DALLAS (FWAA) – A powerful second half led the LSU Tigers to a 48-18 win over Auburn last week with its offensive line helping churn up 563 total yards. As last week’s highest-graded player on an experienced line, LSU center Charles Turner III has earned the Outland Trophy National Player of the Week honor for games during the weekend of Oct. 14, as selected by the Football Writers Association of America.
For the first time, the FWAA is selecting an Outland Trophy National Player of the Week as part of the NCFAA's weekly national honors from 12 awards. The recipient of the 2023 Outland Trophy will be announced on The Home Depot College Football Awards, live on ESPN on Dec. 7 or 8. The official presentation to the winner will be made at the Outland Trophy Awards Dinner sponsored by Werner Enterprises and produced by the Greater Omaha Sports Committee in Omaha, Neb., on Jan. 11, 2024.
Players may be added or removed from the watch list during the season. The weekly winners, including Turner this week, will be part of the Outland Trophy watch list going forward.
Turner, a 6-4, 300-pound redshirt senior from Canton, Ohio, via Florida’s IMG Academy, was a catalyst on an offensive line that pushed LSU to average 8.5 yards per play and 6.1 yards per rush; the Tigers have topped 200 yards rushing in their last three games at Ole Miss (233), at Missouri (274) and against Auburn (238). LSU didn’t have a negative-yardage play on any of its designed run plays and running back Logan Diggs (97 yards) and quarterback Jayden Daniels (93) each neared the 100-yard rushing mark.
LSU took over the game scoring touchdowns on all four of its second-half possessions and converted on 6-of-9 third down opportunities.
The Tigers have an experienced line and Turner, who graduated earlier this year, leads them with 27 career starts, 25 of them at center. All five have at least 20 career starts and LSU has benefitted from having the same starting five up front in their first seven games for the first time since 2013. Combined, the five starters have 127 starts in their LSU careers.
Turner is one of three players on LSU’s roster who were on the Tigers’ 2019 national championship team along with running backs John Emery and Josh Williams – all three were true freshmen. The 2019 title season was also the last time for LSU to have an FWAA All-American on the offensive line when Lloyd Cushenberry made the second team.
LSU has one Outland Trophy winner in its past in defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey in 2007. Two other linemen, defensive tackle Chad Lavalais (2003) and guard Alan Faneca (1997) were previous finalists. Another Tigers center, Ethan Pocic, was a semifinalist in 2016.
No. 19 LSU hosts Army on Saturday, with a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff on the SEC Network.
The Outland Trophy, celebrating 78 years since its founding, is the third-oldest major college football award. Created in 1946 when Dr. John Outland presented the FWAA with a financial contribution to initiate the award, the Outland Trophy has been given to the best interior lineman in college football ever since. Dr. Outland, an All-American at the University of Pennsylvania in the late 1890s, eventually took up practice in Kansas City, Mo. An avid outdoorsman, Dr. Outland believed linemen did not get the credit they deserved and wanted an award to recognize them.
The Outland Trophy is a member of the National College Football Awards Association. Founded in 1997, the NCFAA includes college football’s most prestigious awards and its 24 awards have honored more than 900 recipients dating back to 1935. This season, 12 NCFAA awards will honor national players of the week each Tuesday. For more information about the NCFAA and its award programs, visit the redesigned NCFAA.org or follow on Twitter at @NCFAA.
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The Greater Omaha Sports Committee, founded in 1977, is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, consisting of more than 1,300 men and women from the City of Omaha, the State of Nebraska, and others. The Committee serves to communicate, develop, initiate and promote sports activities in the Greater Omaha sports area. In addition to the Outland Trophy Award Events and Dinner, the Greater Omaha Sports Committee promotes high school, college, and professional sports in the Greater Omaha area and the Midwest. For more information contact Bob Mancuso Jr., Chairman at bmancuso@showofficeonline.com or see showofficeonline.com.
Founded in 1941, the Football Writers Association of America consists of 1,300 men and women who cover college football. The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas that include game-day operations, major awards and its annual All-America team. For more information about the FWAA and its award programs, contact Steve Richardson at tiger@fwaa.com.