Ka’Deem Carey has stepped out of many would-be tackles this season. Photo by Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE
Arizona Wildcats sophomore running back Ka’Deem Carey has been added to the watch list for the Maxwell Award, given to the nation’s outstanding college football player.
Semifinalists will be announced Oct. 29, with finalists announced Nov. 19.
Being added to the watch list is a nice honor, even if Carey has no shot of winning. A more realistic postseason goal to shoot for is first-team All-Pac-12 in a league loaded with running backs.
Coaches will have to pick among Carey, Oregon’s Kenjon Barner, UCLA’s Johnathan Franklin and Stanford’s Stepfan Taylor. Those are four of the top 14 rushers in the NCAA.
Arizona hasn’t had a first-team all-conference running back since Clarence Farmer in 2001.
Carey has rushed 155 times for 842 yards and 11 touchdowns, ranking 14th nationally with 120.3 yards per game. He also has 22 catches for 222 yards and one touchdown.
“Dang, where to start?” sophomore receiver Austin Hill said when asked Tuesday about Carey.
“Ka’Deem is really a hard worker. Every single time he touches the ball, he runs like his life depends on it. That’s a great trait to see in somebody. …
“He works hard every single day. He’s in there watching film, talking to coaches about certain plays. He’s just a tremendous person.”
Carey is coming off a career-high 172-yard performance against Washington. The Wildcats will take on USC this Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at Arizona Stadium.
At his current pace, Carey would finish the regular season with 1,444 rushing yards, the second-best total in school history behind Trung Canidate (1,602 yards, 1999). With a bowl game, Carey could certainly threaten the school record.
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