Vonn Bell Named to Thorpe Award Preseason Watch List – Ohio State Buckeyes
7/13/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
July 13, 2015
| Junior Vonn Bell recorded 92 tackles last season and also recorded six interceptions. |
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State junior safety Vonn Bell is one of 42 defensive backs on the 2015 Jim Thorpe Award preseason watch list, which honors college football’s most outstanding defensive back.
Bell started 14 games at safety for the Buckeyes last season and was named honorable mention All-Big Ten Conference. He was second on the team with 92 tackles, an impressive total that represents a 12-year high for an Ohio State safety. The Rossville, Ga., native had seven or more tackles in nine games, including a career-best nine vs. Michigan and a career-high eight solo tackles vs. Alabama.
Bell also recorded six interceptions, a 13-year Ohio State best. He ranked third in the Big Ten with .40 interceptions per game and also ranked 11th in the Big Ten with 12 passes defensed (six interceptions and pass break-ups, respectively). His biggest interception of the season came in the Sugar Bowl vs. No. 1 Alabama in the fourth quarter, as Bell stepped in front of a Blake Sims pass near the goal line to negate a Crimson Tide touchdown that would have tied the game.
Presented annually since 1986, Ohio State has had two players take home the Thorpe Award previously. Antoine Winfield won the award in 1998 and Malcolm Jenkins in 2008.
The Jim Thorpe Award is one of the most coveted awards in college football. The award was established in 1986 and is named after history’s greatest all-around athlete, Jim Thorpe. Thorpe excelled as a running back, passer and kicker on the offensive side of the ball, but also stood out as a defensive back. In addition to his legendary performance on the football field, Thorpe played professional baseball and won Olympic gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon.
