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Trio of standout SEC linebackers announced as finalists for Butkus Award
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Three SEC linebackers made the list of 5 finalists for the Butkus Award, which is given annually to the best linebacker in the country.
The SEC has a tradition of excellence at the linebacker position, which has clearly continued in 2024. When the list of finalists was released on Monday morning, the SEC had its fingerprints all over it, with Ole Miss’s Chris Paul Jr., Oklahoma’s Danny Stutsman and Georgia’s Jalon Walker all in the mix.
Clemson’s Barrett Carter and UCLA’s Carson Schwesinger joined the SEC trio on the list of finalists for the prestigious award.
Butkus Award (best LB) finalists:
Barrett Carter, Clemson
Chris Paul Jr., Mississippi
Carson Schwesinger, UCLA
Danny Stutsman, Oklahoma
Jalon Walker, Georgia— Bryan Fischer (@BryanDFischer) November 25, 2024
The junior Paul has piled up 80 tackles, 44 of them solo, and 2.5 sacks for the Rebels this season. He also has 1 fumble recovery. Paul has already surpassed his total from last season, when he had 74 total tackles and 30 solo in his final season at Arkansas before transferring to Ole Miss.
Stutsman, a senior with Oklahoma, has reached 100 total tackles for the third straight season at Oklahoma. He’s at exactly 100 total tackles after his strong performance in Saturday’s upset of Alabama, and Stutsman has 41 solo tackles in 2024 as well as 1 sack.
The junior Walker has 49 total tackles, 29 of them solo, and 5.5 sacks for the Bulldogs this season. He had 8 tackles, 6 solo, and 1 sack in Georgia’s victory over Tennessee in Week 12.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
