Buckner, Garnett named Morris Trophy winners

SEATTLE — Offensive guard Joshua Garnett of STANFORD and defensive end DeForest Buckner of OREGON have been named winners of the 36th annual Morris Trophy.

The Morris Trophy is given annually to the most outstanding offensive and defensive linemen in the Pac-12 Conference. What makes the award unique is the selection procedure, in which the league’s starting offensive linemen vote for the defensive winner and vice versa. It is truly a players’ award.

Garnett, a 6-foot-5, 321-pound junior from Puyallup, Wash., is a unanimous All-America selection and winner of the Outland Trophy as the nation’s top interior lineman. In addition, he was selected as the USA Football Fundamental Player of the Year. He has played in all 54 Stanford games during his career, starting the last 26 games over the past two seasons. With Garnett at left guard, Stanford allowed only 19 sacks this season (1.46 per game) and was third in rushing offense with 225.1 yards per game. Garnett was key in paving the way for Heisman Trophy runner-up Christian McCaffrey as he recorded an FBS record 3,496 all-purpose yards. Garnett is the fifth Cardinal, and fourth offensive lineman to earn the award, joining Willie Howard (1999), Kwame Harris (2002), David Yankey (2012), and Andrus Peat (2014).

Buckner, a 6-foot-7, 300-pound senior from Waianae, Hawai’i, earns the award after collecting 76 tackles (6.3 per game) from his defensive end position. He posted 16.0 tackles for loss with 9.5 sacks. The Pac-12’s Pat Tillman Defensive Player of the Year is the fifth Oregon player to earn the Morris Trophy, and fourth defensive player to claim the award as he joins Vince Goldsmith (1980), Adam Snyder (2004), Haloti Ngata (2005), and Nick Reed (2008). Buckner, a finalist for the Ted Hendricks Award as the nation’s top defensive end, played in all 53 games during his career, including the last 35 as a starter.

The Morris Trophy is sponsored by the Washington Athletic Club, Anthony’s Restaurants, Athletic Awards and the Morris Trophy Foundation. It was created by Traci (Morris) Drake in 1980 and named after her father, G. Patrick Morris. Garnett and Buckner will be presented their awards at a luncheon at the Washington Athletic Club in Seattle on Thursday, January 14, 2016. 

For a list of past winners, visit www.morristrophy.com