinking I put my all out there every play."

It's also worth noting that Ayomanor posted the seventh-most receiving yards in the NCAA from Oct. 11 through the end of the season (806), and four of his touchdowns on the year came from 40+ yards out. He's going to be a huge playmaker for the Cardinal in 2024, which is what landed him this honor.

This is the 88th year of the Maxwell Award, and the ACC's 20 players named to the watch list led the way, beating out the SEC (15), Big 12 (15), and Big 10 (12). 80 players in all were named to the list.