For the second consecutive year an NIU linebacker made the Dick Butkus award watch list.

Senior middle linebacker Nick Duffy follows Larry Williams who made the prestigious award list last season.

“I think it’s great for him,” fellow linebacker Brian Atkinson said. “When we first came in here we would talk about getting on the field and working hard. I’m glad he’s on there and I’m happy for him.”

Duffy, one of four Huskies who are on pre-season national award watch lists, enters the season No. 22 on the school’s all-time tackles list with 277.

He is rated the No. 6 middle linebacker by NFL Draft Blitz and the No. 16 linebacker in the country by the Sporting News.

“That’s a great award,” Duffy said. “It’s been something I’ve been shooting for since I started here my sophomore year.”

The watch list features 90 of the nation’s best linebackers and will be cut down to 10 on Oct. 16, three Nov. 13 with a winner announced Dec. 12.

Duffy began playing as a freshman, when he decided not to redshirt his first year.

“We had a great coaching staff at the high school I was at,” the Wheaton Warrenville South graduate said. “That kind of put me ahead of everyone. I came in here with the expectations that I was going to play.”

Duffy finished with 122 tackles last season, his 79 solo tackles ranked No. 22 in college football. His sophomore year, he led the class with 125 tackles, ranking No. 6 in the nation with 92 solos.

“Nick loves football,” NIU coach Joe Novak said. “He works extremely hard in the off-season and is very instinctive. He’s worked very hard to make himself a good football player.”

Duffy is listed as the teams strongest player in the bench press, clearing 405 pounds.

As the team’s middle linebacker, Duffy leads the defense in making all the pre-snap adjustments.

“No question he’s our leader,” Novak said, “and the team knows it. They’ve got tremendous respect for him because he is tough. I think the other kids, especially the young one’s really look to him for his leadership.”

Maryland linebacker E.J. Henderson won the Butkus Award last season. Williams, who played outside linebacker, made the list as a senior and finished the year First Team All-MAC.

Other NIU players honored are senior center Todd Ghilani for both the Outland and Rimington trophies, junior defensive end Travis Moore for the Rotary Lombardi Award, and senior placekicker Steve Azar for the Lou Groza Collegiate Placekicker Award.