Penei Sewell Honored by Outland Trophy

After three dominating performances in September, sophomore offensive lineman Penei Sewell earned Outland Trophy National Offensive Player of the Month honors on Thursday, as selected by the Football Writers Association of America.

The Outland Trophy, presented by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, is awarded annually to the nation’s best interior lineman. This is the second year the FWAA has selected national players of the month. Sewell shared the September honor with Pitt defensive tackle Jaylen Twyman who was the defensive player of the month.

Sewell put together back-to-back Pac-12 offensive lineman of the week performances during Oregon’s wins over Montana and at Stanford, finishing as the top ranked lineman in the conference by Pro Football Focus each week. In the win over Montana, Sewell racked up a staggering 11 knockdowns and added five more at Stanford to bring his season total to a team-high 21.

Through the first five weeks of the college football season, Sewell is the second-ranked offensive lineman in the nation by PFF with an overall grade of 92.6. Over the three games (184 snaps) in September, the St. George, Utah, product didn’t allow a hurry, pressure or hit on quarterback Justin Herbert.

Oregon owns a 9-2 record over Sewell’s 11 career starts. The No. 13 player – top offensive lineman – in Sports Illustrated’s Preseason Top 100, Sewell has finished as the top graded tackle in the Pac-12 four times over his 11 games while not committing a penalty over his 705 career snaps.