NEW YORK – The Friends of John Mackey have released the 2016 John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List. Given annually to the most outstanding collegiate tight end, the award recipient is selected by vote of the John Mackey Award Selection Committee and the 2016 Mackey Award recipient will be announced on Dec. 7, 2016 and then presented live on Dec. 8 at The Home Depot College Football Awards Red Carpet Show on ESPNU.
NFL Hall of Fame member John Mackey is considered to be the best to have played the tight end position. A tight end by whom all others are measured, Mackey was a role model on and off the field as demonstrated by his Super Bowl Championship, his commitment to community and his place in history as the first President of the NFLPA.
MORE: Check here for full preseason watch lists
The John Mackey Award presented since 2000, recognizes fourteen alumni that have played in the NFL: two-time Super Bowl Champion Daniel Graham (‘01), 2006 Super Bowl Champion Dallas Clark (‘02), Kellen Winslow II (‘03), two-time Super Bowl Champion Heath Miller (‘04), Marcedes Lewis (‘05) of the Jacksonville Jaguars, 2008 Super Bowl Champion Matt Spaeth (‘06) of the of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Fred Davis (‘07), Chase Coffman (‘08), D.J. Williams (‘10), Dwayne Allen (’11) of the Indianapolis Colts, Tyler Eifert (’12) of the Cincinnati Bengals, Austin Seferian-Jenkins (’13) of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Nick O’Leary (’14) of the Buffalo Bills and 2015 John Mackey Award recipient Hunter Henry of the San Diego Chargers.
| Name | School | Yr. |
|---|---|---|
| Jeb Blazevich | Georgia | Jr. |
| Pharaoh Brown | Oregon | Sr. |
| Barrett Burns | Appalachian St. | Sr. |
| Jake Butt | Michigan | Sr. |
| Cethan Carter | Nebraska | Sr. |
| Connor Cella | Rice | Sr. |
| CJ Conrad | Kentucky | So. |
| Buck Cowan | Idaho | Sr. |
| Darrell Daniels | Washington | Sr. |
| Elkanah Dillon | USF | So. |
| DJ Dowdy | Cincinnati | Sr. |
| Evan Engram | Ole Miss | Sr. |
| Gerald Everett | South Alabama | Sr. |
| Billy Freeman | San Jose St. | Sr. |
| Mike Gesicki | Penn State | Jr. |
| Jarred Gipson | Nevada | Sr. |
| DeAndre Goolsby | Florida | Jr. |
| Cole Hikutini | Louisville | Sr. |
| Bucky Hodges | Virginia Tech | Jr. |
| Wyatt Houston | Utah State | Sr. |
| OJ Howard | Alabama | Sr. |
| Ryan Izzo | Florida State | So. |
| Blake Jarwin | Oklahoma State | Sr. |
| Ben Johnson | Kansas | Jr. |
| Alize Jones | Notre Dame | So. |
| George Kittle | Iowa | Sr. |
| Kody Kohl | Arizona State | Sr. |
| Jordan Leggett | Clemson | Sr. |
| Brandon Lingen | Minnesota | Jr. |
| Troy Mangen | Ohio | Jr. |
| Hayden Plinke | UTEP | Sr. |
| Josiah Price | Michigan State | Sr. |
| Michael Roberts | Toledo | Sr. |
| Jake Roh | Boise State | Jr. |
| Keith Rucker | Georgia St. | Sr. |
| Mason Schreck | Buffalo | Sr. |
| Dalton Schultz | Stanford | So. |
| Cam Serigne | Wake Forest | Jr. |
| Jonnu Smith | FIU | Sr. |
| Jeremy Sprinkle | Arkansas | Sr. |
| Todd Stafford | Massachusetts | Jr. |
| Colin Thompson | Temple | Sr. |
| Cody Tuttle | Eastern Michigan | Jr. |
| Ethan Wolf | Tennessee | Jr. |
| Ryan Yurachek | Marshall | Jr. |
