VIDEO: Every Braxton Westfield Touchdown Catch Ever
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Carson-Newman senior wide receiver Braxton Westfield (Simpsonville, S.C.) is among 48 Division II football players nominated for the Harlon Hill Trophy, the Division II equivalent of the Heisman.
Unsurprisingly, the award has attracted Carson-Newman Eagles through the years. With five finalists all-time, Carson-Newman ranks first among SAC institutions in players to make the final eight.
Of the five Eagles to be recognized as finalists, three have played running back (Damien Baker, Andy Hibbett and Tyrone Westmoreland), while two have been Carson-Newman quarterbacks (Alex Good and Leonard Guyton).
Antonio Wimbush was Carson-Newman's last nominee, representing the program in both 2018 and 2019.
Westfield goes back-to-back as a first-team All-SAC selection. The senior NFL prospect is the only Carson-Newman football player in program history who has three consecutive 100-yard receiving days.
Westfield closed out his career with a bang, earning TSWA State Offensive Player of the Week honors. He snared five passes for 162 yards in the Eagles' 61-23 win at Catawba in the regular season finale.
The senior tied the single-game C-N record with three receiving touchdowns in the contest. All three of his touchdown grabs came in a 27-point third quarter and 40-point second half for C-N.
They covered 33, 61 and 37 yards.
His three-score day gives him 21 for his career to match him for fourth all-time with Tank Black.
All told, Westfield snagged five passes for 162 yards and the three scores. The 162 yards are the 11th-highest single-game total in Carson-Newman history. He closes his C-N career with three straight 100-yard games.
His 886 yards receiving this season are sixth all-time and the most in the option-era. Westfeld finishes his Carson-Newman career with 1,752 yards – the seventh-most in school history and the third-most in the option era.
The senior led the league in receptions per game, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns – a sure fire sign that the underworld has cooled given an Eagle hasn't led the league in any of those categories in the last 12 years.
Westfield's 5.0 catches per game also registers as a school record. His 55 catches are the most in the option era and the sixth-most all-time.
A total of 12 nominees hail from Super Region 1, 11 from Super Region 2, 14 from Super Region 3 and 11 from Super Region 4.
Shepherd's Tyson Bagent, the 2021 Hill recipient and a 2022 nominee from Super Region I could become the fifth repeat winner in award history. Nebraska-Kearney's T.J. Davis and Bemidji State's Brandon Alt also return after reaching the finalist stage a season ago.
The sports information directors at the 164 NCAA Division II football-playing institutions nominate and vote on the award. The 48 initial candidates will be placed on regional ballots and the top two players from each of the four NCAA regions will advance to the national ballot when regional voting concludes on Monday, November 28.
The winner of the 2022 award will be announced on Friday, December 16 and the winner will be honored at the Little Rock Touchdown Club awards banquet on Friday, January 13, 2023.
The sports information directors at their respective schools initially nominate candidates. The SIDs in those Super Regions vote for their top five candidates. The winner is then determined in a nation-wide vote of the Division II sports information directors.
The group of 48 candidates includes 16 quarterbacks, 10 wide receivers, eight running backs, seven defensive linemen, six linebackers and one punter/kicker.The list features 35 seniors, seven sophomores and six juniors.
The Hill Trophy is named for the late Harlon Hill - the former University of North Alabama standout - who excelled with the Lions from 1950-53 before going on to fame in the National Football League with the Chicago Bears.
