Walter Camp Preseason Watch List Features Mateer, Bailey, Madsen Among 50 Candidates

The Walter Camp Football Foundation on Monday unveiled its 2026 Player of the Year Preseason Watch List, naming 50 players from 38 programs as candidates for the nation's fourth-oldest individual college football honor. The list spans 41 offensive players — including 22 quarterbacks, 11 running backs and eight wide receivers and tight ends — alongside nine defensive players.

Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer is among those named to the watch list, giving him a chance to become the fifth player in Sooners program history to claim the prestigious national award. Mateer's inclusion adds to a growing collection of preseason recognition for Oklahoma heading into the 2026 season.

NC State junior quarterback CJ Bailey also earned a spot on the list. The 6-foot-6, 218-pound signal-caller enters his third season as the Wolfpack's starter after throwing for 3,105 yards, 25 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 2025, helping guide NC State to an eight-win campaign that concluded with a Gasparilla Bowl victory over Memphis. Bailey already holds the school's career completion percentage record at .671 and ranks among program leaders in several other passing categories through 22 career starts. He was also named to the Maxwell Award watch list earlier this summer.

Maddux Madsen and Lucky Sutton were also named to the 2026 Walter Camp watch list, as was Isaac Brown, whose inclusion drew attention from his program on Monday. Louisville's social media channels celebrated Brown's selection with the hashtag #GoCards.

The watch list will be trimmed to 10 semifinalists in early November, with three finalists set to be announced in early December. The winner will be chosen by a vote of the 138 NCAA FBS head coaches and sports information directors, with the award presented during the second week of December. The Walter Camp Football Foundation noted that appearing on the preseason watch list is not a requirement for a player to ultimately win the award or earn Walter Camp All-America honors.