It's officially Award Watch List season, and the Notre Dame football team has two defensive players in Drayk Bowen and Leonard Moore, on the 2025 Bronco Nagurski Trophy watch list.
The trophy, which is named after famed defender Bronco Nagurski, is given out to the national defensive player of the year.
Being on the Nagurski Award Watch List is becoming quite the Notre Dame football tradition. The last Notre Dame player to win the award is safety Xavier Watts. Watts, who took home the award in 2023, is now with the NFL's Atlanta Falcons.
How Drayk Bowen and Leonard Moore emerged as Notre Dame football defensive pillars
This particular award is an interesting one because while Bowen and Leonard are on the list now, they may not be by the time the finalists are announced. The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) puts together the list, and players can be added or removed each week. The FWAA will name a defensive player of the week each week, and four finalists for the yearly award will be announced in mid-to-late November.
If Bowen and Leonard live up to the hype they've gotten coming into the season, then they should be on this watch list for most, if not all, of the season. In fact, Notre Dame fans are no doubt hoping that there might be a way for both of them to be among the final four.
Bowen has been tapped as one of the leaders of the defense coming into a season where many leaders are headed to the pros. Leonard Moore was a breakout corner as a freshman last year and is expected to be one of the best defenders in the country.