RENO - Nevada junior Cody Fajardo earned a spot on his fifth preseason watch list , when he was one of 30 players named to the watch list for the Manning Award.
The Manning Award was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in honor of the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning.
It is the only quarterback award that includes the candidates' bowl performances in its balloting. This year's list of quarterbacks was selected in conjunction with the release of ESPN's new Total Quarterback Rating (QBR) - the top 30 returning quarterbacks according to the QBR make up the Watch List.
The winner will still be selected by a voting panel, which includes national media and each of the Mannings, after the bowls.
A second team All-Mountain West selection in 2012, Fajardo has accounted for 6,308 yards of total offense so far in two seasons at Nevada.
Last year, Fajardo threw for 2,786 yards and 20 touchdowns with just nine interceptions while rushing for 1,121 yards and 12 more scores.
"This is always an exciting time of year for college football players, coaches and fans," said Archie Manning. "ESPN has come up with an interesting new statistical measure of quarterbacks so we decided to use the QBR to determine our Watch List, but we want to remind everyone that every quarterback in the country remains eligible to win this honor and we're looking forward to seeing how things play out on the field."
Total QBR measures a quarterback's contributions to scoring on each play (passing, rushing, sacks, fumbles, and penalties) accounting for game context (down, distance, yard line, time remaining, and score) and adjusted for opponent strength. It is based on a 0-100 scale and 50 is average.
This year's watch list includes players from all 10 Football Bowl Subdivision conferences. The Mountain West Conference leads the way with six honorees, while the Southeastern Conference has five quarterbacks on the list and the Pac-12 adds four.
Additional quarterbacks may be added to the Watch List after the start of the season. The list of 10 finalists will be released on Wednesday, Nov. 27. The winner will be announced on Wednesday, Jan. 8.
In addition, Fajardo was named to the watch List for the 2013 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award.
Established in 1987, the award is presented at the end of each season to the nation's top college quarterback based on character, citizenship, scholastic achievement, leadership, qualities, and athletic accomplishments. Candidates must be a college senior or fourth-year junior on schedule to graduate with their class.
Past standout winners of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award include: Peyton Manning (Tennessee, 1997); Carson Palmer (USC, 2002); Eli Manning (Ole Miss, 2003); Brady Quinn (Notre Dame, 2006); Matt Ryan (Boston College, 2007); Colt McCoy (Texas, 2009); and Andrew Luck (Stanford, 2011).
Last year's winner, Collin Klein of Kanas State, was a 2nd Team All-American (AP) and the 2012 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year (AP).
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