Ohio State safety Caleb Downs, one of the Buckeyes' high-profile transfers at No. 2, and three of his new teammates were selected to the Associated Press preseason All-America team announced Monday.
Downs, who was selected as a second-team All-American as a freshman at Alabama last season, was joined by guard Donovan Jackson, receiver Emeka Egbuka and cornerback Denzel Burke to give Ohio State its most first-team selections. Running back TreVeyon Henderson and defensive lineman Tyleik Williams were named to the second team to give the Buckeyes six total selections, also the most of any team.
No. 1 Georgia and No. 9 Michigan each had three players chosen to the first team. Quarterback Carson Beck was joined by Bulldogs guard Tate Ratledge and defensive back Malaki Starks, also a first-team All-American last year.
The defending national champion Wolverines are represented by tight end Colston Loveland, defensive tackle Mason Graham and cornerback Will Johnson.
No. 5 Alabama placed two first-team transfers in center Parker Brailsford (Washington) and kicker Graham Nicholson (Miami). [Ohio]).
No. 7 Notre Dame and No. 13 LSU also had two first-team selections.
The Fighting Irish selected defensive tackle Howard Cross III and safety Xavier Watts. Watts was also an All-American last season and Cross was a second-team selection in 2023. The Tigers were represented by tackle Will Campbell and linebacker Harold Perkins Jr. on the first team.
No. 3 Oregon placed three players on the second team, including quarterback Dillon Gabriel, a sixth-year player who transferred from Oklahoma after starting his career at UCF.
SECONDARY–10.
Ten big–8.
CA–4
The Big 12 – 3
Independent–2.
Quarterback: Carson Beck, fifth year, Georgia.
Running backs: Ollie Gordon II, junior, Oklahoma State; Omarion Hampton, junior, North Carolina.
Tackles – Will Campbell, junior, LSU; Kelvin Banks Jr., junior, Texas.
Guards – Donovan Jackson, fourth year, Ohio State; Tate Ratledge, fifth year, Georgia.
Center – Parker Brailsford, junior, Alabama.
Tight end – Colston Loveland, junior, Michigan.
Wide receivers: Luther Burden III, junior, Missouri; Tetairoa McMillan, junior, Arizona; Emeka Egbuka, senior, Ohio State.
All-purpose player: Travis Hunter, junior, Colorado.
Kicker – Graham Nicholson, fourth year, Alabama.
Edge – James Pearce Jr., junior, Tennessee; Ashton Gillotte, senior, Louisville.
Tackles – Mason Graham, junior, Michigan; Howard Cross III, sixth, Notre Dame.
Linebackers – Harold Perkins Jr., junior, LSU; Jay Higgins, fifth, Iowa; Barrett Carter, fourth, Clemson.
Cornerbacks: Will Johnson, junior, Michigan; Denzel Burke, senior, Ohio State.
Safeties – Malaki Starks, junior, Georgia; Caleb Downs, sophomore, Ohio State.
Defender – Xavier Watts, fifth year, Notre Dame.
Kicker – Alex Mastromanno, fifth year, Florida State.
Quarterback: Dillon Gabriel, sixth year, Oregon.
Running backs: TreVeyon Henderson, senior, Ohio State; Ashton Jeanty, junior, Boise State
Tackles – Ajani Cornelius, fifth year, Oregon; Aireontae Ersery, fifth year, Minnesota.
Guards – Tyler Booker, junior, Alabama; Dylan Fairchild, senior, Georgia.
Center – Cooper Mays, fifth year, Tennessee.
Tight end – Mitchell Evans, fourth year, Notre Dame.
Wide receivers: Tez Johnson, fifth-year, Oregon; Tre Harris, fifth-year, Mississippi; Ricky White III, fifth-year, UNLV.
Versatile player: Zachariah Branch, sophomore, Southern California.
Kicker – Andrés Borregales, fourth year, Miami.
Edge – Nic Scourton, junior, Texas A&M; Abdul Carter, junior, Penn State.
Tackles – Tyleik Williams, fourth year, Ohio State; Deone Walker, third year, Kentucky.
Linebackers – Danny Stutsman, fourth year, Oklahoma; Jason Henderson, fourth year, Old Dominion; Nick Martin, fourth year, Oklahoma State.
Cornerbacks – Benjamin Morrison, junior, Notre Dame; Sebastian Castro, sixth, Iowa.
Safeties – Dillon Thieneman, sophomore, Purdue; Billy Bowman, senior, Oklahoma.
Defensive – Ricardo Hallman, fourth year, Wisconsin.
Kicker: James Ferguson-Reynolds, junior, Boise State.
