Louisville Sports Commission - Louisville Knows Sports

Dinner

Now in its 15^th season, the Paul Hornung Award is given annually to the most versatile player in major college football by the Louisville Sports Commission in memory of the late football legend and Louisville native Paul Hornung. Our 2024 Paul Hornung Award winner and his family will be honored in March 2025 at the annual Paul Hornung Award dinner presented by UofL Health at the Galt House Hotel in downtown Louisville.

For ticket information or sponsorship opportunities, please contact Julie Howell at jhowell@louisvillesports.org or call (502) 587-6742.

The Louisville Sports Commission successfully launched the Paul Hornung Award in 2010 to honor its namesake and native son, and to recognize and reward high-level achievers in college football whose performances and contributions as versatile players often go unnoticed. Previous winners by year are:

2023: Travis Hunter from Colorado played offense, defense and special teams, averaged 121 snaps per game; on offense was second on the team with 721 receiving yards and five touchdowns; on defense recorded 31 tackles, five interceptions, five pass deflections and two tackles for loss.
2022: Jack Colletto of Oregon State played fullback, quarterback and receiver on offense; linebacker and defensive back on defense; and was on all special teams. He scored six touchdowns rushing, completed two passes, made 28 tackles, caused a fumble and recovered a fumble.
2021: Marcus Jones of Houston was a lockdown cornerback with 48 tackles, five interceptions and 13 PBUs. He earned consensus All-American specialist with two touchdowns on punt returns and two on kickoff returns and saw spot duty on offense at wide receiver.
2020: DeVonta Smith of Alabama topped the nation in receiving yards and yards after catch, and averaged 24 yards per punt return leading the Crimson Tide to the national championship. He scored touchdowns rushing, receiving and returning punts and was a gunner on punt coverage.
2019: Lynn Bowden Jr. of Kentucky made the move from all-purpose receiver/wildcat quarterback/return specialist to quarterback in mid-season and led the Wildcats to a 5-2 record and Belk Bowl win over Virginia Tech.
2018: Rondale Moore of Purdue was a dynamic All-American freshman sensation who broke the school record for all-purpose yards in a season and a game with 2,215 and 313, respectively.
2017: Saquon Barkley of Penn State was an electrifying All-American running back who lined up at slot and wildcat quarterback, and returned kicks and punts;
2016: Jabrill Peppers of Michigan played 15 different positions on defense, offense and special teams, and earned first team All-America at linebacker;
2015: Christian McCaffrey of Stanford was a workhorse on offense and special teams who broke the NCAA record for all-purpose yards, finishing with 3,864;
2014: Shaq Thompson of Washington was a two-way player, earning first team All-American honors at linebacker and finished as the Husky’s second-leading rusher at tailback;
2013: Odell Beckham Jr. of LSU finished the season ranked second in the nation and first in the Southeastern Conference with 2,222 all-purpose yards and 185.2 average yards per game;
2012: Tavon Austin of West Virginia earned All-American by scoring 17 touchdowns receiving, rushing, returning kicks and punts; and amassing 2,272 all-purpose yards, including 572 yards versus Oklahoma.
2011: Brandon Boykin of Georgia was a lockdown cornerback on defense; scored three touchdowns playing quarterback, running back and slot on offense; and led the SEC in punt and kick returns.
2010: Owen Marecic of Stanford was a two-way starter who averaged 110 snaps per game and earned first team All Pac-10 at fullback and honorable mention at linebacker.