BOONE, N.C. — ­­The preseason watch list for the 2018 Paycom Jim Thorpe Award, which is given to the best defensive back in college football, includes Appalachian State junior Clifton Duck.
 
Named a second-team preseason All-American by Street and Smith, Duck is tied for first place nationally with 11 interceptions since the start of the 2016 season. In the same time frame, according to the PFF College Football site, he leads FBS defensive backs by allowing a passer rating of just 50.4 when targeted with a throw.
 
A Charlotte, N.C., native, Duck had five interceptions as a true freshman in 2016, when he was named to a pair of Freshman All-America Teams. He added six more interceptions last season to go along with his 50 tackles and one sack as a sophomore.
 
The 2018 Paycom Jim Thorpe Award recipient will be announced Dec. 6 at The Home Depot College Football Awards. The Paycom Jim Thorpe Award commemorative banquet will be held Feb. 5 in Oklahoma City.

JONESBORO, Ark.  – Arkansas State senior defensive back Justin Clifton has been named to the 2018 Jim Thorpe Award Preseason Watch List, which is given annually to the nation’s top defensive back in college football.

Clifton is one of just 35 players recognized by the organization after he compiled a stellar junior season for the Red Wolves. The Sun Belt Preseason First-Team All-Conference pick compiled 63 tackles to rank third on the team in 2017, while also collecting a career-best 13 pass break-ups and had two forced fumbles. He was the only player in the league and just one of six in the nation with 63 tackles and 13 pass break-ups.

The Tupelo, Miss., native also was posted multiple tackles in every game and accounted for at least one pass break-up in nine games. He returns for his senior season as the school’s active leader in career tackles (179), tackles for loss (18), interceptions (4), pass break-ups (19) and forced fumbles (4).

The 2018 Paycom Jim Thorpe Award winner is selected from three finalists and will be announced at The Home Depot College Football Awards Presented by Gildan on Thursday, December 6, 2018, on ESPN. The Paycom Jim Thorpe Award commemorative banquet will be held on Tuesday, February 5, 2019, in Oklahoma City.

Season tickets for the Red Wolves' 2018 football campaign, which includes six home games, are available for purchase.

Tickets may be purchased through the A-State Ticket Office, located at the Convocation Center's lower red entrance, in person, by phone at 870-972-2781 or online by visiting AStateRedWolves.com/Tickets.

NEW ORLEANS – Troy senior cornerback Blace Brown has been named to the Jim Thorpe Award Watch List, the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame announced Monday. Brown, a Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team selection, enters the 2018 season second among active players with his 11 career interceptions.
 
Brown, a native of Canton, Ga., earned first team All-Sun Belt honors last season after he ranked 11th nationally with five interceptions. He added a pick six at Boise State and pulled down two of the most impactful interceptions of the season for the Trojans.
 
He sealed Troy's 24-21 victory at No. 22 LSU as he intercepted Danny Etling with five seconds remaining in the game. He also kept the Tigers out of the end zone early in the third quarter as he forced a fumble on the Troy 9-yard. In Troy's victory at Arkansas State to clinch a Sun Belt title, Brown intercepted Justice Hansen in the end zone on a 1st-and-goal from the Troy 7-yard line. 
 
A former walk-on wide receiver for the Trojans, Brown flourished in his new position as he ranked seventh nationally in 2016 as a sophomore with six interceptions, including a pair of multi-interception games. His 0.41 career interceptions per game rank second nationally among active players but take out his three games as a receiver in 2014 and his per-game total jumps to an FBS best (active players) 0.46 interceptions per game.