Sportskeeda's 2023 All-American College Football Team ft. Jayden Daniels
The 2023 college football season offered numerous memorable moments, as teams vied for a coveted spot in the final four. And through it all, we saw brilliant performances by college players, many well-known and others unheard of.
And as is usually the case, the cream rose to the top. Here is the inaugural Sportskeeda All-America squad, including first and second-team players as well as honorable mention names.
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2023 Sportskeeda All-America Team
QB
Jayden Daniels/LSU
The winner of the 2023 Heisman Trophy finished the season with 3,812 passing yards and 40 TDs as well as 1,134 rushing yards and an additional 10 TDs. His passer rating during the regular season was 208.0, an FBS record. Daniels built upon the momentum he began late in the 2022 campaign and now heads toward the draft as a top-32 prospect.
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RB
Ollie Gordon II/Oklahoma State
Despite being the Cowboys’ backup running back during the first month of the season, Gordon finished with an FBS-best 1,940 yards with 21 touchdowns. After stepping into the starting role, Gordon rushed for 120 yards or more in every game but one, Oklahoma State’s blowout loss to Texas in the Big 12 title game. He also added 37 receptions to his ledger.
WR
Marvin Harrison Jr/Ohio State
The Buckeyes have produced great receivers in the past, yet they are different from Harrison Jr, the 2023 Biletnikoff Awards winner, and the first OSU wideout to deliver multiple 1,000-yard receiving seasons. With one game remaining on the schedule, Harrison has experienced just a slight dip in production despite a massive dropoff in quarterback play at Ohio State this season.
Rome Odunze/Washington
Odunze stood out as the best receiver on a Washington roster loaded at the position. He was the go-to guy opponents did not stop, and he finished the season with 81 catches for 1,428 yards and 13 touchdowns. Odunze came up big catching the ball and running reverses, such as the 23-yard run during the last game of the season against Washington State that set up the game-winning field goal.
TE
Brock Bowers/Georgia
Despite missing three games and playing injured late in the season, Bowers finished with 56 catches for 717 yards and seven TDs. The winner of the John Mackey Award now moves towards the 2024 NFL Draft as one of the top five players in the entire event.
OL
Olumuyiwa Fashanu/T/Penn State
Penn State’s starting left tackle for the past two seasons, Fashanu has not given up a sack during his college career.
Cooper Beebe/G/Kansas State
Beebe, three times a first-team Big 12 player, wins All-America honors for the second year. He heads towards the draft as the top offensive guard.
Jackson Powers-Johnson/C/Oregon
A two-way player early in his Oregon career, Powers-Johnson successfully transitioned from guard to center this season and did not allow a single sack. He’s now getting the recognition he deserves, as Powers-Johnson won the Rimington Trophy as the top center in the nation and will be the first player at the position selected in next April’s draft.
Joe Alt/T/Notre Dame
Alt entered the season with hefty expectations and exceeded them all. After doing a great job protecting quarterback Sam Hartman, Alt is expected to be a top-10 pick in next year’s draft.
Taliese Fuaga/T/Oregon State
A sensational run blocker who also shows a lot of ability in pass protection, Fuaga was a stalwart at right tackle for the Beavers.
DL
Laiatu Latu/UCLA
Latu, a medical reject who was forced to transfer to UCLA from Washington, was handed the Lombardi Award after his career season. He led the nation with 21.5 tackles for loss and added 13 sacks to his resume this season.
T'Vondre Sweat/Texas
Sweat finished a career season by winning the Outland Trophy as the top interior lineman in the nation. His campaign included 42 tackles and eight TFLs as well as catching a touchdown pass in the Big 12 title game.
Jer'Zhan Newton/Illinois
Despite playing on a team that struggled through a disappointing season, Newton exceeded expectations all year. He finished with 52 tackles, 7.5 sacks, and a nation-best four blocked kicks. The most impressive part of Newton this season was his non-stop motor even when his team was getting beat.
Jalen Green/James Madison
JMU was nearly perfect this season, and Green had a big hand in that success. Despite missing three games, he racked up 21 TFLs and 15.5 sacks and even returned an interception for a touchdown on his way to winning Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year.
LB
Dallas Turner/Alabama
Turner took over for Alabama where Will Anderson left off. He finished the season with 50 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss, and nine sacks and was credited with 52 quarterback hurries.
Edgerrin Cooper/Texas A&M
Cooper was not in the conversation as the top Aggies defender before the season began, yet he was the most impactful played on the squad this season. He was a disruptive force who finished with 84 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, and eight sacks.
Payton Wilson/North Carolina State
The 2023 ACC Defensive Player of the Year and Butkus Award winner, Wilson had a stellar season totaling 138 tackles, 17.5 TFLs, six sacks, and six PBUs. He’s a great football player who has overcome an extensive injury history to be the best linebacker in the country.
DB
Quinyon Mitchell/CB/Toledo
Mitchell has been a terrific corner at Toledo for the past three seasons. He finished the season with 18 pass breakups and heads towards the draft as a Day 2 prospect.
Xavier Watts/S/Notre Dame
Watts, who became a full-time starter this season, led the nation with seven INTs and added 11 PBUs.
Kool-Aid McKinstry/CB/Alabama
McKinstry’s stats, which included 27 tackles, seven PBUs, and no interceptions, were pedestrian. Yet that’s the result of opponents refusing to throw in his direction.
Tyler Nubin/S/Minnesota
Nubin surprised people by opting to return for another season on the college field rather than entering the 2023 NFL Draft. He made the best choice, as Nubin finished with a career-best five INTs and nine PBUs to go along with 53 tackles.
Specialists
Graham Nicholson/K/Miami-Oh
Nicholson hit 26 of 27 field goals this season, including nine of 10 from 40 yards or longer.
Tory Taylor/P/Iowa
Taylor got plenty of action this season playing for a team with one of the worst offenses in the nation. He was the best in the country, averaging 47.9 yards on an FBS-high 86 punts.
Zachariah Branch/RS/USC
Branch, a receiver by trade, led the nation with an average of 20.6 yards on 15 punt returns, with one resulting in a touchdown. He also averaged 18.4 yards returning kicks, adding another score.
Second Team
QB: Michael Penix Jr./Washington
RB: Cody Schrader/Missouri
WR: Malik Nabers/LSU
TE: Dallin Holker/Colorado State
OL
Jordan Morgan/Arizona
Zak Zinter/Michigan
JC Latham/Alabama
Troy Fautanu/Washington
Roger Rosengarten/Washington
DL
Jonah Elliss/Utah
Jared Verse/Florida State
Ashton Gillotte/Louisville
Javon Solomon/Troy
LB
Jason Henderson/Old Dominion
Danny Stutsman/Oklahoma
Jay Higgins/Iowa
DB
Trey Taylor/Air Force
Cooper DeJean/Iowa
Beanie Bishop Jr./West Virginia
Jeremiah Cooper/Iowa State
Specialists
Will Reichard/K/Alabama
Ryan Rehkow/P/BYU
Jayden Harrison/RS/Marshall
Honorable Mentions
QB: Bo Nix/Oregon
RB: Ashton Jeanty/Boise State
WR: Troy Franklin/Oregon
TE: Ben Sinnott/Kansas State
OL
Clay Webb/Jacksonville State
Patrick Paul/Houston
Graham Barton/Duke
Zach Frazier/West Virginia
Javon Foster/Missouri
DL
Byron Murphy II/Texas
Nelson Ceaser/Houston
Tyleik Williams/Ohio State
LB
Matt Salopek/Miami-Oh
Aaron Casey/Indiana
Tyrice Knight/UTEP
DB
Kendarin Ray/S/Tulsa
Elijah Jones/Boston College
Kris Abrams-Draine/Missouri
Terrion Arnold/Alabama