The football season has been over for a couple of weeks in Columbia and Clemson, but that doesn’t mean awards season is over in South Carolina. On Wednesday, the Football Writers Association of America announced that USC quarterback LaNorris Sellers was selected as the National Freshman Offensive Player of the Year, while Clemson placekicker Nolan Hauser is the FWAA’s Freshman Special Teams Player of the Year.
Sellers was named to the third-team All-SEC squad and was recognized as the SEC Freshman of the Year by the league’s coaches. He completed 64.9 percent of his passes (172-for-265) for 2,274 yards and 17 touchdowns. His 655 yards rushing on 155 carries (a 4.2 average) was the third-best total among SEC quarterbacks, and his seven rushing touchdowns tied for second among that group. Sellers was a two-time winner of the SEC Offensive Player of the Week award and a two-time recipient of the league’s Freshman of the Week honors.
Together with two other South Carolina players on the FWAA Freshman All-America Team (OL Josiah Thompson and DL Dylan Stewart), he is a part of the Gamecocks’ first members on that list since 2011 and Jadeveon Clowney. The freshman trio joins three others (DL Kyle Kennard, DB Nick Emmanwori, and P Kai Kroeger) on this season’s regular All-America team for a total of six FWAA All-Americans hailing from South Carolina, tops among all FBS programs.
Hauser becomes the first recipient of the FWAA’s honor after the organization expanded to include special teams this year. He is the second Clemson player ever to earn Freshman Player of the Year honors of any kind from the FWAA since quarterback Trevor Lawrence won the organization’s inaugural award in 2018.
Hauser connected on 17 of 23 field goals in the regular season and hit on 56 of 57 extra-point attempts. He became the first FBS player ever to win a conference championship game by kicking a field goal of 50 or more yards as time expired. Hauser led Clemson with 106 points in the regular season, already a Clemson freshman record, and finished with 113 points following the Tigers’ playoff loss at Texas. The 113 points are the fourth-best total among FBS freshmen, the seventh-best among all kickers, and the 34th highest total among all players.
On Tuesday, he was honored as one of a national-best four Clemson players named to the FWAA Freshman All-America Team alongside linebacker Sammy Brown, cornerback Ashton Hampton, and wide receiver Bryant Wesco Jr.
Sellers, Hauser, Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore (Freshman Defensive Player of the Year), and Syracuse head coach Fran Brown (First-Year Coach Award) will be honored during a ceremony on Feb. 24 at Spurrier’s Gridiron Grille in Gainesville, Fla.
All-Time FWAA National Freshman Players of the Year
2018: Trevor Lawrence, Clemson (QB)
2019: Kenneth Gainwell, Memphis (RB)
2020: Will Anderson Jr., Alabama (LB)
2021: Brock Bowers, Georgia (TE)
2022: Drake Maye, North Carolina (QB)
2023: Noah Fifita, Arizona (QB); Dillon Thieneman, Purdue (S)
2024: LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina (QB); Leonard Moore, Notre Dame (DB); Nolan Hauser, Clemson (K)