Morris Named to Davey O’Brien Award Preseason Watch List

FORT WORTH, Texas – Virginia’s Chandler Morris has been named to the 2025 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award Preseason Watch List, the Davey O’Brien Foundation announced Thursday (Aug. 7). The award is presented annually to the nation’s best college quarterback and is the oldest and most prestigious national quarterback award. 

One of seven ACC quarterbacks on this year’s preseason watch list, Morris was named to the Davey O’Brien Award midseason watch list last in 2024 while playing at North Texas. He started in all 13 games for the Mean Green and quarterbacked the nation’s No. 3 offense in yards per game (488.7). Morris completed 62.9 percent of his passes for 3,774 yards and 31 touchdowns. His 31 TD passes was good for fourth among all players nationally. Morris led the country with four 400-yard passing performances and also set UNT single-season records for passing attempts (512), passing yards per game (314.5), total offense (4,104) and TD responsibility (35). 

Last month, Morris was tabbed Maxwell Award preseason candidate, which is presented annually to the most outstanding player in college football. 

Compiled by a subset of the Davey O’Brien National Selection Committee, this year’s list includes three dozen candidates that were selected based on previous Division I career player performance as well as expectations heading into the 2025 college football season. 

The official Davey O’Brien Midseason Watch List will be released on Tuesday, Oct. 21, and will contain active quarterbacks from the Preseason Watch List, players honored as weekly Great 8 recipients through the season’s first eight weeks, and any additional quarterbacks approved by the selection subcommittee. 

The 35-player Davey O’Brien QB Class of 2025 will be announced on Tuesday, Oct. 28. For the fifth straight year, fan voting on social media (Facebook, Instagram and Twitter) will earn players bonus selection committee votes during the semifinalist, finalist and winner voting rounds. First-round fan voting will begin Oct. 28 following the QB Class announcement. 

The list of semifinalists selected from the QB class will be named Nov. 12. The Foundation will announce the three finalists two weeks later (Nov. 25). The 2025 Davey O’Brien Award winner will be unveiled Dec. 11, live on ESPN during the Home Depot College Football Awards. 

The 49th Annual Davey O’Brien Awards Dinner honoring the winner will be held Feb. 16, 2026, at The Fort Worth Club in Fort Worth, Texas. For more information, visit www.daveyobrienaward.com. 

About the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA)
The Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses college football’s most prestigious awards. The NCFAA’s 25 awards have honored more than 950 recipients since 1935. Visit NCFAA.org for more information. 

Remaining Watch List Calendar: 

• Friday, Aug. 8: Mackey Award/Rimington Trophy 
• Monday, Aug. 11: Bednarik Award