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It’s safe to say that the month of July is known for the lead up to college football, and with it the end of season national awards releasing their watch lists. For the Northern Illinois Huskies, the most recent feather in their watch list cap comes behind their outstanding senior tight end, Shane Wimann. Wimann has been named to the John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List, given annually to the nation’s best tight end.
It makes sense, given Wimann’s performance in Dekalb, as he is already the school’s career leader in touchdowns from the tight end position and tied the single season record in 2016.
Per NIU’s release:
Northern Illinois University senior tight end Shane Wimann (Wisconsin Dells, Wis./Wisconsin Dells) was named to the 2017 John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List announced by the selection committee.
During a stellar three-year career to date, Wimann has proven himself as one of the top tight ends in Huskie history. During the 2016 season, Wimann tied the school record for most touchdowns in a single season by a tight end with six, matching Matt Dunker’s 2002 total. He also became NIU’s career leader in touchdown catches by a tight end with 10 total touchdowns, surpassing Dunker’s nine.
As the Huskies’ fourth leading receiver during the 2016 season, Wimann caught 24 passes for 254 yards. Against Kent State, he caught three passes for a career high 65 yards with a long of 32 yards. He recorded a catch in 11 games last season and enters his senior season with 35 career catches for 352 yards.
The John Mackey Award is presented to the most outstanding collegiate tight end based on voting by the John Mackey Award Selection Committee. The Mackey Award recipient will be announced December 7, 2017 at the Home Depot College Football Awards Red Carpet Show on ESPNU.
The Huskies open the 2017 season at home against Boston College on Friday, Sept. 1. Kickoff is set for 8:30 p.m. CST and the game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
Wimann joins a host of MAC athletes on this and other watch lists for national awards. Now comes the hard part, doing enough on the field to warrant the hardware coming home to NIU.