Two Former Paul Hornung Award Winners Square Off in Huge NFC East Game
Eagles’ CB Brandon Boykin Faces Giants’ WR Odell Beckham Sunday Night in Philly
Louisville, KY – Friday, October 10, 2014 – Two former Paul Hornung Award winners – Philadelphia Eagles slot corner Brandon Boykin and New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. – square off Sunday night in Philadelphia in a huge NFL – NFC East Division contest. Third-year NFL player Boykin is a key member of the Eagles’ nickle and dime package defense, matching up inside against opponents’ slot receivers. Beckham, a rookie, saw his first action in the NFL last week following a pre-season hamstring injury. He caught four passes for 44 yards and the game-winning TD in the Giants’ win over Atlanta.
The game will be telecast on NBC at 8 p.m. EDT.
The Paul Hornung Award, presented by Texas Roadhouse, is given annually to the most versatile player in major college football by the Louisville Sports Commission.
Brandon Boykin earned the 2011 Hornung Award for the Georgia Bulldogs as a lock down cornerback, punt and kick return specialist who also played wide receiver and running back and wildcat QB on offense. Boykin finished his UGA career with 159 tackles, nine interceptions and 20 tackles for a loss. He is second in the SEC in all-time kick return yardage and is the only player in conference history to record three 100-yard TDs. As a senior on offense, Boykin scored 25 percent of the time he touched the ball: seven carries for 103 yards and a TD, five receptions for 71 yards and two TDs. Boykin’s performance against No. 12 Michigan State in the 2012 Outback Bowl may have displayed his versatility best as he produced points three different ways: he set an Outback Bowl record on a 92-yard punt return for touchdown, caught a 13-yard touchdown pass out of the backfield and a forced safety on a solo tackle. He added seven tackles, including two for loss, in the 33-30, three-overtime loss.
Odell Beckham Jr. earned the Hornung Award honor for LSU in 2013 as a wide receiver / kick return specialist who excelled throughout 2013 as one of college football’s most prolific all-purpose offensive and special teams players. He ranked second in the nation and first in the tough SEC with 2,222 all-purpose yards and 185.2 average yards per game. Beckham caught 57 passes for 1,117 yards and eight touchdowns, returned 30 kicks for 806 yards, returned 14 punts for 141 yards and carried the ball five times for 58 yards. In perhaps the most impressive measure of his versatility and team spirit, as a senior Beckham played the role of Johnny Manziel on the scout team offense during LSU’s preparation for Texas A&M during an open week in the season. The Tiger defense held Manziel to less than 300 yards total offense and picked off two of his passes as LSU beat the Aggies 34-10.