North Carolina State University Athletics
Wilson Named Chuck Bednarik Award Semifinalist
11/13/2023 12:00:00 PM | Football
RALEIGH, N.C. – NC State linebacker Payton Wilson has been named a semifinalist for the 2023 Chuck Bednarik Award, which is given annually to the nation's most outstanding defensive player.
The graduate student leads the ACC and ranks fifth nationally with 11.2 tackles per game. He ranks 13th nationally in solo tackles and has 49 more stops than any other Wolfpack player with 112 total (he led the ACC in 2020 with 108 in 10 games). That tackle total is the best for a Wolfpack player since 2012.
The Hillsborough, N.C., who also led the league in tackles in 2020, now has 21 double-figure tackle outputs for his career, including seven in 2023 and has led the team in tackles in eight of the 10 games this season.
Also named a Butkus Award semifinalist, Wilson has 12 tackles for loss to lead the team, four sacks, nine quarterback hurries, six pass breakups, two interceptions (one was a pick-six), and two fumble recoveries (he ranks 12th nationally in that category).
Wilson's stat line doesn't end at the tackle column. Earlier this season, Wilson was clocked on GPS running 23.7 miles per hour to track down the ball carrier in the Notre Dame game. That's the fastest on record for a Wolfpack player in a game.
Wilson was named the Butkus National Linebacker of the Month for September, and has won four ACC Linebacker of the Week awards in just 10 games. He is the second Wolfpack defensive player to be named a semifinalist after Bradley Chubb was both a semifinalist and finalist for the award in 2017.
The 29th Chuck Bednarik Award will be announced as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show, which will be broadcast live on ESPN on Friday, December 8, 2023. The formal presentation of the Maxwell and Chuck Bednarik Awards will take place at the 87th Maxwell Awards Gala, which will be held on Friday, March 8, 2024
