University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Bryan Knight Named to Lombardi Award Watch List
5/8/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Bryan Knight Named to Lombardi Award Watch List
5/8/2001
PITTSBURGH - One of the most productive defensive linemen in college football last year, Pittsburgh's Bryan Knight has been named to the 2001 "Watch List" for the prestigious Lombardi Award, annually presented to the nation's top lineman or linebacker.
Knight (Buffalo, N.Y./St. Joseph's) is one of 52 candidates named to the list. The winner of the 2001 Lombardi Award will be announced Dec. 5 in Houston, Texas. Pittsburgh's legendary defensive end Hugh Green won the award following the 1980 season.
A former 190-pound wide receiver at Pittsburgh, Knight has blossomed into an All-America caliber defensive end and will be a leading candidate for Big East Defensive Player of the Year honors this year.
Following an exceptional junior season, Knight was named a Football News All-American and first team All-Big East. He set a conference record with 26 tackles for losses and ranked second in the country in that category with an average of 2.36 per game.
Knight also emerged as one of the nation's top pass rushers and led Pittsburgh with 11.5 sacks. His 1.05 sacks per game ranked ninth nationally.
Knight was twice named the Big East Defensive Player of the Week, earning the honor in consecutive weeks (following the Bowling Green and Penn State games). Only four other players in conference history have earned the Big East's defensive award for two straight weeks.
His performances helped Pittsburgh field one of its finest defenses in recent memory. The Panthers finished 17th in the country in rushing defense (99.7 yards per game), 23rd in scoring defense (19.1 points per game) and 29th in total defense (325.7 yards per game). Ten starters return from that unit this season.
Pittsburgh opens the 2001 season at its new home, the city's North Shore football stadium, this Sept. 1 versus East Tennessee State. The Panthers will host six home games overall with additional opponents including South Florida (Sept. 8), Alabama-Birmingham (Sept. 15), Miami (Sept. 27), Syracuse (Oct. 13) and Virginia Tech (Nov. 3).
