DALLAS (FWAA) – Houston center Anthony Boswell anchored a line last Saturday that created opportunities for the Cougars to rack up one of their most successful offensive outputs since joining the Big 12. For guiding the blocking in what became a 505-total yard output in No. 20 Houston’s 35-32 win over No. 18 Oklahoma State, Boswell was selected as the Outland Trophy National Player of the Week honor for games during the weekend of Oct. 17, as selected by the Football Writers Association of America.
This is the fourth season for the FWAA to select an Outland Trophy National Player of the Week as part of the NCFAA's weekly national honors from 12 awards. The recipient of the 2026 Outland Trophy will be announced on The Home Depot College Football Awards, live on ESPN on Dec. 11. The official presentation to the winner will be made at the Outland Trophy Awards Dinner sponsored by Werner Enterprises and produced by the Greater Omaha Sports Committee in Omaha, Neb., on Jan. 27, 2027.
Boswell is the first Houston player to earn the Outland Trophy National Player of the Week honor. The weekly winners, including Boswell this week, are added to the award’s preseason watch list going forward.Boswell, a 6-foot-2, 301-pound junior from Indianapolis, Ind., led the protection that created a career night for quarterback Conner Weigman, who threw for 343 yards and a career-high five touchdowns. It was a huge night for Houston as well playing in front of 42,544 fans, the fourth-largest crowd in TDECU Stadium history, as it topped 500 yards of total offense for the third time this season. Houston’s 505 total yards and five passing touchdowns were a program record in a Big 12 game, and the 343 passing yards were its second-best all-time Big 12 mark.
Boswell has started all seven games for Houston and has proven to be one of the portal’s top ‘gets.’ He started all 12 games at Toledo last season and posted the 10th-best offensive grade among FBS centers and the third-best run-blocking grade. He didn’t allow a sack during the 2025 season and yielded only six pressures on 403 pass-blocking snaps, earning First Team All-Mid-American Conference honors as well as being named a Freshman All-America. It was his only season at Toledo after initially playing at Purdue as a preferred walk-on in 2024 after not receiving any Division I offers out of high school. Film from his scout team work at Purdue led to 15 offers from Group of Six programs the following offseason, and Boswell chose Toledo.
He commands plenty of attention now after joining the Cougars in January, with national eyes on his career trajectory as well as that of Houston, which continues to climb the rankings and the standings as it pursues a spot in the Big 12 Championship Game. He has two years of eligibility remaining following the season.
Houston offensive line coach Eman Naghavi said Boswell had "all the intangibles" the Cougars were looking for at center this offseason in a preseason interview with FWAA member Joseph Duarte and the Houston Chronicle. Houston coaches spoke to his former coaches at Purdue and concluded it was a "no-brainer" to sign him.
"He's come up from the bottom," Naghavi said in the Chronicle's story. "I love that about him. He's a good leader. He's wired the right way and loves football. We got lucky with him."
Boswell is one of three transfer starters on the Cougars’ line along with left guard Shadre Hurst, an Outland Trophy preseason watch list member, and right tackle Drew Terrill.
Boswell’s blocking and protection has led Houston to become the FBS leader in an oft-hidden category, third-down conversions. The Cougars are converting 61 percent of their third-down plays, extending their drives 54 times on 88 third-down plays. Houston has yet to convert on less than 50 percent of third down attempts in a game this season.
Houston has an Outland Trophy past, as defensive tackle Ed Oliver won the award in 2017. Oliver was also a semifinalist in 2018.
The FWAA will announce the Outland Trophy semifinalists on Nov. 18, and those players will then be paired down to three finalists announced on Nov. 24. The Outland Trophy winner is chosen from those finalists who will be part of the annual FWAA All-America Team. The FWAA All-America Committee, after voting input from the entire membership, selects a 26-man first team and eventually the three Outland finalists. Committee members, then by individual ballot, select the winner. Only interior linemen on offense or defense are eligible for the award; ends and edge rushers are not eligible.
The Outland Trophy, celebrating 81 years since its founding, is the third-oldest major college football award. Created in 1946 when Dr. John Outland presented the FWAA with a financial contribution to initiate the award, the Outland Trophy has been given to the best interior lineman in college football ever since Dr. Outland, an All-American at the University of Pennsylvania in the late 1890s, eventually took up practice in Kansas City, Mo. An avid outdoorsman, Dr. Outland believed linemen did not get the credit they deserved and wanted an award to recognize them.
The Outland Trophy is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses college football’s most prestigious awards. The NCFAA’s 25 awards have honored nearly 1,000 recipients since 1935. Visit NCFAA.org for more information or follow on X at @NCFAA.
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The Greater Omaha Sports Committee, founded in 1977, is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, consisting of more than 1,300 men and women from the City of Omaha, the State of Nebraska, and others. The Committee serves to communicate, develop, initiate and promote sports activities in the Greater Omaha sports area. In addition to the Outland Trophy Award Events and Dinner, the Greater Omaha Sports Committee promotes high school, college, and professional sports in the Greater Omaha area and the Midwest. For more information contact Bob Mancuso Jr., Chairman at bmancuso@showofficeonline.com or see showofficeonline.com.
Founded in 1941, the Football Writers Association of America consists of 1,200 men and women who cover college football. The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas that include game-day operations, major awards and its annual All-America team. For more information about the FWAA and its award programs, contact Steve Richardson at tiger@fwaa.com.