Lucas Krull made nine catches for 108 yards in two seasons at Florida, but that's not stopping the Pitt grad transfer from receiving preseason recognition.
Krull on Friday was named to the Mackey Award watch list, presented annually to the top tight end in college football.
Mackey Award 🏆 Watch List
Lucas Krull 🌟 TE 🌟 #7
Best TE in College Football#H2P • @Lucas_Krull_ pic.twitter.com/ZwB424Fpuc
— Pitt Football (@Pitt_FB) July 18, 2020
There are 36 tight ends on the list, including ACC counterparts Brevin Jordan (Miami), Brandon Chapman (Wake Forest), Hunter Long (Boston College), Noah Gray (Duke), and Cary Angeline (North Carolina State). Other nominees include Florida's Kyle Pitts, whom Krull backed up the past two seasons, and Penn State's Pat Freiermuth.
Florida Atlantic's Harrison Bryant won last year's Mackey Award. He was a fourth-round draft pick by the Browns.
It might be a preseason accolade, but Krull's inclusion on this list must be a welcome sign for Pitt, which has struggled finding an effective player at the position for several years. The 6-foot-7, 257-pound Krull is a former college baseball player who opted to return to football after a standout prep career in Kansas as a wide receiver.
• College football guru Phil Steele recently released his preseason All-America team, and a quartet of Pitt players were selected.
Safety Paris Ford and defensive tackle Jaylen Twyman, both redshirt juniors, were first-team selections. Ford led Pitt in tackles (97) and interceptions (three) last season, his first as a starter. Athlon Sports and Sporting News previously tabbed Ford to its preseason All-America teams. Twyman became the first defensive tackle to lead Pitt in sacks since Aaron Donald in 2013 with 10.5 last season. Twyman has been honored as a preseason All-American by six publications. Pitt is the only school with two players selected to the first-team defense.
On Saturday, the ACC Network's Eric Mac Lean ranked Ford as the conference's best safety, while teammate Damar Hamlin was put in the fifth spot.
Check out my top 5 #ACC Safeties for 2020. Some absolute STUDS in this group. Ball hawks and Head hunters 🦅 ☠️@DiddyBop12_ @OCHOClSCO#HamsahNasirildeen@mcarter2nd@HamlinIsland
Who did I miss?? pic.twitter.com/YVgMnipbCk
— Eric Mac Lain (@EricMacLain) July 17, 2020
Senior defensive end Patrick Jones II earned second-team honors. He finished last with with 12 tackles for loss, 18 quarterback hurries and four forced fumbles. His 0.31 forced fumbles per game led the ACC and ranked sixth nationally.
Senior center Jimmy Morrissey was named to the fourth team. Morrissey did not allow a sack in 2019 and earned first-team All-ACC honors.
• Speaking of Morrissey, he is Pitt's nominee for the Campbell Trophy, which is presented to the college football player who best exemplifies academic success, on-field performance and leadership.
• Former Pitt commit Trevion Stevenson, who opened his recruitment Thursday after pledging to the Panthers in April, announced his intentions Saturday to play at North Carolina.
C O M I T T ED ! @CoachMackBrown @drebly_32 @CoachBateman @Coach_Dewitt pic.twitter.com/JnOOyhxyrv
— Trevion Stevenson (@tjstevenson11) July 18, 2020
Stevenson is a two-star outside linebacker according to Rivals, but his profile has risen considerably in recent weeks and this will be seen as another recruiting win for North Carolina head coach Mack Brown.
To continue reading, log into your account:
