Buckeye Reporter

Bowling Green State University quarterback Drew Pyne has been named to the Allstate Wuerffel Trophy Preseason Watch List, according to an announcement by the Wuerffel Foundation. Pyne is one of 11 players from the Mid-American Conference (MAC) recognized on this year’s list.

The Allstate Wuerffel Trophy is awarded annually to a college football player who demonstrates outstanding community service. The trophy is named after Danny Wuerffel, the 1996 Heisman Trophy winner from the University of Florida, and honors student-athletes committed to serving others. This season marks the 20th anniversary of the award, with previous recipients being acknowledged throughout the fall.

Pyne, originally from New Canaan, Connecticut, joined Bowling Green as a graduate transfer ahead of his first season with the Falcons. He previously played at Notre Dame, Arizona State, and Missouri. During his time at Notre Dame from 2020 to 2022, Pyne appeared in 17 games and started in 10 during the 2022 season. That year he led Notre Dame to an 8-2 record as a starter and finished ranked No. 20 nationally in quarterback efficiency. His performance included a 4-1 record against Top 25 teams and he completed 22 touchdown passes with a completion rate of 64.6 percent.

Among his notable moments at Notre Dame was throwing three touchdown passes at North Carolina—the most by a Fighting Irish quarterback in their first road start since 1994—and accounting for five total touchdowns against Navy. In a game against USC, Pyne completed his first 15 pass attempts and finished with a .884 completion percentage (23-for-26), which ranks second all-time for a single game in program history behind Steve Beuerlein's .909 mark set in 1984. He also recorded his first career game with over 300 passing yards during that contest.

In the following season at Arizona State (2023), Pyne played two games before suffering a season-ending injury but managed to complete a career-long pass of 52 yards against USC. In 2024 at Missouri, he appeared in six games—including one start where he threw for three touchdowns and led his team to victory over Oklahoma—completing nearly sixty percent of his passes for just under four hundred yards on the season.

Since last year, Allstate has partnered with the Wuerffel Foundation to unify college football’s major community service awards. Eleven players from this watch list will be selected as members of the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team and serve as semifinalists for the trophy.

"The Allstate Wuerffel Trophy embodies Wuerffel's commitment to being a humanitarian, while honoring student-athletes who are inspired to serve others and make positive impacts on society," according to organizers.

Finalists for this year's award will be chosen by a national voting committee along with input from fans. The winner will be announced on ESPN's Home Depot College Football Awards Show scheduled for December 12th, with an official presentation gala planned for January 31st at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta.