NC State Football
NC State’s Payton Wilson is 1 of 15 Semifinalists for the Comeback Player of the Year Award
NC State Redshirt Junior Linebacker Payton Wilson is 1 of 15 semifinalists for the Comeback Player of the Year in College Football.
In 2021, Wilson suffered a season ending shoulder injury in the 2nd game of the season against Mississippi State. Wilson entered the season coming off of a year in 2020 where he earned 1st Team All-ACC honors, leading the ACC tackles, becoming the first NC State player to do so since 2020.
Entering 2021, Wilson was on the preseason watch list for the Bednarik Award, Bukus Award and Nagurski Trophy.
After a devastating injury at the beginning of 2021, Wilson bounced back this year, averaging 7.2 tackles per game (2nd on the team) and collected 9.5 tackles for loss (2nd on the team).
Here’s a list of the 15 Comeback Player of the Year Semifinalists.
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CONFERENCE
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PLAYER
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SCHOOL
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POSITION
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ACC
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Payton Wilson
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NC State
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LB
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BIG 12
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Adrian Martinez
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Kansas State
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QB
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BIG 12
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Dillon Gabriel
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Oklahoma
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QB
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BIG 12
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Trace Ford
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Oklahoma State
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DE
|
|
BIG TEN
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Mohamed Ibrahim
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Minnesota
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RB
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BIG TEN
|
Ronnie Bell
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Michigan
|
WR
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CONFERENCE USA
|
Chase Cunningham
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Middle Tennessee
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QB
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CONFERENCE USA
|
Jyaire Shorter
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North Texas
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WR
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INDEPENDENT
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Marist Liufau
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Notre Dame
|
LB
|
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MID-AMERICAN
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Kyle Pugh
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Northern Illinois
|
LB
|
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PAC 12
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Justin Flowe
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Oregon
|
LB
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PAC 12
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Laitu Latu
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UCLA
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LB
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PAC 12
|
Michael Penix Jr
|
Washington
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QB
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|
SEC
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Ventrell Miller
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Florida
|
LB
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|
SEC
|
Ray Davis
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Vanderbilt
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RB
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