Yellow Jacket junior Morgan Burnett.
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Yellow Jacket junior safety ranked among the best DBs in college football

Aug. 8, 2009

OKLAHOMA CITY - Georgia Tech junior safety Morgan Burnett has been named to the Watch List for the 2009 Jim Thorpe Award, which goes annually to the best defensive back in college football.

Burnett, a second team All-American and second team All-ACC selection in 2008, is one of 31 players on the preseason list.

No Yellow Jacket has ever won the Jim Thorpe Award. Ken Swilling, in 1990, is the only Tech player to be a finalist. James Butler, in 2003 and 2004, and Willie Clay in 1991, were semifinalists.

Burnett tied for first nationally in interceptions last season with seven, giving him 10 interceptions in his two-year career. His seven INTs in 2008 were the most by a Yellow Jacket player since 1991 and tied for the fourth-most in Tech single-season history.

The Thorpe Award is one of college football's most sought after and prestigious awards. It is named after history's greatest all-around athlete, a man who excelled as a running back, passer and kicker on offense, but also was an awesome defensive back. Recognized in the Pro Football Hall of Fame simply as "The Legend", Thorpe also played professional baseball and won Olympic gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon.

The Jim Thorpe Award "watch list" is determined by analysis of the pre-season All-American teams listed in at least six pre-season college football annual magazines. Four points are awarded for first team, three points for second team, two points for third and one point for honorable mentions. This procedure determines approximately 30-40 players on the pre-season watch list. This list is not final and players who have outstanding seasons are added as the season progresses.

Jim Thorpe Award Preseason Candidates

Javier Arenas - SR - Alabama
Aaron Berry - SR - Pittsburgh
Eric Berry - JR - Tennessee
Ahmad Black - JR - Florida
Morgan Burnett -J R - Georgia Tech
Kendric Burey - JR - North Carolina
Crezdon Butler - SR - Clemson
Kam Chancellor -SR - Virginia Tech
Chris Chandler - SR - Clemson
Barry Church - SR - Toledo
Kurt Coleman - SR - Ohio State
Parrish Cox - SR -Oklahoma State University
Ras-I Dowling - JR - Virginia
Van Eskridge - SR - East Carolina
Dominique Franks - JR - Oklahoma
Joe Haden - JR - Florida
Duke Ihenacho - SR - San Jose State
Reshad Jones - JR - Georgia
Jordan Lake - SR - Baylor
Myron Lewis - SR - Vanderbilt
Trevard Lindley - SR - Kentucky
Taylor Mays - SR -Univ. of Southern California
Amari Spievey - JR - Iowa
Darrell Stuckey - SR -Kansas
Earl Thomas - SO - Texas
Syd'Quan Thompson - SR - California
Walter Thurmond - SR - Oregon
Alterraun Verner - SR - UCLA
Stephen Virgil - SR - Virginia Tech
Deunta Williams - JR - North Carolina
Kyle Wilson - SR - Boise State