Zaven Collins
Zaven Collins (born May 19, 1999) is an American football linebacker for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane. For the 2020 season, he was named a consensus All-American and won several other awards and honors, such as the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and Chuck Bednarik Award.
Tulsa Golden Hurricane – No. 23 | |
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Position | Linebacker |
Class | Junior |
Major | Exercise & Sports Science |
Career history | |
College |
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High school | Hominy (Hominy, Oklahoma) |
Personal information | |
Born: | Tulsa, Oklahoma[1] | May 19, 1999
Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
Weight | 260 lb (118 kg) |
Career highlights and awards | |
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Early years
Collins attended Hominy High School in Hominy, Oklahoma.[2] He played quarterback, linebacker and safety in high school. During his career, he had 4,084 rushing yards with 54 touchdowns and passed for 3,056 yards and 32 touchdowns. He committed to the University of Tulsa to play college football.
College career
After redshirting his first year at Tulsa in 2017, Collins played in 12 games and started 10 in 2018. He had 85 tackles, 1.5 sacks and one interception.[3] As a sophomore in 2019, he started all 12 games, recording 97 tackles and two sacks.[4] Collins returned to Tulsa as a starter in 2020,[5][6][7] where he was awarded the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and Chuck Bednarik Award as the nation's best defender.[8][9]
References
- "'Stay your path': How TU's Zaven Collins developed from an under-the-radar recruit into one of the best players in college football | TU Sports Extra | tulsaworld.com". tulsaworld.com.
- "All State football: Zaven Collins does it all for state champion Hominy". Oklahoman.com. January 8, 2017.
- World, Kelly Hines Tulsa. "Zaven Collins goes from under the radar in Hominy to standout linebacker at TU". Tulsa World.
- World, Kelly Hines Tulsa. "TU linebacker Zaven Collins combining skill and effort in pursuit of dominance". Tulsa World.
- World, Bill Haisten Tulsa. "Bill Haisten: For the surging Golden Hurricane, a special player and a special coordinator". Tulsa World.
- World, Kelly Hines Tulsa. "TU linebacker Zaven Collins leads FBS in tackles for loss, sacks". Tulsa World.
- "Player to be Aware of: Tulsa Linebacker Zaven Collins". SI.com.
- "Zaven Collins Wins Bronko Nagurski Trophy". University of Tulsa Athletics. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- Hines, Kelly. "TU linebacker Zaven Collins wins Bednarik Award as nation's top defensive player". Tulsa World. Retrieved January 8, 2021.