Baylor’s Florence Added to Maxwell Award Watch List - kcentv.com - KCEN HD - Waco, Temple, and Killeen

PHILADELPHIA – Baylor senior quarterback Nick Florence has been added to the watch list for the 76^th annual Maxwell Award, as announced by the Maxwell Football Club on Thursday. Florence joins teammate Terrance Williams on the 78-man watch list.

The Maxwell Award has been given annually to the nation's outstanding collegiate football player since 1937, and the award is named in honor of sportswriter Robert W. "Tiny" Maxwell. Florence was one of 13 players added to the original 65-man preseason watch list.

Florence has led Baylor to a 3-0 start by completing 64.5 percent of his passes for 1,004 yards and 11 touchdowns. He leads the nation in total offense, averaging 387.7 yards per game, and he ranks second in the Big 12 Conference with 334.7 passing yards per game.

The senior from Garland, Texas, has passed for more than 300 yards and at least three touchdowns in each of the Bears' first three games this season. He set career highs with four TD passes against both SMU and Louisiana-Monroe.

Florence's season-opening performance against SMU gave him the nation's best passing efficiency. He completed 21 of 30 passes for 341 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions.

In the Sept. 8 game against Sam Houston State, Florence passed for 312 yards and rushed for 80 more, including a 60-yard run that was the 35^th-longest in program history and the fifth-longest not to reach the end zone.

Florence led the Bears back from a 14-0 deficit on Friday at ULM, completing 26 of 39 passes for 351 yards and four touchdowns to guide the Bears past a Warhawks team that was playing in front of the largest home crowd in ULM history.

Semifinalists for the Maxwell Award will be announced Oct. 29, and the three finalists will be unveiled Nov. 19. The winner of the 2012 Maxwell Award will be announced as part of the Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show held on Dec. 6. Baylor's Robert Griffin III was one of 16 semifinalists in each of the last two seasons.

Other Big 12 players on the 78-man watch list are: Collin Klein (Kansas State), Landry Jones (Oklahoma), Kenny Stills (Oklahoma), Dominique Whaley (Oklahoma), Joseph Randle (Oklahoma State), Casey Pachall (TCU), David Ash (Texas), Malcolm Brown (Texas), Seth Doege (Texas Tech), Geno Smith (West Virginia) and Tavon Austin (West Virginia).