The Black College Football Hall of Fame (BCFHOF) uncovered its 2024 Player of the Year Watch List where Howard University saw five Bison make the list. The announcement came Tuesday.
The prestigious award is presented annually to the most outstanding football player from a Historically Black College & University (HBCU).
“The Black College Football Player of the Year Award highlights the incredible talent and dedication of today’s HBCU football players,” said Doug Williams, Super Bowl XXII MVP, BCFHOF Co-Founder and 2011 Inductee. “These student-athletes represent the very best of HBCU football.”
Graduates defensive back Kenny Gallop Jr. (Portsmouth, Va.) and running back Jarett Hunter (Mineral, Va.), fifth-year senior wideout Kasey Hawthorne (Sebring, Fla.), senior offensive lineman Darius Fox (Washington) and junior running back Eden James (Port St. Lucie, Fla.) among the recipients.
Gallop enters the 2024 campaign as reigning MEAC (Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) Defensive Player of the Year while Hunter, 2024 MEAC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, racked up nearly 900 yards of total offense with 11 total TDs a year ago.
Last season, Hawthorne, a 2023 All-MEAC First Team honoree, produced 720 yards of total offense with 10 total touchdowns while James made the All-MEAC Second Team a year ago, recording nearly 800 yards of total offense and three TDs.
In 2023, Fox was selected to the All-MEAC Second Team after anchoring one of the league’s top rushing attacks.
The Watch List candidates have been selected based on past performance and future potential. Additions to the list will be made as the 2024 season progresses. The finalists and the winner will be chosen by a Selection Committee.
After the season, four finalists are unveiled and the winner is presented with the prestigious Deacon Jones Trophy.
“The Deacon Jones Trophy is regarded as the most prestigious and recognized award in HBCU football,” said BCFHOF co-founder and 2012 inductee James Harris. “Deacon is still considered one of the greatest to play the game and is a legend in every way, shape, and form, and to this day, still represents the very best of Black College Football.”
The announcement is held during halftime of the 2025 Allstate HBCU Legacy Bowl. The bowl takes place Saturday, February 22, 2025, in New Orleans and broadcasted live on NFL Network.
Howard opens the 2024 campaign at Rutgers Thursday (Aug. 29), live on the Big Ten Network. Kickoff at 6 p.m., inside SHI Stadium.
Source: Derek W. Bryant/Howard Athletics
