Three Buckeyes players named FWAA All-Americans

IMG_7408by:Andy Backstrom12/09/22

andybackstrom

COLUMBUS — All four College Football Playoff teams have at least three Football Writers Association of America All-Americans this year. That includes Ohio State, which has three honorees exactly.

Buckeyes wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. and left tackle Paris Johnson Jr. were named to the first team. Linebacker Tommy Eichenberg was a second-team selection.

The Big Ten had the most first-team (nine) and second-team (seven) picks. Ohio State and Michigan were the only two schools to have two FWAA first-team All-Americans.

The FWAA formed in 1941, and its first All-America Team was revealed in 1944.

Here’s the complete list of this year’s FWAA first-team All-Americans:

First-Team Offense

QB Caleb Williams, USC (6-1, 215, So., Washington, D.C.)
RB Blake Corum, Michigan (5-8, 210, Jr., Marshall, Va.)
RB Bijan Robinson, Texas (6-0, 222, Jr., Tucson, Ariz.
WR Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State (6-4, 205, Jr., Philadelphia, Pa.)
WR Jalin Hyatt, Tennessee (6-0, 185, Jr., Irmo, S.C.)
TE Brock Bowers, Georgia (6-4, 230, So., Napa, Calif.)
OL Steve Avila, TCU (6-4, 330, Sr., Arlington, Texas)
OL Paris Johnson Jr., Ohio State (6-6, 310, Jr., Cincinnati, Ohio)
OL John Michael Schmitz, Minnesota (6-4, 320, Sr., Flossmoor, Ill.)
OL Peter Skoronski, Northwestern (6-4, 315, Jr., Park Ridge, Ill.)
C Olusegun Oluwatimi, Michigan (6-3, 307, Gr., Upper Marlboro, Md.)

First-Team Defense

DL Jalen Carter, Georgia (6-3, 300, Jr., Apopka, Fla.)
DL Calijah Kancey, Pitt (6-0, 280, Jr., Miami, Fla.)
DL Tuli Tuipulotu, USC (6-4, 290, Jr., Hawthorne, Calif.)
DL Tyree Wilson, Texas Tech (6-6, 275, Sr., Henderson, Texas)
LB Will Anderson Jr., Alabama (6-4, 243, So., Hampton, Ga.)
LB Jack Campbell, Iowa (6-5, 246, Sr., Cedar Falls, Iowa)
LB Ivan Pace Jr., Cincinnati (6-0, 235, Sr., Cincinnati, Ohio)
DB Emmanuel Forbes, Mississippi State (6-0, 180, Jr., Grenada, Miss.)
DB Clark Phillips III, Utah (5-10, 183, So., Lakewood, Calif.)
DB Chris Smith, Georgia (5-11, 195, Sr., Atlanta, Ga.)
DB Devon Witherspoon, Illinois (6-0, 180, Jr., Pensacola, Fla.)

First-Team Special Teams

K Christopher Dunn, N.C. State (5-8, 170, Gr., Lexington, N.C.)
P Tory Taylor, Iowa (6-4, 230, Jr., Melbourne, Australia)
KR Lideatrick Griffin, Mississippi State (5-10, 185, Jr., Philadelphia, Miss.)
PR Derius Davis, TCU (5-10, 175, Sr., Saint Francisville, La.)
AP Zach Charbonnet, UCLA (6-1, 220, Sr., Camarillo, Calif.)

Ohio State WR Marvin Harrison Jr.

With star slot wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba sidelined most of this year with a hamstring injury, Harrison stepped into the WR1 role. He ran with it, piling up 12 touchdown catches and 18 contested catches, per Pro Football Focus, while posting just one drop in 108 targets. The electrifying Harrison was a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award.

Ohio State LT Paris Johnson Jr.

Johnson moved from right guard to left tackle this offseason, but you would have never known that he hadn’t already been starting there. Johnson has allowed just 10 pressures this year — four fewer than he conceded as an interior offensive lineman in 2021 — although he did give up his second career sack in the regular season finale against Michigan. Still, he’s done an exceptional job protecting Heisman Trophy finalist quarterback C.J. Stroud’s blind side.

Ohio State LB Tommy Eichenberg

Eichenberg has more solo tackles this season (72) than he had total tackles (64) in 2021. Eichenberg is tied for third nationally in solos, and he’s fourth in the Big Ten with 12.0 TFLs. The fourth-year Cleveland native has played through two injured hands toward the end of the regular season, but his production hasn’t wavered.

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