Kerley Named Finalist For Hornung Award
12/10/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 10, 2010
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- The Louisville Sports Commission has announced TCU's Jeremy Kerley as one of three finalists for the inaugural Paul Hornung Award, presented to the most versatile player in major college football.
The other finalists are fullback/linebacker Owen Marecic of Stanford and wide receiver/quarterback Randall Cobb of Kentucky.
"Electrifying" is how CBS football announcer Tim Brando described Kerley, just the second player in Mountain West Conference history to be a two-time Special Teams Player of the Year. As a return specialist, Kerley is only the seventh player since the MWC was formed to be a three-time first-team all-conference selection.
A senior from Hutto, Texas, Kerley is one of just two players in the nation to rank in the top 17 in both punt and kickoff returns.
Kerley is also a second-team All-MWC selection at wide receiver. With 50 receptions this season, he is the 13th player in TCU history to reach the 50-catch mark and the first since Jimmy Young totaled 59 in 2008. Kerley has tied Mike Renfro's 1977 TCU single-season record with 10 touchdown receptions.
Kerley completed both his pass attempts for 37 yards this season, including a 26-yard scoring toss in a 47-7 win at fifth-ranked Utah. Kerley has added 92 yards rushing and two touchdowns on the ground.
Kerley is the MWC leader in all-purpose yards at 122.8 per game while tying for third in receptions and seventh in receiving yards. He has led TCU in catches in six games this season.
The LSC created the Paul Hornung Award in January 2010 in an effort to recognize the distinctive talents of college football's most versatile student-athlete and to preserve the legacy of Hornung, a native and lifelong resident of Louisville who is enshrined in both the College Football and Pro Football Halls of Fame.
"Each finalist demonstrated his desire to do whatever his coaches asked to help win football games," said Hornung, 1956 Heisman Trophy winner at Notre Dame and a four-time NFL champion with the Green Bay Packers in the early 1960s. "These guys can run, catch, pass, block, play defense or anchor special teams, and they do it in the big games against the best teams. I am a big fan of all three."
