DALLAS (FWAA) – South Florida linebacker Jhalyn Shuler posted a career-high 14 tackles including a key fumble recovery in leading a dominant defensive effort by the Bulls in a 34-7 win over No. 25 Boise State. For the game-changing plays in the Bulls’ first win against a ranked opponent since 2016, Shuler has been named the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week by the Football Writers Association of America.
Each week during the regular season, the FWAA has selected a Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week since 2001. The FWAA and the Charlotte Touchdown Club will announce finalists for the 2025 Bronko Nagurski Trophy on Nov. 20. The national defensive player of the year will be chosen from those finalists who are part of the 2025 FWAA All-America Team and presented with the trophy at the Bronko Nagurski Awards Banquet on Dec. 8 at the Charlotte Convention Center.
Players may be added or removed from the Bronko Nagurski Trophy watch list during the season. If a player isn’t already on the preseason watch list – including Shuler this week – each week’s honored player is added at that time.
Shuler, a 6-3, 230-pound graduate student from Abbeville, N.C., grabbed a fumble recovery on Boise State's first drive of the game to set the tone for the Bulls, who notched 34 unanswered points to secure the win. South Florida's defense held the Broncos to their lowest scoring output since 2019 and 30 points below their 2024 season average. He added a tackle for loss to the career night on total tackles and earned the American Conference Defensive Player of the Week award.
Shuler was an honorable mention All-AAC player last season. He returns for his sixth season, and fourth at USF, having posted 166 tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks in the three previous seasons in Tampa. He has 23 starts the past two seasons and led the Bulls in tackles in 2023 (97) while finishing third in 2024 (61). He was the Bulls’ leading tackler in four games last season.
South Florida has not had a winner of the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, though it does have a previous finalist in defensive end George Selvie in 2007.
The FWAA All-America Committee, after voting input from the association’s full membership, selects a 26-man All-America Team and eventually the Bronko Nagurski Trophy finalists. The Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner will be chosen from the finalists named in November. Committee members, by individual ballot, select the winner they regard as the best defensive player in college football.
The FWAA has chosen a National Defensive Player of the Year since 1993. In 1995, the FWAA named the award in honor of the legendary two-way player from the University of Minnesota. Nagurski dominated college football, then became a star for professional football’s Chicago Bears in the 1930s. Bronislaw "Bronko" Nagurski is a charter member of both the College Football and Pro Football Halls of Fame.
The Bronko Nagurski Trophy is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses college football’s most prestigious awards. The NCFAA’s 25 awards have honored more than 950 recipients since 1935. This season, 13 NCFAA awards will honor national players of the week each Tuesday. For more information about the NCFAA and its award programs, visit NCFAA.org or follow on X at @NCFAA.
The Charlotte Touchdown Club is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization founded in 1990 for the purpose of promoting high school, collegiate, and professional football in the Charlotte, North Carolina region. Since its inception, the club has grown as well as diversified boasting a sponsor team of more than (80) companies. The Club's activities and services focus community attention on the outstanding Citizenship, Scholarship, Sportsmanship, and Leadership of area athletes and coaches. Through individual and corporate support, more than $3,000,000 has been raised and donated to benefit the Touchdown Club's scholarship efforts.
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Founded in 1941, the Football Writers Association of America consists of 1,300 men and women who cover college football. The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas that include game-day operations, major awards and its annual All-America team. For more information about the FWAA and its award programs, contact Steve Richardson at tiger@fwaa.com.