Naming this year's Big Ten Player of the Year is not a terribly difficult decision, given Dwayne Haskins' record-breaking season.
Despite a number of quarterbacks receiving somewhat perplexing higher grades throughout the season, including Wisconsin's Alex Hornibrook, Pro Football Focus agrees with the consensus in the end, naming Haskins its Big Ten Player of the Year on Friday.
From Pro Football Focus:
Look, we liked several quarterbacks over the course of the Big Ten season and as they say, the cream always rises to the top. Dwayne Haskins was the cream of the crop in the conference this season, setting Ohio State and Big Ten records in his path to the top grade at the position. His ability from a clean pocket bodes well for him on a year-to-year level not only in college but also if he decides to take the leap to the pros as we’ve proven clean-pocket success to be highly stable in terms of transition to the NFL for a quarterback. Haskins led the nation in clean pocket touchdowns (40) and while he struggled under pressure during road games against Penn State, Purdue and Maryland, he put those woes behind him in the Big Ten Championship game. Against Northwestern, Haskins was under pressure on 19 dropbacks and completed 10-of-12 passes for 101 yards, two touchdowns and a passer rating of 141.3 as the Buckeyes cruised late against the Wildcats. While it was not enough for the College Football Playoff committee to look over their crushing loss to Purdue to join the national title picture, Haskins can cap his season off on a strong note with a Rose Bowl victory against Pac-12 Champion Washington.
Haskins was also named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and the Big Ten Quarterback of the Year, and also earned this year's Chicago Tribune Silver Football.
He's also a finalist for a number of national awards including the Heisman Trophy, which will be presented on Saturday, as well as the Manning Award.
