University of North Carolina Athletics
Photo by: Andy Mead
Howell Selected To Manning Award Watch List
July 30, 2020 | Football
NEW ORLEANS – North Carolina sophomore Sam Howell has been placed on a watch list of 30 of the top quarterbacks in the nation that will compete for the Manning Award, sponsored by the Allstate Sugar Bowl. The winner will again be selected by a voting panel, which includes national media and each of the Mannings, after the bowls.
The 2019 Military Bowl MVP enjoyed one of the finest seasons by a freshman quarterback in college football history. He was an FWAA Freshman All-America and the ACC Offensive & Overall Rookie of the Year after setting the FBS true freshman record and Carolina school record with 38 touchdown passes.
A native of Indian Trail, North Carolina, Howell put together a streak of 13 consecutive games with multiple TD passes and had eight games with three or more TD passes. Howell's 3,641 passing yards was second in the ACC and ranked 14th nationally.
Howell will begin his second season in Chapel Hill included on the watch lists for the Manning Award, Maxwell Award and Davey O'Brien Award.
The Manning Award was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in honor of the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. It is the only quarterback award that includes the candidates' bowl performances in its balloting.
"It sure has been a unique offseason, but we're still looking forward to the prospect of seeing a great group of quarterbacks compete this year," Archie Manning said. "Our Watch List is once again an exceptional group of candidates, but every year is a new year and we'll be watching closely to add the best newcomers to the list after we get things rolling. I'd also like to thank the Allstate Sugar Bowl for sponsoring this award; it means a lot to the entire Manning family that they include our name in recognizing the best quarterbacks in the country."
Inclusion on the Watch List is not necessary for the quarterbacks to be selected for the honor. Additional quarterbacks may be added to the Watch List during the season. Ten finalists will be selected prior to the postseason and the winner will be announced following the College Football Playoff National Championship.
"The Sugar Bowl has considered it a great honor to sponsor the Manning Award for the past 16 years," said Allstate Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley. "We all look forward to watching these young men perform during a season that's likely to be like none other for many reasons. At the end, the Committee will be ready and privileged to recognize one of them as the Manning Award winner."
This year's Watch List includes players from all 10 Football Bowl Subdivision conferences. The AAC, Big 12 and Big Ten lead the way with four selections, while the ACC, C-USA, the Pac-12 and the SEC each have three selections. There are 13 seniors on the list while the junior class is represented by 11 quarterbacks and the sophomore class has six.
Five of last year's Manning Award finalists are included on this year's Watch List: Justin Fields (Ohio State), Trevor Lawrence (Clemson), Tanner Morgan (Minnesota), Kyle Trask (Florida) and Brady White (Memphis).
For up-to-date information on Carolina football, visit GoHeels.com/Football and follow us on Twitter (@TarHeelFootball), Instagram (@tarheelfootball) and Facebook (Facebook.com/TarHeelFootball).
2020 Manning Award Preseason Watch List
Name, Cl., School
Jack Abraham, Jr., Southern Miss
Holton Ahlers, Jr., East Carolina
Ian Book, Sr., Notre Dame
Charlie Brewer, Sr., Baylor
Shane Buechele, Sr., SMU
Sean Clifford, Jr., Penn State
Jack Coan, Sr., Wisconsin
Dustin Crum, Sr., Kent State
Micale Cunningham, Jr., Louisville
Jayden Daniels, So., Arizona State
Sam Ehlinger, Sr., Texas
Justin Fields, Jr., Ohio State
Dillon Gabriel, So., UCF
Sam Howell, So., North Carolina
Trey Lance, So., North Dakota State
Trevor Lawrence, Jr., Clemson
Levi Lewis, Sr., Louisiana
Kellen Mond, Sr., Texas A&M
Tanner Morgan, Jr., Minnesota
Bo Nix, So., Auburn
Drew Plitt, Sr., Ball State
Brock Purdy, Jr., Iowa State
Chris Reynolds, Jr., Charlotte
Chris Robison, Jr., FAU
Kedon Slovis, So., USC
Zac Thomas, Sr., Appalachian State
Skylar Thompson, Sr. Kansas State
Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Jr., UCLA
Kyle Trask, Sr., Florida
Brady White, Sr., Memphis
The 2019 Military Bowl MVP enjoyed one of the finest seasons by a freshman quarterback in college football history. He was an FWAA Freshman All-America and the ACC Offensive & Overall Rookie of the Year after setting the FBS true freshman record and Carolina school record with 38 touchdown passes.
A native of Indian Trail, North Carolina, Howell put together a streak of 13 consecutive games with multiple TD passes and had eight games with three or more TD passes. Howell's 3,641 passing yards was second in the ACC and ranked 14th nationally.
Howell will begin his second season in Chapel Hill included on the watch lists for the Manning Award, Maxwell Award and Davey O'Brien Award.
The Manning Award was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in honor of the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. It is the only quarterback award that includes the candidates' bowl performances in its balloting.
"It sure has been a unique offseason, but we're still looking forward to the prospect of seeing a great group of quarterbacks compete this year," Archie Manning said. "Our Watch List is once again an exceptional group of candidates, but every year is a new year and we'll be watching closely to add the best newcomers to the list after we get things rolling. I'd also like to thank the Allstate Sugar Bowl for sponsoring this award; it means a lot to the entire Manning family that they include our name in recognizing the best quarterbacks in the country."
Inclusion on the Watch List is not necessary for the quarterbacks to be selected for the honor. Additional quarterbacks may be added to the Watch List during the season. Ten finalists will be selected prior to the postseason and the winner will be announced following the College Football Playoff National Championship.
"The Sugar Bowl has considered it a great honor to sponsor the Manning Award for the past 16 years," said Allstate Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley. "We all look forward to watching these young men perform during a season that's likely to be like none other for many reasons. At the end, the Committee will be ready and privileged to recognize one of them as the Manning Award winner."
This year's Watch List includes players from all 10 Football Bowl Subdivision conferences. The AAC, Big 12 and Big Ten lead the way with four selections, while the ACC, C-USA, the Pac-12 and the SEC each have three selections. There are 13 seniors on the list while the junior class is represented by 11 quarterbacks and the sophomore class has six.
Five of last year's Manning Award finalists are included on this year's Watch List: Justin Fields (Ohio State), Trevor Lawrence (Clemson), Tanner Morgan (Minnesota), Kyle Trask (Florida) and Brady White (Memphis).
For up-to-date information on Carolina football, visit GoHeels.com/Football and follow us on Twitter (@TarHeelFootball), Instagram (@tarheelfootball) and Facebook (Facebook.com/TarHeelFootball).
2020 Manning Award Preseason Watch List
Name, Cl., School
Jack Abraham, Jr., Southern Miss
Holton Ahlers, Jr., East Carolina
Ian Book, Sr., Notre Dame
Charlie Brewer, Sr., Baylor
Shane Buechele, Sr., SMU
Sean Clifford, Jr., Penn State
Jack Coan, Sr., Wisconsin
Dustin Crum, Sr., Kent State
Micale Cunningham, Jr., Louisville
Jayden Daniels, So., Arizona State
Sam Ehlinger, Sr., Texas
Justin Fields, Jr., Ohio State
Dillon Gabriel, So., UCF
Sam Howell, So., North Carolina
Trey Lance, So., North Dakota State
Trevor Lawrence, Jr., Clemson
Levi Lewis, Sr., Louisiana
Kellen Mond, Sr., Texas A&M
Tanner Morgan, Jr., Minnesota
Bo Nix, So., Auburn
Drew Plitt, Sr., Ball State
Brock Purdy, Jr., Iowa State
Chris Reynolds, Jr., Charlotte
Chris Robison, Jr., FAU
Kedon Slovis, So., USC
Zac Thomas, Sr., Appalachian State
Skylar Thompson, Sr. Kansas State
Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Jr., UCLA
Kyle Trask, Sr., Florida
Brady White, Sr., Memphis
Players Mentioned
Quarterback
/ FootballUNC Women's Soccer: Heels Wrap Regular Season with 1-0 Win vs NC State
Friday, October 31
WBB: Post-South Carolina Press Conference - Oct. 30, 2025
Friday, October 31
Carolina Insider - Olympic Sports Update (Full Segment) - October 30, 2025
Thursday, October 30
Tar Heels in the Community pres. by NC Electric Co-ops - LaxBall 2025 Recap
Thursday, October 30