By Danielle Daniels

PHILADELPHIA, PA — Sophomore linebacker Jaishawn Barham has been named to the preseason watch list for the 2023 Chuck Bednarik Award, it was announced by The Maxwell Football Club on Monday.

Barham is one of just five underclassmen in the nation that made the watch list for the Bednarik Award, presented annually to the outstanding defensive player in college football.

Barham led all Big Ten freshmen with 58 tackles over 12 games played in his first season as a Terp. He was one of only three Maryland players (Brade, Trader) to start every game played on the defensive side of the ball. The linebacker posted five or more tackles in seven different games in 2022.

A 2022 FWAA Freshman All-American, Barham led the team with 6.5 tackles for loss, while also tying for the team lead and ranking 20th in the Big Ten with 4.0 sacks. Barham was a Honorable Mention All-Big Ten selection, the Big Ten Freshman of the Week on October 10 and a 2022 College Football News First Team Freshman All-American. He was also chosen as a Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award Semifinalist.

The sophomore is Maryland’s first Bednarik Watch List selection since Antoine Brooks Jr. in 2019.

The Bednarik Award has been presented to the College Defensive Player of the Year since 1994 and is named in honor of Chuck “Concrete Charlie” Bednarik who was an All-American player at the University of Pennsylvania and later a multiple year All Pro linebacker and center for the Philadelphia Eagles. He is a member of both the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame and was the last NFL player to be a full-time player on both offense and defense.

The Chuck Bednarik Award has once again partnered with Pro Football Focus (PFF) and Phil Steele Publications as selection committee partners. PFF provides detailed metrics and performance-based assessments to selection committee staff, with several senior PFF analysts are members of our selection committee. Phil Steele’s College Football Preview is generally recognized as the most complete preseason magazine.

Semifinalists for the Chuck Bednarik Award will be announced November 13, 2023, while the three finalists for the Bednarik Award will be unveiled November 28, 2023. The winners of the 29 th Chuck Bednarik Award will be announced as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show held on December 7, 2023. The formal presentations of the Chuck Bednarik Award will be made at the Maxwell Football Club Awards in March 2024.

COURTESY MARYLAND ATHLETICS