Colin Simmons gets double-snubbed for postseason honors on a Wednesday
The Texas Longhorns had only one player selected to On3’s 2025 All-America teams on Wednesday in second-team return specialist Ryan Niblett. The fact that the list of the best players in the country wasn’t littered with Longhorns should come as no surprise, but for just one to make it? A bit unsettling.
The player with the biggest gripe about earning neither All-America honors from On3 nor defensive player of the year honors from the SEC? Colin Simmons.
In the case of On3, the decision to leave off Simmons had to have been tough for Chris Low. That’s not to take away from what his selections accomplished in 2025, but rather to point out just how great Simmons was throughout the season. He was named a first-team All-SEC player at defensive end, after all.
On3’s first-team selections at EDGE were Texas Tech’s David Bailey and Ohio State’s Caden Curry. No one in the country is arguing with Bailey’s nod. “But the Big 12!” Yeah, he obliterated it week in and week out. Jacob Rodriguez is a great player but teams game-planned for No. 31 more than they did for the mustache. Curry also has a strong claim to the first-team spot as a key frontline member of the elite Ohio State defense.
But from that point, there’s space to seriously wonder why Simmons was left out of the list.
No one is doubting Arvell Reese is a game-changing player for Ohio State. But Reese’s play earned a spot on On3’s All-American team as an outside linebacker. That’s a proper distinction considering what Reese does on the field, but one that was made in order to give him a first-team nod. There’s no second-team OLB. Could that not have been Simmons?
To compare, here’s a look at Simmons and On3’s other All-American defensive ends and lone outside linebacker.
| Player | Tackles | TFL | Sacks | Def. Snaps | PFF Def. Grade | Pressures | Missed Tackle % | Stops |
| Colin Simmons, Texas | 41 | 13.5 | 11.0 | 540 | 85.1 | 53 | 16.2 | 29 |
| David Bailey, Texas Tech (1st-team EDGE) | 43 | 17.5 | 13.5 | 561 | 93.0 | 74 | 12.1 | 35 |
| Caden Curry, Ohio State (1st-team EDGE) | 60 | 16.5 | 11.0 | 550 | 91.3 | 45 | 11.3 | 38 |
| Arvell Reese, Ohio State (1st-team OLB) | 62 | 10.0 | 6.5 | 588 | 73.6 | 25 | 6.7 | 31 |
| Rueben Bain Jr., Miami (2nd-team EDGE) | 37 | 7.5 | 4.5 | 636 | 93.0 | 58 | 17.8 | 27 |
| Stephen Daley, Indiana (2nd-team EDGE) | 38 | 19.0 | 5.5 | 528 | 78.3 | 41 | 15.8 | 24 |
It’s easy to say Simmons was a snub. If there was room for Reese, there was room for Simmons at least alongside Bain and Daley.
What about for SEC defensive player of the year? This is an honor given by the league’s coaches and little is known about the voting process as far as who finished second, or third, etc.
Top 10
- 1Breaking
Sherrone Moore
Fired as Michigan HC
- 2Hot
Michigan Hot Board
Names to watch as Michigan HC
- 3
Jim Knowles
Expected DC hire for Tennessee
- 4
All-America Team
On3 awards CFB's best in 2025
- 5Trending
YouTube TV
Will offer sports-only package
Get the Daily On3 Newsletter in your inbox every morning
By clicking "Subscribe to Newsletter", I agree to On3's Privacy Notice, Terms, and use of my personal information described therein.
Texas A&M’s Cashius Howell was the SEC defensive player of the year. Here’s how he stacks up against Simmons.
| Player | Tackles | TFL | Sacks | Def. Snaps | PFF Def. Grade | Pressures | Missed Tackle % | Stops |
| Colin Simmons, Texas | 41 | 13.5 | 11.0 | 540 | 85.1 | 53 | 16.2 | 29 |
| Cashius Howell, Texas A&M | 29 | 14.0 | 11.5 | 542 | 80.0 | 41 | 12.0 | 20 |
More goes into football than numbers, of course. When subjective metrics like PFF and other counting stats favor Simmons with others being a wash, it’s hard to understand the thinking from SEC coaches.
Of course, Howell is a great player. Everyone mentioned is a great player. But it’d be nice to know where Simmons finished in this voting process for the SEC’s honors.
Plus, the performances put on by these players against Power Conference opponents is worth tracking. Bailey, Curry, Reese, Bain, and Daley were on teams that played 10 Power Conference games. Simmons and Howell were on squads that saw nine Power Conference opponents.
| Player | Tackles | TFL | Sacks | Def. Snaps | Pressures | Stops |
| Colin Simmons, Texas | 37 | 12.0 | 9.5 | 462 | 46 | 26 |
| David Bailey, Texas Tech | 38 | 15.0 | 11.0 | 479 | 58 | 30 |
| Caden Curry, Ohio State | 52 | 13.5 | 9.0 | 495 | 36 | 30 |
| Arvell Reese, Ohio State | 51 | 9.0 | 5.5 | 525 | 23 | 28 |
| Rueben Bain Jr., Miami | 28 | 5.5 | 3.5 | 555 | 50 | 20 |
| Stephen Daley, Indiana | 30 | 15.0 | 4.5 | 471 | 38 | 19 |
| Cashius Howell, Texas A&M | 24 | 11.0 | 8.5 | 469 | 33 | 15 |
It must have been hard for On3 to keep Simmons off one of its two All-America teams. It must have been hard for SEC coaches to pick Howell over Simmons. Because the numbers make it hard to see why the only postseason accolade Simmons has picked up so far is first-team All-SEC honors.
