Nous Keobounnam, Oregon State’s redshirt senior offensive center from Centennial High School in Portland, found his name on the Rimington Trophy Watch List when it was announced on Wednesday, an accolade presented annually to the country’s best collegiate center.
Keobounnam comes into the 2020 campaign after starting 11 games in 2019, as a crucial part of an offensive line that helped spur the fourth-best running attack in the Pac-12 and ranked #6 overall in yards per game in the league.
He saw limited action earlier in his career, playing either in a reserve role or on special teams only, yet now sits alongside an elite group of centers on the list, including fellow Pac-12 stand-outs in Arizona’s Josh McCauley, California’s Michael Saffell, Colorado’s Colby Pursell, Stanford’s Drew Dalman, USC’s Brett Neilon, Utah’s Orlando Umana and Washington’s Luke Wattenberg.