Texas A&M football: Donovan Green named to prestigious award watchlist

Texas A&M football's Donovan Green named to watchlist for Mackey Award, given annually to nation's top TE

Maybe one of the most slept-on factors for this upcoming year for Texas A&M football is the return of TE Donovan Green to the lineup. Green tore his ACL in a fall scrimmage last year, rendering him out for the year.

The Aggies had a couple of players step up, including Jake Johnson. Of course, Jake followed his brother Max to Chapel Hill this offseason, so Green's return is coming just in time.

Green really flashed some high end potential early on in his career, too—I have no doubt that the Aggies would have gotten even more production out of the position last year had he been available. He looked headed for a career equaling or exceeding that of his fellow Dickinson Gator, Jalen Wydermyer, in his freshman season.

Hopefully, he's able to return right to that trajectory. Losing the year to injury will make things difficult, of course—especially given the timing, as he is just now getting back on the field.

Even so, in recognition of his high-end potential, Green has been named to the Mackey Award watchlist. This award is presented annually to the nation's top tight end.

Of course, Aggie fans will remember the Mackey Award without much warm feelings in their heart—both the aforementioned Wydermyer and Jace Sternberger before him were snubbed for the the award during their careers, despite having more than enough qualifications to warrant consideration.

Hopefully, though, Green can reverse that trend. He'll have his work cut out for him, of course, as the Aggie TE room is looking awfully deep—but if he can harness that potential we have seen out of him, he can really make some noise.