Pitt's Jaylen Twyman named Outland Defensive Player of the Month
Pitt sophomore defensive tackle Jaylen Twyman, who changed his number to 97 to match the jersey worn by Aaron Donald, was named Outland Trophy National Defensive Player of the Month for September. He was selected by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA).
Twyman recorded six sacks and 61/2 tackles for loss in Pitt’s first five games and is sixth in the nation and tied for the ACC lead with an average of 1.2 sacks per game. He is also second in the conference with an average of 1.3 TFLs.
Donald, the two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, won the Outland Trophy after a dominant season at Pitt in 2013. He joined offensive lineman Mark May (1980) as the only Pitt players to win the award.
The Outland Trophy, presented by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, is awarded annually to the nation’s best interior lineman. The recipient of the 74th Outland Trophy will be announced during ESPN’s The Home Depot College Football Awards on Dec. 12.
The FWAA honors a national offensive and defensive player each month throughout the regular season. The offensive recipient for September is Oregon tackle Penei Sewell.
Get the latest news about Pitt football and all things Panthers athletics.
Jerry DiPaola is a TribLive reporter covering Pitt athletics since 2011. A Pittsburgh native, he joined the Trib in 1993, first as a copy editor and page designer in the sports department and later as the Pittsburgh Steelers reporter from 1994-2004. He can be reached at jdipaola@triblive.com.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.