AUSTIN — On Monday, it was announced that the Longhorns had three players named to the Bednarik Award watch list. The three named to the list were linebacker Anthony Hill Jr., defensive end Colin Simmons, and safety Michael Taaffe.

The Bednarik Award is an annual award given to the best defensive player in college football, and the three Longhorns are just three of 90 players named to the list, and three of 23 SEC players also chosen.

Texas will be entering the 2025 season with a talented defense that should improve the chances of them being named a semifinalist on Nov. 11, and at least one of them walking away with the award come Dec. 11, when the winner is announced.

Anthony Hill Jr.

Hill, a Texas native, was ranked as a 5-star and the No. 2-ranked LB in the class of 2023. After playing in every game since his arrival in Austin, he will be entering his junior year in hopes of competing for a national title and the Bednarik Award.

As a freshman in 2023, he managed to acquire 67 total tackles, 41 of them solo, eight for a loss, four quarterback hurries, forced a fumble, and deflected two passes, making himself a force to be reckoned with in only six starts.

He then went on to improve on those stats as he recorded 113 total tackles, 59 of them solo, eight sacks, four forced fumbles, as well as an interception and a pass deflection as a sophomore.

Now entering his junior year, he’s on the hunt for more. He’s been with the Longhorns the past two years as they’ve been so close, yet so far, from the national championship, losing in the semifinals of the playoffs in back-to-back years.

Colin Simmons

Simmons, like Hill, is also a Texas native who was ranked No. 2 at his position out of high school. Simmons, however, will be entering the 2025 season as a sophomore.

Although Simmons is younger with a season less of experience, he could just as easily get his hands on the Bednarik Award. Simmons has raw talent that led him to excel as a freshman, and there’s no stopping how far his talents could take him.

In 2024, he managed to record 48 tackles, 31 solo, 14 for a loss, nine sacks, one interception, three pass deflections, and three forced fumbles after appearing in all 16 games for the Longhorns as a true freshman.

Simmons and Hill make up just a small part of the Texas defense, yet they make a big difference. Their ability to stop the run while defending the pass attack is unmatched. They will be a major factor in Texas’s success this season.

Michael Taaffe

The most experienced player of the three in contention for the Bednarik from Texas is Michael Taaffe, who will be returning to Austin for his fourth season as a redshirt senior.

Taaffe has been a starter for the Longhorns since the 2023 season and has been around long enough to have suffered the back-to-back losses against Washington. However, his breakout season came last year, in 2024.

As a redshirt junior, Taaffe finished the season with 78 total tackles, 40 of them solo, eight and a half for a loss, two sacks, 12 pass deflections, five interceptions, and a forced fumble.

Taaffe originally began his journey as a walk-on, and he has now been with head coach Steve Sarkisian long enough to have participated in Texas’s game against Washington in the Alamo Bowl, to face the Huskies the next year in the semifinals, and up to last year’s loss to the Buckeyes in the semifinals yet again.

If that says anything, it might say that he’s more driven than Simmons or Hill. Taaffe has been around longer, has been around to lose more games, and after a standout junior year, there might not be anything getting in the way of Taaffe.