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This is the first of what will likely be several announcements this week regarding preseason watch lists. Do they really mean anything? No. But it's nice to know people are thinking about you.
Arkansas' first couple of placements are Alex Collins and Jonathan Williams, who have both been named to the 78-man watch list for the 78th annual Maxwell Award.
Arkansas is one of four programs in the country with multiple running backs named to the list, joining Texas, Alabama and Oregon, while 19 programs had two more athletes make an appearance.
Williams finished 2013 with 150 rushes for 900 yards and four touchdowns. He added seven receptions for 72 yards and two scores. Williams was an honorable mention to the College Football News All-Sophomore team and was named to the Doak Walker Award Watch List in 2013. He rushed for a career-high 151 yards and a 75-yard touchdown run last season against Louisiana and teamed up with Collins to produce Arkansas’ second pair of teammates to each rush for at least 900 yards in a season.
In 2013, Collins was named SEC Freshman of the Year, a Freshman All-American and to the SEC All-Freshman Team. He became the first freshman in SEC history to start his career with three straight 100-yard rushing games and the first true freshman in FBS since Oklahoma’s Adrian Peterson in 2004. Collins became the second freshman in school history, 10th true freshman in SEC history and 68th true freshman in NCAA history to reach 1,000 rushing yards, finishing the season with 1,026 on 190 carries with four touchdowns. He added 63 yards on 11 receptions for a team-high 1,089 all-purpose yards.
The watch list candidates have been chosen by the Maxwell Football Club's selection committee, which analyzes both past performance and future potential. The Club reserves the right to make additions and deletions to these lists as the 2014 season unfolds. All members of the Maxwell Football Club, NCAA sports information directors, FBS head coaches and selected national media are eligible to vote for the awards.
The Maxwell Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA) which encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football.
