OKLAHOMA CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson of Texas Christian University has been named the 2022 Paycom Jim Thorpe Award Winner. The award is given to the top defensive back in college football. The announcement was made live on The Home Depot College Football Awards on ESPN. Hodges-Tomlinson received the 2022 Paycom Jim Thorpe Award on behalf of Paycom and Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame.
Hodges-Tomlinson is the second defensive back from TCU to earn the Paycom Jim Thorpe Award. He was preceded by Tre’von Moehrig in 2020. He led overall ballots as a 55.56% first-place vote favorite in nationwide voting.
Hodges-Tomlinson was a leader on TCU’s defense and became one of the most reliable players for the 2022, 12-1 record Horned Frogs. He played the most snaps (857) among cornerbacks in the Big 12.
A tremendous cornerback who has been locked in all season, Hodges-Tomlinson was responsible for 42 tackles, including two for loss, three INTs, 11 PBUs and a forced fumble, leading the TCU Horned Frogs to a 9-0 Big 12 regular season record and its first College Football Playoff appearance in program history.
Rated by Pro Football Focus (PPF) as the No. 1 cornerback in the Big 12 in pass rush grade (91.8), Hodges-Tomlinson was named to the 2022 First-Team All-Big 12 for the third consecutive year. He was also named Honorable-Mention Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year.
Hodges-Tomlinson is a star off the field, as well. He volunteered at a local Fort Worth homeless shelter and a youth leadership camp at The Star in Frisco; assisting his uncle, LaDainian Tomlinson (Pro Football Hall of Famer and TCU Board of Trustees Member), with his youth camp and center for leadership and Dallas Cowboys cornerback Jordaun Lewis at a youth camp in Detroit; and hosting and training youth in his hometown of Waco, Texas.
Paycom and Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame will honor Hodges-Tomlinson at the 37th Anniversary of the Paycom Jim Thorpe Award Banquet and celebrate the inaugural Aeneas Williams Award on Feb. 7, 2023, in Oklahoma City.
For ticketing and advertising information regarding the upcoming banquet, please reach out to Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame.
The Paycom Jim Thorpe Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football. Founded in 1997, the NCFAA and its 25 awards now boast over 800 recipients, dating to 1935. Visit ncfaa.org and @NCFAA on Twitter to learn more about this association.
The Paycom Jim Thorpe Award is awarded to the best defensive back in college football based on performance on the field, athletic ability and character. The award was established in 1986 and is named after history’s greatest all-around athlete, Jim Thorpe. Thorpe excelled as a running back, passer and kicker on the offensive side of the ball, but also stood out as a defensive back. In addition to his legendary performance on the football field, Thorpe played professional baseball and won Olympic gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon. The Paycom Jim Thorpe Award is universally accepted as one of the nation’s top collegiate sports honors.
Paycom Software Inc. (“Paycom”) (NYSE: PAYC), a leading provider of comprehensive, cloud-based human capital management software, the Jim Thorpe Museum and Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame jointly announced in May 2017 an exclusive sponsorship of the Jim Thorpe Award. As a result, the accolade has been named the “Paycom Jim Thorpe Award.”
The Aeneas Williams Award is awarded to the best defensive back in Historically Black Colleges and Universities Division I college football based on performance on the field, athletic ability and character. This award will serve as the first of its kind in HBCU history in honor of its namesake, Southern University walk-on and Pro Football Hall of Famer Aeneas Williams. The contribution of HBCUs to the landscape of college football and the NFL has forever left an impact on the game. HBCUs hold an incredibly rich athletic tradition, tied to the game of football, that continues to exemplify the culture of these schools for over the past century.
