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Dimukeje, Rumph II Named to Bednarik Award Watch List
7/13/2020 11:00:00 AM | Football
DURHAM, N.C. – The Maxwell Football Club announced today that Duke defensive ends Victor Dimukeje and Chris Rumph II have been selected to the preseason watch list for the Chuck Bednarik Award, which is presented annually to the outstanding defensive player in college football.
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This is Dimukeje's second career selection on the Bednarik Award Watch List, while Rumph II was acknowledged for the first time in his career.
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A Second Team All-ACC recipient last season, Dimukeje has started all 38 games he's played in. He has compiled 122 tackles, 24.5 tackles for loss, 14.0 sacks, one interception, three caused fumbles, two fumble recoveries, two pass breakups and 23 quarterback pressures. In his 2,043 career snaps, owns 24 games with 3+ tackles and eight outings with 5+ stops, including a career-high eight tackles against Wake Forest in 2019.
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Dimukeje is one of three defensive players in Duke history to start multiple bowl game victories (2017 Quick Lane & 2018 Walk-On's Independence), joining safety Michael Carter II and linebacker Ben Humphreys. He is also one of nine Blue Devils in program history to have recovered a fumble in a bowl game.
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The Baltimore, Md., native is currently tied with Vince Oghobaase for sixth all-time in Duke's career sacks chart (14.0) and is nine sacks away from breaking the record. He is also 7.5 tackles for loss away from breaking into Duke's career top-10 list.
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Rumph II garnered First Team All-America and Second Team All-America praise from Pro Football Focus and Sports Illustrated, respectively, last season, while also being tabbed a Third Team All-ACC selection. He has seen action in every game so far in his Duke career (25) and owns 72 tackles, 21.5 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, four pass breakups and 13 quarterback pressures.
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The Gainesville, Fla., native has 16 games with 2+ tackles, including a career-high eight stops against Miami in 2019. He recorded 2.0+ tackles for loss five times with a career-best 4.0 coming at Georgia Tech in 2018 and at Middle Tennessee in 2019. The 4.0 tackles for loss matched the Duke single-game freshman record (2018) and rank him tied for seventh on the program's overall single-game TFL chart (2x).
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Rumph II earned 6.5 sacks in 2019 to place him tied with Phillip Alexander (2003) for ninth all-time on Duke's single-season charts. He heads into his redshirt junior season riding a 20-game tackle streak, dating back to Oct. 13, 2018 and is ranked as the No. 2 returning edge defender in the country by ESPN.com.
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The Bednarik Award has been presented to the College Defensive Player of the Year since 1995 and is named in honor of Chuck Bednarik a former standout at the University of Pennsylvania and with the Philadelphia Eagles. Bednarik is a member of both the College Football Hall of Fame's Class of '69 and the NFL Hall of Fame's Class of '67.
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Semifinalists for the Bednarik Award will be announced November 3, 2020, while the three finalists for the Bednarik Award will be unveiled November 23, 2020. The winner of the 2020 Bednarik Awards will be announced as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show held on December 10, 2020. The formal presentations of these awards will be made at the Maxwell Football Club Awards Gala hosted by Tropicana Hotel &Casino Atlantic City on March 12, 2021.
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Duke is set to kick off the 2020 season at home on Saturday, Sept. 5 against Middle Tennessee. Game details have yet to be determined.
Season tickets are available online at www.GoDuke.com/FootballTix or by calling the Duke Athletic Ticket Office at 919-681-2583.
Duke Players on 2020 NCFAA Watch Lists
Bednarik Award:Â Victor Dimukeje & Chris Rumph II
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#GoDuke
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This is Dimukeje's second career selection on the Bednarik Award Watch List, while Rumph II was acknowledged for the first time in his career.
Â
A Second Team All-ACC recipient last season, Dimukeje has started all 38 games he's played in. He has compiled 122 tackles, 24.5 tackles for loss, 14.0 sacks, one interception, three caused fumbles, two fumble recoveries, two pass breakups and 23 quarterback pressures. In his 2,043 career snaps, owns 24 games with 3+ tackles and eight outings with 5+ stops, including a career-high eight tackles against Wake Forest in 2019.
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Dimukeje is one of three defensive players in Duke history to start multiple bowl game victories (2017 Quick Lane & 2018 Walk-On's Independence), joining safety Michael Carter II and linebacker Ben Humphreys. He is also one of nine Blue Devils in program history to have recovered a fumble in a bowl game.
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The Baltimore, Md., native is currently tied with Vince Oghobaase for sixth all-time in Duke's career sacks chart (14.0) and is nine sacks away from breaking the record. He is also 7.5 tackles for loss away from breaking into Duke's career top-10 list.
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Rumph II garnered First Team All-America and Second Team All-America praise from Pro Football Focus and Sports Illustrated, respectively, last season, while also being tabbed a Third Team All-ACC selection. He has seen action in every game so far in his Duke career (25) and owns 72 tackles, 21.5 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, four pass breakups and 13 quarterback pressures.
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The Gainesville, Fla., native has 16 games with 2+ tackles, including a career-high eight stops against Miami in 2019. He recorded 2.0+ tackles for loss five times with a career-best 4.0 coming at Georgia Tech in 2018 and at Middle Tennessee in 2019. The 4.0 tackles for loss matched the Duke single-game freshman record (2018) and rank him tied for seventh on the program's overall single-game TFL chart (2x).
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Rumph II earned 6.5 sacks in 2019 to place him tied with Phillip Alexander (2003) for ninth all-time on Duke's single-season charts. He heads into his redshirt junior season riding a 20-game tackle streak, dating back to Oct. 13, 2018 and is ranked as the No. 2 returning edge defender in the country by ESPN.com.
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The Bednarik Award has been presented to the College Defensive Player of the Year since 1995 and is named in honor of Chuck Bednarik a former standout at the University of Pennsylvania and with the Philadelphia Eagles. Bednarik is a member of both the College Football Hall of Fame's Class of '69 and the NFL Hall of Fame's Class of '67.
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Semifinalists for the Bednarik Award will be announced November 3, 2020, while the three finalists for the Bednarik Award will be unveiled November 23, 2020. The winner of the 2020 Bednarik Awards will be announced as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show held on December 10, 2020. The formal presentations of these awards will be made at the Maxwell Football Club Awards Gala hosted by Tropicana Hotel &Casino Atlantic City on March 12, 2021.
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Duke is set to kick off the 2020 season at home on Saturday, Sept. 5 against Middle Tennessee. Game details have yet to be determined.
Season tickets are available online at www.GoDuke.com/FootballTix or by calling the Duke Athletic Ticket Office at 919-681-2583.
Duke Players on 2020 NCFAA Watch Lists
Bednarik Award:Â Victor Dimukeje & Chris Rumph II
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#GoDuke
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