The Buck Buchanan Award Watch List just dropped, and the best of the SWAC and MEAC are represented.
Southern’s Ckelby Givens, last year’s SWAC Defensive Player of the Year, is eyeing the Buck Buchanan Award with a serious shot at making SWAC history.
Givens put on a clinic last season: 73 tackles, a conference-leading 27.5 tackles for loss, 12 sacks (tying for most in the SWAC), and three forced fumbles.
This relentless playmaker turned up the heat down the stretch, posting at least one tackle for loss and one sack in each of his final seven games and helping guide the Jaguars to their second SWAC West title in three seasons.
At Morgan State, linebacker Erick Hunter is ready for a high-impact return after an injury cut his 2024 season short. Determined to follow teammate Elijah Williams in winning the MEAC Defensive Player of the Year, Hunter brings the tenacity that made him the anchor of a shutdown defense in 2023.
That season, he racked up 75 tackles and 9.5 tackles for loss, powering a unit that stood atop the MEAC in scoring defense.
Meanwhile, North Carolina Central’s Malcolm Reed is coming off a sensational breakout. Earning his spot on the All-MEAC First Team in 2024, Reed tallied 60 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, snagged two interceptions, and was a nightmare for opposing quarterbacks with 11 passes defended—second best in the MEAC.
The stage is set, and these playmakers are primed to lead, inspire, and electrify as HBCU defenses take center stage in the Buck Buchanan Award race.