The greatness of Illinois football defensive lineman Jer’Zhan Newton has been rehashed many times.
Newton had a great 2022 campaign for the Illini, finishing with 62.0 tackles, 14.0 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, 3.0 pass deflections, and 2.0 fumble recoveries. These numbers, and the great success he caused the Illinois defense to have last season, are why Newton earned numerous accolades in 2022.
By season’s end, Newton easily made the first-team All-Big Ten. He was then voted onto nearly every All-American second-team list, except for Phill Steele, who felt like he was just a third-team All-American.