Texas Longhorns LB Anthony Hill Jr. was placed on the watch list for major honors

AUSTIN – Anthony Hill Jr. was one of the best defensive players in the SEC this season and is being recognized accordingly.

The Maxwell Football Club announced Tuesday that the Texas Longhorns’ star linebacker has been named to the watch list for the 2024 Chuck Bednarik Award, given annually to the best defensive player in college football.

The semifinalists for the Bednarik Award will be announced on November 12th. The winner will be announced on December 12th during the ESPN College Football Awards show.

Hill Jr., a preseason second-team All-SEC selection, has clearly impressed through the first seven games of the 2024 season, as evidenced by his inclusion on the watch list. So far this season he has totaled 50 tackles (23 solo), a team-leading 5.5 sacks, a forced fumble and an interception. Heading into Saturday’s matchup against No. 25 Vanderbilt, Hill Jr. has registered a sack in five straight games.

With Hill Jr. at the helm, the Texas defense currently leads the country in scoring defense (9.7 points per game) and total defense (237.3 yards per game).

Despite forcing three turnovers against Georgia on Saturday, the Longhorns suffered their first loss of the season with a 30-15 home loss to the then-No. 1-5 Bulldogs. Hill Jr. finished the game with eight total tackles and one sack.

After the game, he said he hopes the Longhorns get a chance to see Georgia again.

“I mean, Georgia played a great football game, what can we say?” Hill Jr. said. “They played great and kudos to them but hopefully we’ll see them again and then we’ll see what happens.”

Hill Jr. admitted he felt the team “needed” some adversity. The Longhorns are now under pressure to win if they want to keep both their SEC title and their College Football Playoff hopes alive.

“Nobody wants to lose, but we watch the film, we’ll get better,” said Hill Jr. “We’re not just sad and disappointed. We’re happy and we’ll get better and watch the film. We needed this, I feel like we need some adversity and it will be nice to see us bounce back next week.

Hill and No. 5 Texas take on No. 25 Vanderbilt on Saturday at 3:15 p.m. CT. The game will be broadcast live on SEC Network.

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