Caleb Downs Wins The Jim Thorpe Award

Since 1986, the Jim Thorpe Award has been recognizing college football defensive backs for their performance on the field, athletic ability, and character. As part of the greater ESPN “The Home Depot College Football Awards” ceremony, the Thorpe Award has a special place in the game. It is widely considered one of the most coveted honors from the National College Football Awards Association.

Jim Thorpe was an incredibly decorated athlete in his time. A citizen of the Sac and Fox Nation, he was the first Native American to win a gold medal for the United States in the Olympics. He earned a pair of gold medals in the 1912 Olympic Games. At Carlisle, Thorpe played running back, punter, and placekicker in addition to defensive back, where he starred.

This year, there were three finalists for the prestigious Jim Thorpe Award: Ohio State’s Caleb Downs, LSU’s Mansoor Delane, and Notre Dame’s Leonard Moore. Downs becomes the third Buckeye to win, joining Antoine Winfield (1998) and Malcom Jenkins (2008). Downs was also a finalist for the Thorpe Award last year as a sophomore.

Ohio State’s Caleb Downs Wins Jim Thorpe Award

Already the winner of the Lott IMPACT Trophy, Downs has the chance to fill up his shelves with hardware. In total, he is/was a finalist for the Lott IMPACT Trophy, Nagurski Award, Bednarik Award, and Thorpe Award. Last year, he was a finalist for the Bednarik Award in addition to the Thorpe Award.

He began his career at Alabama as a five-star recruit. From the jump, he was dominant. Ultimately, he led the Crimson Tide with 107 tackles, three-and-a-half tackles for loss, four pass breakups, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, and two interceptions. This earned him the honors of Freshman of The Year. However, with Nick Saban’s retirement, he jumped in the portal and landed at Ohio State.

Last year, he added 82 tackles, seven-and-a-half tackles for loss, half of a sack, six pass breakups, and two interceptions. He was named a unanimous All-American while leading the Buckeyes to a national championship.

This year, his counting stats took a slight dip thanks to the play of the Buckeye front seven. In total, heading into the CFP, Downs has 60 tackles, five tackles for loss, a sack, two pass breakups, and two interceptions.

He was also awarded the Defensive Player of the Year Award in the Big Ten.