Penn State’s Parsons, Pitt’s Twyman Named to Walter Camp All-American Team

| December 13, 2019


NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons and Pitt defensive tackle Jaylen Twyman were both named the to the Walter Camp All-American Team Thursday.

(Photo by Paul Burdick. Check out more of Burdick’s work here)

Parsons and Twyman were both second-team selections.

Parsons is the first Nittany Lion to claim All-America honors since Saquon Barkley was a first-team honoree in 2017.

The native of Harrisburg earned the Big Ten Butkus-Fitzgerald Linebacker of the Year award and was a first-team All-Big Ten selection. He is the first sophomore to win Big Ten Linebacker of the Year and the third Nittany Lion to claim the award, joining Michael Mauti (2012) and Mike Hull (2014). Parsons was also a finalist for the Butkus Award for the nation’s top linebacker.

For the second-straight season, Parsons is leading the Nittany Lions in tackles with 85. He also has 10.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, three pass breakups and three quarterback hurries. Parsons ranks seventh in the Big Ten with 7.7 tackles per game. He has five games with 10 or more tackles this season. He is one of 22 players in FBS and two in the Big Ten (Dele Harding, Illinois) to total at least 80 tackles and 10 tackles for loss this season. He is the first Penn State player to do so since Mike Hull in 2014 and is the seventh Penn Stater to accomplish the feat since 2000.

Parsons was named a Rivals Midseason All-American. He was selected to the Pro Football Focus Big Ten Team of the Week first team following the Purdue game and second team after the Pitt victory.

This is the latest postseason accolade for Twyman, who previously was honored as a first-team All-ACC selection by both the league’s official voting panel and Associated Press. He additionally was named a second-team All-American by The Athletic.

A native of Washington, D.C., and graduate of H.D. Woodson High School, Twyman leads the Panthers’ nationally-ranked defense with 12 tackles for loss and 10.5 quarterback sacks.

The last time an interior defensive lineman (nose tackle or defensive tackle) led Pitt in sacks was in 2013 when unanimous All-American Aaron Donald had 11. Twyman changed his jersey to number 97 this season in tribute to Donald, who is now a perennial All-Pro for the Los Angeles Rams.

The 6-foot-2, 290-pound Twyman has been a spearhead up front for Pitt, which ranks 11th in the nation in total defense (302.5 yards per game), 11th in rushing defense (106.9 yards per game) and 20th in passing defense (195.6 yards per game).

The Panthers have compiled 49 team sacks—their most since 1987—and rank second nationally with an average of 4.08 sacks per game.

The 51-player squad was selected by the nation’s 130 Football Bowl Subdivision head coaches and sports information directors.

View the full team here


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