2026 Nexstar Sports Awards: Next Level Athlete of the Year
· Yahoo Sports
WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — The eighth annual Nexstar Sports Awards and Hall of Fame banquet kicked off at 7 p.m. Thursday, July 9, 2026, inside D.L. Ligon Coliseum on the campus of Midwestern State University.
NEXSTAR SPORTS AWARDS | 2026 Nominees, Hall of Fame inducteesThe nominees for the 2026 Next Level Athlete of the Year included three athletes who attended and played for a Texoma high school and are currently competing at a collegiate level or higher outside of Texoma.
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The three finalists for the 2026 Next Level Athlete of the Year are:
WINNER — Jacob Rodriguez (Texas Tech University)
Jacob Rodriguez put together one of the most decorated defensive seasons in the history of College Football.
Rodriguez won the Bednarik Award, the Bronco Nagurski Award, the Butkus Award, the Lombardi Award and was named the Jason Witten Man of the Year.
The former Rider Raider was fifth in the Heisman voting, tied for the best finish by a Texoma Athlete with JT Barrett.
Rodriguez earned the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year honors and unanimous All-American status, leading Texas Tech to the conference title and their first-ever College Football Playoff appearance.
In April, Rodriguez was elected 43rd overall in the 2nd round in the NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins, Texoma’s highest draft pick since LJ Collier went in the first round back in 2019.
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