Buckeyes star safety Caleb Downs wins Lott IMPACT Trophy
COLUMBUS – Ohio State has one of the top defenses in college football due in large part to the play of junior safety Caleb Downs.
The Buckeyes’ star safety won Lott IMPACT Trophy on Sunday night. Named after Pro Football Hall of Fame safety Ronnie Lott, the Lott IMPACT Trophy is given annually to the Defensive IMPACT Player of the Year, which the award deems as the player “who has had the biggest impact on his team both on and off the field.” IMPACT stands for “Integrity,” “Maturity,” “Performance,” “Academics,” “Community” and “Tenacity.”
Caleb Downs is the second Ohio State player to win the award. Linebacker James Laurinaitis also won the Lott IMPACT Trophy in 2008.
This is the first national award for Downs but he took home multiple conference awards last week. Downs was named the Big Ten’s Nagurski–Woodson Defensive Player of the Year on Wednesday, officially becoming the best defensive player in a conference littered with impressive defensive standouts.
Downs is the 10th Ohio State player to be named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year; it’s the 11th time a Buckeyes defender has won the award as Laurinaitis won it twice in 2007 and 2008.
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Additionally, Downs was named the Big Ten’s Tatum-Woodson Defensive Back of the Year for the second straight season. The only other winner of the award from Ohio State, which began in 2011, was Shaun Wade in 2020.
Downs is a finalist for other national awards: the Chuck Bednarik Award, the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and the Thorpe Award.
The Bednarik and Nagurski are both given annually to best defensive player in college football. One is awarded by the Maxwell Football Club, Bednarik, while the other is awarded by the Charlotte Touchdown Club and Football Writers Association of America, Nagurski. The Thorpe Award is given annually to the best defensive back in college football based on performance on the field, athletic ability and character.