McMurtrie and Bush Selected to Outland Trophy Watch List

DALLAS - The pair of James Madison football defensive lineman Immanuel Bush and offensive lineman Pat McMurtrie have been honored on the 2025 Outland Trophy Watch List, the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) released Tuesday afternoon.

The Outland Trophy is celebrating its 80th season and is presented annually to college football's best interior lineman. The list is comprised of 50 standout returners, representing nine of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) conferences, with JMU being the lone program hailing from the Sun Belt Conference.

JMU is also one of 13 programs to have two athletes named to the watch list.

Bush and McMurtrie mark the second pair of Dukes to be named to the preseason watch list, as James Carpenter and Nick Kidwell were the program's first honorees ahead of the 2023 campaign.

McMurtrie, who started all 13 games at right tackle for the Dukes last season, is the lone 2024 First Team All-Sun Belt honoree who will play for the same team this season. He was the Sun Belt's top-rated tackle throughout the year, as he did not allow a single sack. The graduate was named 2025 Preseason First All-Sun Belt, as well as receiving First Team nods from Phil Steele and Athlon Sports.

An Honorable Mention All-Sun Belt selection in 2024, Bush made 13 starts at defensive line while registering a single-season career high 34 tackles (six solo) to go along with 4.0 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, one fumble recovery, one interception and one pass breakup. The Lancaster, S.C., product was tabbed Preseason Second Team All-Sun Belt, while also garnering all-conference mentions from Athlon Sports and Phil Steele.

The FWAA will announce the Outland Trophy semifinalists on Nov. 19 while finalists will be unveiled on Nov. 25. The winner of the 2025 Outland Trophy will be announced at The Home Depot College Football Awards, live on ESPN on Dec. 12.

Players may be added or removed from the watch list during the course of the season. For a third year now, the FWAA will announce an Outland Trophy National Player of the Week each Tuesday this season. If not already on the watch list, each week's honored player will be added at that time.

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