2018 Maxwell Award watch list includes NC State quarterback Ryan Finley

Ryan Finley is one of 80 FBS players to make the Maxwell Award’s watch list, which was released on Monday afternoon. The Maxwell Award is given to college football’s “player of the year”—it’s like an off-brand Heisman!—so schools can have multiple guys on the watch list. NC State does not.

A few of the schools on the Wolfpack’s schedule have at least two players on the watch list: Florida State, Clemson, and West Virginia. Syracuse and Boston College both have one player on the list.

As with the Heisman, to win the Maxwell you pretty much have to be either a quarterback or a running back, and there are only a few defensive players on this initial list. (Though more could be added later.)

Finley should be on the Maxwell radar for a while, assuming things go according to expectations.