Thompson, Wicks named to Biletnikoff Award Watch List

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Virginia wide receivers Keytaon Thompson and Dontayvion Wicks were each named to the Biletnikoff Award Watch list on Thursday. The award, presented by The Tallahassee Quarterback Club (TQC) Foundation, Inc., recognizes the college football season’s outstanding FBS receiver. Any player, regardless of position (wide receiver, tight end, slot back, and running back) who catches a pass is eligible for the award.

Virginia is one of three schools (Penn State & Texas) with multiple student-athletes on the 43-player list.

Wicks, who was added to the Maxwell Award Watch list midseason last year, lands on his second watch list of the week. The Plaquemine, La. native was one of 14 receivers on the Maxwell Award Preseason watch list on Monday.

Wicks set the Virginia single-season receiving yardage record with 1,203 yards in 2021, surpassing Herman Moore’s record of 1,190 yards set in 1990. His 21.1 yards per catch last season led the ACC and was the fifth highest in the nation. He totaled six, 100-yard receiving efforts last year tied with Germane Crowell (1997) for the most in a season in UVA history. Against North Carolina he hauled in seven passes for 183 yards, the sixth-most yards in a single season in school history.

Wicks was a First Team All-ACC selection in 2021 and won the Richmond Touchdown Club Offensive End of the Year Award. He is a preseason Fourth Team All-American according to Phil Steele and a preseason All-ACC First Team offense by Athlon Sports.

Thompson led the Cavaliers with 78 receptions last season and totaled 990 yards, the sixth most in a single season in UVA history. He finished the 2021 season with five-straight games of five or more receptions and finished with three, 100-yard receiving efforts. From his position as a “FBP – Football Player”, he also rushed for 247 yards with four carries going for touchdowns. Thompson earned a spot on the ACC All-Academic team for his performance in the classroom and on the field.

The name Biletnikoff is synonymous with the term receiver. Fred Biletnikoff, a member of the pro and college football halls of fame, was a consensus All-America receiver at Florida State University and an All-Pro receiver for the Oakland Raiders. He caught 589 passes for 8,974 yards and 76 touchdowns in his 14-year Raiders career from 1965 through 1978. Fred was the Most Valuable Player of Super Bowl XI.

The 2022 Biletnikoff Award winner will be presented the Biletnikoff Award trophy by TQC Foundation Chairman Mark Ryan and the banquet keynote speaker at the black-tie Biletnikoff Award Banquet & Celebration at the Dunlap Champions Club, at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee on Saturday, March 4, 2023.