KNOXVILLE - Five Tennessee players were named Tuesday to the preseason watch lists for two of college football's most prestigious awards.
Quarterback Josh Dobbs and running back Jalen Hurd were on the preliminary list for the Maxwell Award, given to the nation's best offensive player, while the trio of defensive end Derek Barnett, linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin and cornerback Cameron Sutton were named to the initial list for the Bednarik Award, given to the nation's defensive player of the year.
There were 90 players on both lists.
Dobbs and Hurd were both on the Maxwell's preseason list last season, and Barnett and Sutton are on the preseason list for the Bednarik Award for the second consecutive season as well.
Peyton Manning won the Maxwell Award as a senior in 1997, but the Volunteers have had just two semifinalists - Kevin Burnett in 2004 and Eric Berry in 2008 - for the Bednarik Award.
In Tennessee's past 19 games, Dobbs is 14-5 as the starting quarterback with the Vols averaging 34 points and 424 yards of offense during that span. He accounted for nearly 228 yards of offense a game as a junior in 2015. As a sophomore, Hurd ran for 1,288 yards, the fourth-highest total in the SEC.
Barnett is hoping for a faster start in his third and likely final season at Tennessee after a pair of 10-sack campaigns put him within striking distance of Reggie White's career sack record.
Reeves-Maybin, the team's leader tackler the past two seasons, is coming off shoulder surgery in the spring, but the senior should be ready to go for the start of the season.
Sutton has started all 38 games of his college career and was the nation's top punt returner while finishing with 28 tackles and two forced fumbles last season.
Higgins picks Clemson
The Vols will have to overcome Clemson if it wants to land a top prospect in their own backyard.
Tee Higgins, a touted wide receiver from Oak Ridge High School and a former Tennessee commitment, announced his verbal pledge to the Tigers on Monday via a Fourth of July-themed video on the website Bleacher Report.
A potential dual-sport star given his basketball talents, Higgins committed to the Vols last August before reopening his recruitment in February. He visited Tennessee twice last month and also attended the Vols' satellite camp in Nashville. In May he named the Vols his leader.
Higgins is one of three Clemson commitments from the state of Tennessee. The others are Knoxville athlete Amari Rodgers, son of former Tennessee quarterback Tee Martin, and Memphis running back Cordarrian Richardson.
Quarterback Hunter Johnson flipped from the Vols to Clemson in December.
Raulerson to UWV
Former Tennessee offensive lineman Ray Raulerson is transferring to West Virginia, where he'll have two years of eligibility remaining after sitting out this season due to NCAA transfer rules.
With the Vols, Raulerson appeared in five games as a reserve after redshirting in 2014.
The Mountaineers announced the transfer on Friday.
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.