Bowling Green tight end Alex Bayer and Eastern Michigan tight end Garrett Hoskins were named to the 2012 John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List. Bayer collected 20 receptions for 242 yards and two touchdowns during the 2011 campaign, while Hoskins added 22 receptions for 328 yards and three scores.
The Nassau County Sports Commission, sponsored by Briarcliffe College, has released the 2012 John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List. Given annually to the most outstanding collegiate tight end, the award recipient is selected by vote of the John Mackey Award Selection Committee and the 2012 John Mackey winner will be presented live on December 6, 2012 at The Home Depot College Football Awards Red Carpet Show: 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPNU. Other key dates include the announcement of the 2012 Mackey semi-finalists on November 12, 2012 and the announcement of the 2012 Mackey finalists on November 19, 2012. All future announcements can be found at www.johnmackeyaward.org.
NFL Hall of Fame member John Mackey is considered to be the best to have played the tight end position. A tight end by whom all others are measured, Mackey was a role model on and off the field as demonstrated by his Super Bowl Championship, his commitment to community and his place in history as the first President of the NFLPA.
The John Mackey Award presented since 2000, lists eleven NFL players as alumni: 2006 Super Bowl Champion Dallas Clark ('01) of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, two-time Super Bowl Champion Daniel Graham ('02), Kellen Winslow II ('03) of the Seattle Seahawks, two-time Super Bowl Champion Heath Miller ('04) of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Marcedes Lewis ('05) of the Jacksonville Jaguars, 2008 Super Bowl Champion Matt Spaeth ('06) of the of the Chicago Bears, Fred Davis ('07) of the Washington Redskins, Chase Coffman ('08) of the Tampa Bay Bucaneers, Aaron Hernandez ('09) of the New England Patriots, D.J. Williams ('10) of the Green Bay Packers and the 2011 John Mackey Award recipient Dwayne Allen of the Indianapolis Colts.