Bulldogs’ McMaryion selected as semifinalist for national player of the year

Fresno State quarterback Marcus McMaryion has been selected as one of 20 semifinalists for the Maxwell Award, which is presented annually to the player of the year in college football.

McMaryion, a senior from Dinuba, is leading the Mountain West in completing 70.4 percent of his passes and with a passing efficiency rating of 167.21. With 18 touchdown passes and seven touchdown runs, McMaryion also is second in the conference and eighth in the nation in points accounted for (25), and twice has been the offensive player of the week in the conference.

The Bulldogs are 7-1 and 4-0 in the Mountain West as they take a six-game winning streak into a conference game Saturday at UNLV.

The Fresno State quarterback is one of 11 quarterbacks on the semifinalist list, which also includes seven running backs and two wide receivers.

Voting for the Maxwell Award will begin on Wednesday Oct. 31 and will close on Nov. 18 — voters include Maxwell Football Club members, NCAA head coaches, sports information directors and selected national media.

Three finalists will be announced on Nov. 19 and a second round of voting will take place. The winner of the award will be announced as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show on Dec. 6.

Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield won the 2017 Maxwell Award and past winners include Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson, Alabama running back Derrick Henry, Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota, Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron, Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o, Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck and Auburn quarterback Cam Newton.

Maxwell Award semifinalists

Quarterbacks

Tua Tagovailoa, Alabama

Marcus McMaryion, Fresno State

D’Eriq King, Houston

Ian Book, Note Dame

Dwayne Haskins, Ohio State

Kyler Murray, Oklahoma

Justin Herbert, Oregon

Trace McSorley, Penn State

McKenzie Milton, UCF

Gardner Minshew, Washington State

Will Grier, West Virginia

Running backs

A.J. Dillon, Boston College

Travis Etienne, Clemson

Benny Snell, Kentucky

Darrell Henderson, Memphis

Karan Higdon, Michigan

Zack Moss, Utah

Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin

Wide receivers

Laviska Shenault, Colorado

Rondale Moore, Purdue