NEW YORK (July 6, 2016) – Senior Jonnu Smith has been named to the 2016 John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List announced on Wednesday. Smith is one of 45 student-athletes named to the preseason watch list for the nation's top tight end.
 
Smith appeared and started in eight games for the Panthers being named an All-Conference USA Honorable Mention selection in 2015. The Ocala, Florida, native caught 36 passes for 397 yards and four touchdowns. Before missing the final four games due to injury, Smith caught a pass in 32-straight games. Despite missing games due to injury, Smith was second on the team in touchdown catches. He tied a career-high in receptions with 10 versus Old Dominion (Oct. 24), tallying a career-best 183 yards, fourth-most in school history, and two touchdowns versus the Monarchs. He was named the Mackey Tight End of the Week (Week 8) after his performance versus ODU. Following his junior season, Smith is first at FIU in career catches (136), yards (1,495) and touchdowns (14) by a tight end. Smith was named to the 2015 John Mackey 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 2016 Mackey Award recipient will be announced on December 7, 2016 and then presented live on December 8, 2016 at The Home Depot College Football Awards Red Carpet Show on ESPNU. All future announcements can be found at www.johnmackeyaward.com.
 
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, recognizes fourteen alumni that have played in the NFL: two-time Super Bowl Champion Daniel Graham ('01), 2006 Super Bowl Champion Dallas Clark ('02), Kellen Winslow II ('03), two-time Super Bowl Champion Heath Miller ('04), Marcedes Lewis ('05) of the Jacksonville Jaguars, 2008 Super Bowl Champion Matt Spaeth ('06) of the of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Fred Davis ('07), Chase Coffman ('08), D.J. Williams ('10),  Dwayne Allen ('11) of the Indianapolis Colts, Tyler Eifert ('12)  of the Cincinnati Bengals, Austin Seferian-Jenkins ('13) of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Nick O'Leary ('14) of the Buffalo Bills and 2015 John Mackey Award recipient Hunter Henry of the San Diego Chargers.
 
2016 John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List
 (in alphabetical order)
Jeb Blazevich, Georgia, Jr
Pharaoh, Brown, Oregon Sr
Barrett Burns, Appalachian St, Sr
Jake Butt, Michigan, Sr
Cethan Carter, Nebraska, Sr
Connor Cella, Rice, Sr
CJ Conrad, Kentucky, So
Buck Cowan, Idaho, Sr
Darrell Daniels, Washington, Sr
Elkanah Dillon, USF, So
DJ Dowdy, Cincinnati, Sr
Evan Engram, Ole Miss, Sr
Gerald Everett, South Alabama, Sr
Billy Freeman, San Jose St, Sr
Mike Gesicki, Penn St, Jr
Jarred Gipson, Nevada, Sr
DeAndre Goolsby, Florida, Jr
Cole  Hikutini, Louisville, Sr
Bucky Hodges, Virginia Tech, Jr
Wyatt Houston, Utah St, Sr
OJ Howard, Alabama, Sr
Ryan Izzo, Florida St, So
Blake Jarwin, Oklahoma St, Sr
Ben Johnson, Kansas, Jr
Alize Jones, Notre Dame, So
George Kittle, Iowa, Sr
Kody Kohl, Arizona St, Sr
Jordan Leggett, Clemson, Sr
Brandon Lingen, Minnesota, Jr
Troy Mangen, Ohio, Jr
Hayden Plinke, UTEP, Sr
Josiah Price, Michigan St, Sr
Michael Roberts, Toledo, Sr
Jake Roh, Boise St, Jr
Keith Rucker, Georgia St, Sr
Mason Schreck, Buffalo, Sr
Dalton Schultz, Stanford, So
Cam Serigne, Wake Forest, Jr
Jonnu Smith, FIU, Sr
Jeremy Sprinkle, Arkansas, Sr
Todd Stafford, Massachusetts, Jr
Colin Thompson, Temple, Sr
Cody Tuttle, Eastern Michigan, Jr
Ethan Wolf, Tennessee, Jr
Ryan Yurachek, Marshall, Jr
 
The John Mackey Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA) which encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football. The 22 awards boast over 722 years of tradition-selection excellence. Visit www.NCFAA.org to learn more about our story.
 
The members of the NCFAA are unveiling their preseason watch lists over a 12-day period this month. Seventeen of the association's 22 awards select a preseason watch list and the NCFAA has spearheaded a coordinated effort to promote each award's preseason candidates.
 
Following is the complete 2016 preseason watch list calendar:
Tues., July 5: Bednarik Award / Maxwell Award
Wed., July 6: Mackey Award / Rimington Trophy
Thurs., July 7: Lou Groza Award / Ray Guy Award
Fri., July 8: Bronko Nagurski Trophy / Outland Trophy
Mon., July 11: Jim Thorpe Award
Tues., July 12: Butkus Award / Rotary Lombardi Award
Wed., July 13: Biletnikoff Award / Wuerffel Trophy
Thurs, July 14: Davey O'Brien Award / Doak Walker Award
Fri., July 15: Walter Camp Award / Paul Hornung Award
The Friends of John Mackey are responsible for the administration of the John Mackey Award & the John Mackey Award Selection Committee. Please visit http://www.johnmackeyaward.com for more information. 
 
 
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The 2016 FIU football season will kick off on Thursday, Sept. 1, when the Panthers host the Indiana Hoosiers.


FIU's 2016 schedule is highlighted with games against Miami Beach Bowl and 2015 C-USA champion WKU, R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl champion Louisiana Tech, St. Petersburg Bowl champion Marshall, Popeyes Bahama Bowl participant Middle Tennessee, and New Era Pinstripe Bowl participant Indiana. In addition, the Panthers will face Maryland, Massachusetts, UCF, Florida Atlantic, UTEP, Charlotte and Old Dominion. 
 
For FIU football ticket information, contact the University Credit Union Box Office at 305-FIU-GAME (348-4263).
 
For the latest information on Panthers football, follow us on Twitter, @FIUFootball, and check out Pete Pelegrin's in-depth coverage of FIU Athletics on his official blog, The Prowl, at www.FIUSports.com.



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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium.
 
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offer more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $8.9 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.