ATHENS – Go ahead and give the trophy to Nakobe Dean.
That was the sentiment of Georgia coach Kirby Smart when asked Monday what he thought about his star inside linebacker being tabbed one of six finalists for the Butkus Award. Named after NFL Hall of Famer Dick Butkus, the award goes annually to the best linebacker in college football.
Smart believes that’s Dean. But he’ll have to wait until Dec. 7 to find out. That’s when the votes of a 51-member selection panel will be tabulated.
Regardless of what the voters say, when it comes to playing the inside linebacker position, the Butkus committee will be hard-pressed to find one better than Georgia’s 6-foot, 225-pound junior from Horn Lake, Miss., according to Smart.
“He’s one of the most explosive, best-blitzing, smartest linebackers that I’ve seen,” Smart said.
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