Tempe, Ariz. - Arizona State sophomore running back Eno Benjamin was added to the Maxwell Award Watch list, announced by the Maxwell Football Club earlier today. The Maxwell Award has been presented to outstanding collegiate football players in American since 1937 in honor of Robert W. "Tiny" Maxwell.
Benjamin was joined on this morning's list by nine other players, including two Pac-12 players. The Wylie, Texas, native has been a key part of the Sun Devil offense, recording seven touchdowns and 736 yards on the ground through six games. He broke the ASU single-game rushing record for against Oregon State with 312 yards - eighth all-time in the Pac-12 and most in the NCAA Division I FBS this season.
Benjamin had two rushing touchdowns against #21 Colorado, bringing him to a total of seven combined touchdowns over the last three games (6 rushing, 1 receiving). In the first 16 games of his career at ASU, Benjamin combined for just four total touchdowns (2 rushing, 1 receiving, 1 blocked punt return). With 120 yards against CU, Benjamin eclipsed the triple digit mark for the third consecutive game. Benjamin has 538 yards in the current three-game stretch. Prior to that, he had just 321 total rushing yards in his career.
Benjamin is the current national leader in missed tackles forced, eluding 48 tackles this season - six more than the next closest running back - and forcing a missed tackles 31.8 percent of the time. He is averaging 3.56 yards after contact per play on the season - sixth-most nationally among running backs with at least 100 touches this season. Benjamin has earned a first down or touchdown on 32.8 percent of his rushes this season - good for ninth among FBS running backs - while 13.3 percent of his rushes have been for 15 or more yards (17 total), which is the second-highest average nationally.
A threat in the passing game as well, Benjamin is fifth among the nation's running backs with 30 targets and fourth with 23 receptions. His two receiving touchdowns are tied for second among FBS backs.
Today's honor adds to an impressive list of accolades for the sophomore running back this season, including earning a spot on the 2018 Doak Walker Preseason Watch List, Rose Bowl game Pac-12 Player of the Week and Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week.
Currently 3-3, (1-2 Pac-12), the Sun Devils return to action on Thursday (6 p.m. MT) when they play at home against Stanford (4-2, 2-1). The game can be seen on ESPN and heard on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM.
PAC-12 TOP SINGLE GAME RUSHING PERFORMANCES
366, Ka'Deem Carey, Arizona vs. Colorado, 2012
357, Rueben Mayes, WSU vs. Oregon, 1984
347, Ricky Bell, USC vs. WSU, 1976
332, Joe Williams, Utah at UCLA, 2016
327, Khalil Tate, Arizona at Colorado, 2017
322, Maurice Drew, UCLA vs. Washington, 2004
321, Kenjon Barner, Oregon vs. USC, 2012
312, Eno Benjamin, ASU vs. Oregon State, 2018
