UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State junior Cooper Cousins was tabbed to the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year watch list. He is one of 80 players on the watch list.
Nominated by their schools, members of the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year watch list have all demonstrated a record of leadership by exhibiting exceptional courage, integrity and sportsmanship both on and off the field.
The award, presented by Albertsons and Tom Thumb, is the first college football honor to focus primarily on a player’s leadership, both on and off the field.
Cooper Cousins · Jr. · OL · 6-6 · 320 · Erie, Pa. · McDowell
- Named to Allstate Wuerffel Trophy Watch List.
- Selected Allstate AFCA Good Works Team nominee.
- Cousins was paired with 10-year-old Gannon Kupko Jr. of York County, Pennsylvania, in September 2024 through Team IMPACT, the national organization that connects children facing serious illness with college athletic programs.
- Born 12 weeks premature at 13 ounces, Gannon continues to undergo daily chemotherapy to manage immune dysfunction, and has become a fixture within the Nittany Lion program, seeking out Cousins first at practices, games and team events.
- Last spring, Cousins represented Team IMPACT nationally at the 2025 Game Day Gala, speaking in front of more than 1,000 supporters at an event that raised over $3.3 million for children like Gannon.
- "You are the reason we're better," Cousins told the audience. "You inspire us to work harder, love deeper, and laugh a little louder. You're not just part of the team…you are the team."
- Cousins credits his introduction to Penn State's culture of service in part to former teammate Nick Dawkins, the 2024 Allstate Wuerffel Trophy recipient.
- On the field, Cousins earned Academic All-Big Ten honors in 2025 and has appeared in 28 games with two starts.
- He helped anchor a front that produced the only FBS running back tandem in the country with 13-plus rushing touchdowns apiece in Kaytron Allen (15) and Nicholas Singleton (13), the first Big Ten teammates to accomplish the feat since 2012.
- Allen finished sixth nationally in rushing yards (1,303) and seventh in rushing yards per game (108.6).
- Cousins was also named to the Allstate Wuerffel Trophy watch list last year.
- Earned Academic All-Big Ten honors in 2025.
- Tabbed to the Allstate Wuerffel Trophy watch list and a Good Works Team nominee.
- Has played in 28 games and made two starts at Penn State.
- Helped the Nittany Lions to gain 400+ total yards in five games and 200+ rushing yards in five games.
- Guided Kaytron Allen to rank sixth in the country in rushing yards (1,303), seventh rushing yards per game (108.6) and rushing touchdowns (15) and 19th in yards per carry (6.2) in 2025.
- Aided Allen (15) and Nicholas Singleton (13) to be the only FBS running back duo with 13+ rushing touchdowns this season and the first Big Ten teammates with 13+ rushing touchdowns in a season since Ohio State in 2012.
Twenty semifinalists will be selected by a subset of the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Selection Committee and announced on October 13. Three finalists will be named on December 14 and the winner will be announced at the award ceremony will take place in Spring 2027.
For information on joining the Nittany Lion Club and ticket information for the 2026 Penn State Football season presented by PSECU, as well as club seating in West Shore Home Field at Beaver Stadium, fans can visit www.GoPSUsports.com, or call 1-800-NITTANY weekdays from 9 a.m.-4 p.m.