ANNAPOLIS, Md.—The Manning Award, presented by the Allstate Sugar Bowl, announced its preseason Watch List on Thursday which included Navy senior quarterback Blake Horvath. The list includes 27 of the top quarterbacks in the nation heading into the 2025 season. The winner will be selected by a voting panel, which includes national media and each of the Mannings, after the postseason.
The Manning Award was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in honor of the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. It is the only quarterback award that includes the candidates' postseason performances in its balloting.
"We're looking forward to another exciting year of college football," said Archie Manning. "I'd like to thank the Sugar Bowl for continuing to build the tradition of the Manning Award which now has over 20 years of honoring the top quarterbacks in the country for the entire football season. This year we have another great group on our preseason Watch List; in October, we'll review the transfers and other newcomers and then boost the Watch List with the best from that group."
Inclusion on the Watch List is not necessary for the quarterbacks to be selected for the honor. Transfers and other newcomers at schools were not eligible for the preseason Watch List, but additional quarterbacks will be added to the Watch List during the season. Finalists will be selected prior to the postseason and the winner will be announced following the College Football Playoff National Championship.
"It's an honor for the Sugar Bowl to partner with the Manning family in recognizing the best college football quarterbacks in the country," said Jeff Hundley, CEO of the Allstate Sugar Bowl. "We've been able to recognize a great list of Manning Award winners for two decades now, and we're all looking forward to another exciting year of great quarterbacks and great games capped off by the College Football Playoff, which includes a Playoff Quarterfinal here in the Sugar Bowl."
Horvath finished the 2024 season with 1,246 yards rushing and 17 touchdowns on just 175 carries and completed 80 of his 139 pass attempts for 1,353 yards with 13 TDs and four interceptions. His 1,353 passing yards are the 10th most in school history.
Horvath was the third quarterback in school history to rush and pass for more than 1,200 yards in the same season in 2024, joining Keenan Reynolds in 2015 (1,203 passing, 1,373 rushing) and Chris McCoy in 1997 (1,203 passing, 1,370 rushing). His 2,599 yards of total offense in 2024 are the second most in school history, while his 8.3 yards of total offense per play tied with Shun White for the second most for a single season in school history. Horvath's 7.9 yards per play over his career is the second-best mark in school history.
In 2024, Horvath was the first Navy player to rush for 1,000 yards in a season since 2019 when Malcolm Perry rushed for 2,017 yards and his 1,353 passing yards are the most for a Navy player since Will Worth threw for 1,397 yards in 2016.
Horvath's 7.1 yards per carry in 2024 tied Reggie Campbell (2006) for the fifth-best single-season yards per carry average in program history and ranked third nationally.
Horvath's 95-yard touchdown run against Oklahoma in the Armed Forces Bowl was the third-longest run in the FBS in 2024. Horvath and Malcolm Perry (2016-19) are the only two Navy football players to have two runs of 90-yards or more in a career (they both did it in a single-season).
Horvath was the first Navy quarterback since Keenan Reynolds to throw a touchdown pass in four-consecutive games (streak ended at Air Force, had a touchdown pass called back due to a penalty) and his 164.4 passing efficiency in 2024 is the fourth-best mark in school history. Horvath has thrown just four interceptions in 151-career attempts for an interception percentage of .026 per attempt, the second-best average in school history.
He is averaging 16.7 yards per completion in his career (86 completions for 1,437 yards), which is the fourth-best average in school history. Horvath ranked sixth in the FBS in ESPN's QBR Rating (83.4) in 2024 and finished as the No. 9 graded runner (all positions, min. 150 att.) according to Pro Football Focus.
Horvath was the first player with seventh passing touchdowns and seven rushing touchdowns through the team's first 4 games since Lamar Jackson in 2016.
In addition to the Manning Award's yearly honor, each week during the regular season, eight quarterbacks are recognized as Manning Award Stars of the Week. Seventy-four quarterbacks were honored during the 2024 season and 570 different quarterbacks from 135 schools have been recognized since 2011.
