Northern Illinois Huskies tackle Max Scharping has been named to the 2017 Outland Trophy Watch List by the Football Writers Association of America. During Scharping’s 2016 sophomore season, he led the Huskies from his right tackle position to four consecutive sack-free games in conference play. The Central Michigan (Oct. 15), Buffalo (Oct. 22), Bowling Green (Nov. 1) and Toledo (Nov. 9) defenses were shut out of the Huskies’ backfield by the offensive linemen. Throughout the season, the Huskies allowed only eight sacks to lead the nation in fewest sacks allowed.
The Huskies ended the season with a MAC-leading 239.