Lutzenkirchen on Mackey Award watch list

A member of the Auburn football team has never won the John Mackey Award, but there is an opportunity for that to change in 2011.

On Wednesday, Auburn junior tight end Philip Lutzenkirchen was named to the preseason watch list for the award given to the nation's top tight end.

The 2011 John Mackey winner will be presented live at the Home Depot ESPN College Football Awards Red Carpet Show on December 8, 2011 at 5pm CT on ESPNU.

In 2010, Lutzenkirchen caught 15 passes for 185 yards, while also racking up five touchdowns. Lutzenkirchen's best game may have come against Georgia, as he caught two touchdowns on the way to a 49-31 win.

Lutzenkirchen's highest yardage game came in the BCS national championship game against Oregon, where he caught two passes for 48 yards, including a season high 39 yard pass reception.

However, Lutzenkirchen's biggest moment came on the road against Alabama, as he snagged the go ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter of the Tigers' historic 28-27 comeback win.

NFL Hall of Fame member John Mackey is considered to be the best to have played the tight end position. A tight end by whom all others are measured, Mackey was a role model on and off the field as demonstrated by his Super Bowl Championship, his commitment to community and his place in history as the first President of the NFLPA.

The award has been given since 2000, and past winners include the Indianapolis Colts' Dallas Clark and the Pittsburgh Steelers' Heath Miller.

Joining Lutzenkirchen on the watch list are 34 other candidates, including from the SEC, Vanderbilt senior Brandon Barden, Georgia junior Orson Charles, and Alabama junior Michael Williams.