Waynes Named Semifinalist For Jim Thorpe Award
EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State junior cornerback Trae Waynes has been named one of 15 semifinalists for the Jim Thorpe Award, presented annually since 1986 to the nation's top defensive back by the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame. Waynes is the only defensive back from the Big Ten and one of seven corners featured on the list of semifinalists.
Other semifinalists for the Jim Thorpe Award include: TCU's Sam Carter, Duke's Jeremy Cash, Alabama's Landon Collins, Oregon's Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, Virginia Tech's Kendall Fuller, Ole Miss' Senquez Golson, East Carolina's Josh Hawkins, Louisville's Gerod Holliman, LSU's Ronald Martin, Ole Miss' Cody Prewitt, Stanford's Jordan Richards, Oklahoma's Zack Sanchez, UTSA's Triston Wade and Florida State's PJ Williams. Three finalists for the award will be named on Monday, Nov. 24 and the winner will be announced and presented the trophy at The Home Deport College Football Awards show, which will air live on Thursday, Dec. 11 from 7-9 p.m. ET on ESPN from the Atlantic Dance Hall at Disney's BoardWalk at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
A first-team Midseason All-American by SI.com, Waynes is tied for the team lead with two interceptions, ranks second with five pass break-ups, and has 28 tackles, including two for losses (9 yards) with a 4-yard sack. He also was named a Midseason All-American by CBSSports.com (second team) and Phil Steele (third team).
As a team, the Spartans rank second in the Big Ten in passing efficiency defense (103.6 rating) and pass defense (184.0 yards per game), figures which also rank ninth and 14th in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, respectively.
The 6-foot-1, 182-pound native of Kenosha, Wisconsin, recorded five tackles and a pass break-up in MSU's 35-11 win over Michigan Oct. 25, the Spartans' biggest win (24 points) over the Wolverines since 1967. Waynes helped the secondary limit Michigan to 125 yards passing.
Waynes tallied a career-best two tackles for loss (9 yards), including a 4-yard sack, in MSU's 56-17 win at Indiana Oct. 18. Waynes led the secondary with 20 production points at Purdue Oct. 11 after collecting five tackles and recovering a fumble in the fourth quarter.
In the Big Ten opener against No. 19 Nebraska Oct. 4, Waynes tied his career high with two interceptions and also posted career bests in tackles (7) and pass break-ups (2). His second interception with 30 seconds remaining in the game sealed the 27-22 victory over the Huskers.
In addition to the Thorpe Award, Waynes also is on watch lists for the Chuck Bednarik Award and Bronko Nagurski Trophy.
Waynes, who has started 22 consecutive games, has 83 tackles, five interceptions and 10 pass break-ups in 31 career contests. He earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors as a sophomore in 2013, recording 50 tackles, three interceptions and five pass break-ups as the Spartans led the NCAA FBS in pass efficiency defense.
"Trae Waynes has become a very reliable corner for us since his first major action against TCU in the 2012 Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl," MSU assistant head coach/defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi said. "He is a lock down corner with great make up speed. He is tall and rangy with super ball skills. Not only is Trae a great football player, but he's a super person and a high character man."
"Trae is fast, tough and physical," Spartan secondary coach Harlon Barnett said. "He can tackle as well as cover; he's a complete corner. Trae is an extremely hard worker, and he has a humble spirit."
The award is named in honor of Jim Thorpe, who was born May 28, 1888, on a Sac and Fox Indiana Reservation at Prague, Oklahoma. He played halfback for the Carlisle (Pa.) Indian Industrial School from 1907-08 and again from 1911-12. In 44 career games, he scored 53 touchdowns and 421 points. In 1912, Thorpe led the nation in TDs (29) and points scored (224). Besides his accomplishments in football, he was a one-man track team and excelled in basketball, lacrosse, baseball and all other sports he attempted. At the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden, Thorpe won the pentathlon and decathlon. He played pro football from 1915-28 and Major League Baseball from 1913-19. In 1950, Thorpe was named the greatest athlete of the half-century from 1900-49 by The Associated Press sports editors. He was elected into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1951 and inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963.
Michigan State cornerback Darqueze Dennard became the first Spartan to win the Thorpe Award in 2013. A unanimous first-team All-American, Dennard led the Spartans in both interceptions (4) and pass break-ups (10) and ranked fourth on the team with a career-high 62 tackles, including 3.5 for loss (8 yards).
The Jim Thorpe Award Banquet will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2015, in Oklahoma City.
Michigan State (7-1, 4-0 Big Ten), ranked in the Top 10 in the latest Associated Press (No. 8) and USA TODAY/Amway Coaches (No. 5) Polls, enjoys its second bye week of the season before playing host to Ohio State on Saturday, Nov. 8, with kickoff set for 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
