PieceOfMeat wrote:It's a good thing the Lombardi award is available to either linemen or linebackers, cause we know Scooby can't even make the finalist list of the linebacker awards
Awesome Scooby!
He wasn't one of the five finalist, but due to write ins he finished 5th in the voting.
Wright wasn’t one of the five finalists for the award announced Nov. 24, but he was the subject of a write-in candidacy that propelled him into the Top Five. From the award’s release:
UCLA’s Kendricks very narrowly edged the University of Miami’s senior standout Denzel Perryman, a returning semi-finalist. They were followed closely by Notre Dame sophomore Jaylon Smith and University of Washington senior Hao’oli Kikaha in what was a four-man race until the end. Arizona’s Scooby Wright led the pack in write-in votes and finished fifth, alongside Michigan’s Jake Ryan.
Arizona linebacker Scooby Wright can add another one to his trophy case. The sophomore took home the Lombardi Award and spoke with ESPN.com's Tania Ganguli about the honor and a couple of his favorite plays this season.
TG: What’s it been like being honored so much this season?
SW: It’s just been a great ride. I’m just having fun with it. none of this would be possible if it wasn’t for my teammates and coaches. I’m only a representative of the University of Arizona football program. This hardware, whatever you call it, I’m just excited to bring it back home to my teammates.
TG: Favorite play this season?
SW: I’ll give you my two favorite plays. Probably when I sack-stripped [Marcus] Mariota or ASU one of the first drives of the game, I stripped it, scooped it up and scored early in the first quarter.
TG: How much does being under-recruited fuel you?
SW: It definitely fuels me. times I don’t feel like working out and times you don’t feel like doing stuff. You always have to prove doubters wrong. People said I wasn’t going to be an impact player in the Pac-12, I even had some college coaches tell me to go look at Division II schools. It’s always … fueled me … My only Division 1 offer was from Arizona. I’m just enjoying it.
"It's funny, he thanks me after every game for giving him a chance," Arizona recruiting coordinator Matt Dudek said. "He plays with a chip on his shoulder. He plays like, 'I'm not good enough. You didn't recruit me.' He's a meathead. He loves ball."
Last edited by ANGCatFan on Thu Dec 11, 2014 8:19 am, edited 1 time in total.
Being written in as a finalist for the Butkus Award is probably one of the most Scooby Wright things ever. Don't get the respect? Crash the party anyway!
Of the 12 coaches, Rush picked the one whose fans have the deepest passion, the longest memories, the greatest lung capacity and … did I mention deep passion?
Chicat wrote:Being written in as a finalist for the Butkus Award is probably one of the most Scooby Wright things ever. Don't get the respect? Crash the party anyway!
indeed
It's long past time to bring this back to the court, let's do it with a small update:
Chicat wrote:Being written in as a finalist for the Butkus Award is probably one of the most Scooby Wright things ever. Don't get the respect? Crash the party anyway!
indeed
Scooby should strip, scoop and score the Butkus Award from the FUCLA guy! That would be the most Scooby Wright III thing ever!
I don't know if this has been addressed but, does Scooby now qualify to have his name placed in the football stadium ring of honor while still having two years of eligibility left ?
CatnapTom wrote:I don't know if this has been addressed but, does Scooby now qualify to have his name placed in the football stadium ring of honor while still having two years of eligibility left ?
Has this ever happened before ?
Ka'Deem qualified but I don't think they put active players up there.
So so far:
1st team all Pac 12
Cbs 1st team all American
USA today 1st team all American
Pac 12 defensive poy
Cbs defensive poy
Lombardi award
Nagurski award
i was going to put the ua/asu records here...but i forgot what they were.
Since Darryll Lewis won the first Arizona national honor in 1990 with the Jim Thorpe Award, the Wildcats have taken home nine national trophies at the end of a season. Wright has three of them following last night’s Chuck Bednarik Award which goes to the top defensive player in the nation.
The only other athletes with three or more national honors include men’s basketball players Sean Elliott and Jason Terry. Elliott took home at least five distinguished national honors in 1988-89, including the John R. Wooden Award. Terry won three in 1998-99, including the Sports Illustrated Player of the Year honor.
If Wright has similar national-honor production next year, he can surpass Elliott as the most decorated athlete to wear the Arizona uniform, especially over a two-year period.
Arizona sophomore linebacker Scooby Wright is a first-team selection on The Associated Press All-America team.
This honor follows three national awards won by Wright last week: The Chuck Bednarik and Bronko Nagurski awards, given by rival organizations to the nation's defensive player of the year, and the Lombardi Award as the nation's best lineman/linebacker.
Wright is one of seven Pac-12 players on the first team -- the most of any conference. The other Pac-12 representatives are Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota, Washington all-purpose player Shaq Thompson, Washington defensive tackle Danny Shelton, Washington linebacker Hau'oli Kikaha, Oregon cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu and Utah punter Tom Hackett.
Washington and Florida State were the only schools with three first-team selections. Oregon and Alabama each had two first-team picks.
Bednarik Award (Nation's top defensive player)
Nagurski Award (Nation's top defensive player)
Lombardi Award (Nation's best linebacker or lineman)
9th place - Heisman Trophy voting
Walter Camp Award Finalist (National Player of the Year)
Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year
SB Nation Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-American
CBS Sports Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-American
Scout.com Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-American
AP First Team All-American
Walter Camp First Team All-American
USA Today Sports First Team All-American
Sports Illustrated First Team All-American
"I got lost and couldn't find my room in Orlando," Wright said. "I had to call (SID) Molly to help me out at one in the morning. Couldn't find it, so that was probably the most interesting thing."
"Scooby's always gonna be Scooby man," Tra'Mayne Bondurant said on Sunday. "He has a lot of new nicknames around from the coaching staff and some players, but Scooby is always Scooby. That's my dawg and I love Scooby to death. I'm just proud of him."
Can add All-American selections from "The Sporting News" and "American Football Coaches Association " -- just need the "Football Writers Association of America " to finish as Unanimous All-American
Defensive Player of the Year: Scooby Wright, LB, Arizona
Wright’s breakout season was a key cog in Arizona’s Pac-12 South title. The sophomore recorded 153 tackles (28 for a loss), 14 sacks and forced six fumbles. Wright’s 28 tackles for loss and six forced fumbles led the nation, and the California native acquired plenty of hardware this offseason, winning the Lombari, Bednarik and Nagurski Awards.
ALCAT wrote:Can add All-American selections from "The Sporting News" and "American Football Coaches Association " -- just need the "Football Writers Association of America " to finish as Unanimous All-American
We are the people our parents warned us about.
-JB
2022 Survival Pool Co-Champion
TUCSON, Ariz. – University of Arizona sophomore linebacker Scooby Wright III earned unanimous All-America status for the 2014 season on Wednesday with the announcement of the American Football Coaches’ Association (AFCA), Football Writers of America Association (FWAA) and Sporting News All-America teams. Joined with first-team honors from the Associated Press and the Walter Camp Football Foundation, he was named to all five of the required All-America teams.
Wright is Arizona’s first unanimous All-American since cornerback Chris McAlister in 1998. Linebacker Ricky Hunley in 1983, defensive back Darryl Lewis in 1990 and defensive tackles Rob Waldrop in 1993 and Tedy Bruschi in 1995 also earned unanimous All-America honors.
I'm still stunned by what Scooby has accomplished this year. The first sophomore in school history to become a unanimous All-American! He joins McAlister, Hunley, Lewis, Waldrop, and Bruschi (who all became unanimous All-Americans as seniors) as one of the great Wildcats.
You know there is another all american we know and his name is ANGCATFAN. Dude you keep rocking the links to great stuff. I feelllike I should pay uou a subcription fee. Thx man
Waiting at the Rose Bowl patiently for the cats to arrive
"I've got a fever, and the only prescription is more wildcat sports"
2019 BDW Survivor Pool Champion
azcat49 wrote:You know there is another all american we know and his name is ANGCATFAN. Dude you keep rocking the links to great stuff. I feelllike I should pay uou a subcription fee. Thx man
Thanks. Here is another link for you, a Boise State reporters does a 12 min interview with Scooby. Why do I have to follow a Boise State beat writer to get this type of interview? I'm looking at you Berk!
Such a tremendous story. From his name t o only having one offer and t ghost at offer jumping on a plane the night before signing day to make sure he signs. Then he wins almost every defensive award his SOPHOMORE year. Wow.
If he ever learns the art of the interview watch out LOL.
Waiting at the Rose Bowl patiently for the cats to arrive
"I've got a fever, and the only prescription is more wildcat sports"
2019 BDW Survivor Pool Champion
ESPN P12 blog covering the year's top performances. Here is the blurb on Scooby. Nothing new, just a reminder of the incredible year he had.
Who and against whom: Arizona linebacker Scooby Wright did colossal damage against California's Pac-12 public schools. The Wildcats beat California and lost to UCLA, but Wright posted eye-popping defensive numbers in both games.
The numbers: Wright racked up 19 tackles against UCLA and 18 against Cal. He registered 4.5 tackles for loss against the Bruins and four TFL against the Bears. That's 37 tackles and 8.5 TFL in two games -- for one player. Oh, he also forced a fumble in there (something he actually did three times in one game at Washington State this year, by the way).
A closer look: How is this guy only a sophomore? Statistically, Wright took the nation by storm this season, leading all players with 163 tackles, 29 tackles for loss and six forced fumbles. He was the only player in the country to average over two tackles for loss per game, while second place was way back at 1.79 per game. Put simply, Wright's numbers were absurd, and his performances against Cal and UCLA best embodied the dominance we saw in 2014 -- though there are many other games that are also strong candidates to represent his fantastic year. The season ended with a pair of tough losses for Arizona, but they have talented playmakers returning on offense and the one-man wrecking crew that is Wright coming back on defense, so more good times lie ahead for the Wildcats.
TUCSON, Ariz. – University of Arizona linebacker Scooby Wright III has been named the College Football Performance Awards National Linebacker of the Year, it was announced on Wednesday.
Well, 2 Star Scooby has inspired a new series at the PAC 12 Blog that is looking at players for each team that have outperformed their star ratings. For Arizona they picked Fabbians Ebbele.
We all know that recruiting is an inexact science, and Arizona linebacker Scooby Wright proves the point, as Wright's Twitter handle -- TwoStarScoob -- testified while the true sophomore unanimous All-American became the nation's most decorated defensive player, winning the Lombardi, Nagurski and Bednarik awards.
Back when he was known as "Philip" Wright as a high school senior, he was rated just two stars by Rivals.com and Scout.com. ESPN.com -- cough, cough -- gave him three stars.
Funny thing is, for every player who is celebrated at every level all the way to NFL super-stardom, there are more cases of guys coming from nowhere to become stars. Or at least key contributors.
That is the purpose of this series. We'll run through each Pac-12 team and highlight a player who was low on star rating when he arrived on campus but became a critical guy.
Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports
Unless there is a Heisman winner on offense in the Pac-12 next season, there is no reason to believe that anyone but Scooby Wright will be the league's best player.
Chantel Jennings: That's totally fair, Ted. And yes, normally the best player on the best team is given the award ... except when there's someone who's so undeniably better than everyone else.
Like ... Arizona linebacker Scooby Wright.
Honestly, I'm floored that more people didn't vote for Wright. I think there's probably a pretty good consensus that he'll win the Pac-12's Defensive Player of the Year but to think that whichever offensive player wins the other side of the award is going to be better than Wright is downright ridiculous.
May I remind you that in 2014 he was awarded the Bronko Nagurski Award as the nation's best defensive player. The NATION'S best defensive player. Unless that offensive Pac-12 player is winning the Heisman (for example, this season), there's no reason why Wright isn't far and away the best player in the league.
His Two-Star-Scoob status is going to put another chip on his shoulders and I think he's going to make big strides this offseason, being an even bigger force in 2015. Wright led the league in tackles this past year, I'm guessing he leads the nation next season.
Typically, offensive skill players win these awards more than the defensive, blue-collar workhorses. But I'm in Wright's camp.
I went to the University of Michigan which is the only school in the country that has had a primarily defensive player win the Heisman (Charles Woodson). So it has been done. Defensive players have thrown their hats in the ring and walked out the winner. If Wright plays better than he did this year I don't see a single offensive player in the league who deserves the honor more than him.
Gotta play two ways if you want to win the Heisman as a defender. Unfortunately though, FBs don't win Heismans either.
Of the 12 coaches, Rush picked the one whose fans have the deepest passion, the longest memories, the greatest lung capacity and … did I mention deep passion?
