Penix, Odunze Take a Bow on AP Midseason All-America Team
It's halftime, intermission for choosing the best college football players in the country, with the Associated Press willingly taking on this midseason assignment.
For polls and All-American teams, the AP is considered the standard in these exercises because it rightfully considers any and all candidates from all over the country, even those in faraway Seattle, where others simply don't.
Or did you not see that poll just out ranking the top 10 stadiums for game-day atmosphere — and all were located east of the Mississippi River.
On Wednesday, the AP used a media panel to determine its midseason All-American team, which included first and second units and was 54 players strong, and it proved interesting for a number of reasons.
Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and wide receiver Rome Odunze were selected as first-team players at their respective positions, while Ohio State's standout pass-catcher Marvin Harrison Jr. slipped to the second team and Caleb Williams, the USC QB and reigning Heisman Trophy winner, was nowhere to be found.
Odunze, with his 40 catches for 736 yards and 6 touchdowns, was joined by fellow first-team receivers in LSU's Malik Nabers, who has 52 catches for 860 yards and 7 scores, and Missouri's Luther Burden III, who has 56 catches for 808 yards and 5 TDs.
Penix, who leads the nation with 383.50 passing yards per game, was picked at quarterback over LSU's Jayden Daniels, the former Arizona State signal-caller who is third in the nation in passing yards with 327.71.
Former Husky edge rusher Laiatu Latu, who would have never left Montlake for UCLA had he received better medical advice and totals 5.5 sacks this season, has a first-team spot.
Oregon center Jackson Powers-Johnson, a recent visitor to Husky Stadium, and Oregon State offensive tackle Taliese Fuaga were first-team selections. Each Pac-12 school had a second-teamer in Ducks wide receiver Troy Franklin and Beavers offensive guard Tanner Miller, too.
USC came up with just player among the nearly five dozen AP selections in second-team safety Calen Bullock.
Texas sophomore running back Jonathon Brooks, who scored two touchdowns against the UW in the Alamo Bowl as a fill-in for NFL-bound teammate Bijan Robinson, is a first-team rusher.
How good is Missouri with first-team picks in cornerback Kris Abrams Draine and Burden, plus a second-teamer in offensive tackle Javon Foster — which is one more selection overall than two-time reigning national champion Georgia?
Ohio State had no first-team selections, though it came up with a trio of second-teamers in tight end Cade Stover, cornerback Denzel Burke and Harrison.
AP MIDSEASON ALL-AMERICA TEAM
FIRST-TEAM OFFENSE
WR — Malik Nobles, LSU
WR — Rome Odunze, Washington
WR — Luther Burden III, Missouri
TE — Brock Bowers, Georgia
OT — Taliese Fuaga, Oregon State
OT — Joe Alt, Notre Dame
OG — Cooper Beebe, Kansas State
OG — Zak Zinter, Michigan
C — Jackson Powers-Johnson, Oregon
QB — Michael Penix Jr., Washington
RB — Jonathan Brooks, Texas
RB — Audric Estime, Notre Dame
PK — Will Reichard, Alabama
FIRST-TEAM DEFENSE
ER — Laiatu Latu, UCLA
ER — Dallas Turner, Alabama
DL — Howard Cross II, Notre Dame
DL — Jer'Zhan Newton, Illinois
LB — Payton Wilson, North Carolina State
LB — Jason Henderson, Old Dominion
CB — Kool-aid McKinstry, Alabama
CB — Kris Abrams Draine, Missouri
S — Malaki Starks, Georgia
S — Jaylin Simpson, Auburn
DB — Cooper DeJean, Iowa
P — Tory Taylor, Iowa
The complete AP midseason All-America team, first and second units, can be accessed here.
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