The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
08.19.2021 | Football
Texas OL Junior Angilau and QB Casey Thompson have been selected to the watch lists for the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year and Unitas Golden Arm awards, respectively.
Austin – Texas juniors OL Junior Angilau and QB Casey Thompson were named to the 2021 watch lists for the Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award and Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, respectively, on Thursday.
The Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award is presented by the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame annually to the most outstanding player of Polynesian ancestry that epitomizes great ability and integrity. The Golden Arm Award annually recognizes the top senior or upperclassman quarterback set to graduate with their class.
A native of Salt Lake City, Utah, Angilau has played and started in 22 career games at Texas. Last season, he started all 10 games after transitioning to left guard from playing right guard in 2019. He was part of a 2020 offensive line that helped the Longhorns score 42.7 points per game – the second-best scoring average in school history – and average 6.66 yards per play, the fourth-best mark in school history and best in a season since 2005. The UT line blocked for a backfield that averaged 5.3 yards per carry and scored 20 rushing touchdowns, while helping QB Sam Ehlinger record 2,943 yards of total offense and score 34 total touchdowns (26 pass/8 rush). The season before as a redshirt freshman, Angilau was part of a Texas line that was named to the Joe Moore Award Midseason Honor Roll. He helped protect Ehlinger, who accounted for 4,326 yards of total offense (No. 2 in school history) and 39 total touchdowns (No. 3), and he played in key role in helping the UT offense score 35.2 points per game. A 2020 first-team Academic All-Big 12 selection, Angilau is a four-time member of the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll.
A native of Oklahoma City, Okla., Thompson has played in seven career games and is competing for the starting quarterback position this fall. He capped last season by taking over for Ehlinger in the second half of the Valero Alamo Bowl win over Colorado and completed 8-of-10 passes for 170 yards and four touchdowns. His four touchdown passes tied Major Applewhite (2001 Holiday) for the school record in a bowl game. For the season, he completed 12-of-17 passes for 225 yards and six touchdowns with no interceptions. As a redshirt freshman in 2019, Thompson appeared in four games, including Louisiana Tech, Rice, Texas Tech and the Valero Alamo Bowl versus No. 11 Utah, completing 8-of-12 passes for 84 yards while rushing for one touchdown. A 2020 first-team Academic All-Big 12 selection, Thompson is a six-time member of the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll.
The winner of the 2021 Polynesian College Football Player of the Year Award will be announced on December 14. Five finalists will be unveiled on November 30. The presentation of the Award will be held during the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Week Celebration Dinner (January 21, 2022) at the Sheraton Waikiki, and they will also be recognized at halftime of the Polynesian Bowl (January 22, 2022). The finalists and winner will be chosen by the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame Selection Committee.
The semifinalists, finalists, and award recipient of the Golden Arm Award are selected by the distinguished Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Selection Committee, a group of prominent college football journalists, commentators, announcers, and former players. Candidates are chosen based on player performance on-and-off the field. The 2021 award winner will be presented the Golden Arm Award trophy by The Johnny Unitas Educational Foundation President, John Unitas, Jr., at the Golden Arm Award banquet and celebration at the Four Seasons Hotel in Baltimore, Md., on Friday, December 10, 2021.
