OU football: Sooner offensive line wins Joe Moore Award

Oklahoma's offensive line was named the winner of the Joe Moore Award on Tuesday. The award is given annually to the best offensive line in college football.

The unit is coached by Bill Bedenbaugh and is comprised of left tackle Bobby Evans, left guard Ben Powers, center Creed Humphrey, right guard Dru Samia and right tackle Cody Ford.

“In an unprecedentedly close vote, Oklahoma’s offensive line unit narrowly edged out Alabama and Georgia in what many voters felt was their toughest decision yet,” said Aaron Taylor, CBS analyst and co-founder of the Joe Moore Award.

The Joe Moore Award, named for the former Notre Dame offensive line coach, was established in 2015. Oklahoma is the first Big 12 school to win the award.

The Joe Moore Award trophy will be displayed on OU’s campus through the end of the year. It stands almost seven feet tall and weighs 800 pounds.

OU’s offense averaged a historic 8.7 yards per snap. The Sooners averaged 254 rushing yards per game and 324 passing yards per game behind the offensive line.

“Oklahoma made a statement with how consistently they finished and played through the echo of the whistle,” said Cole Cubelic, former Auburn offensive lineman and chairman of the Joe Moore Award voting committee. “They showed a tone-setting attitude in both pass protection and run blocking that really caught the attention of the 200 plus member voting body that has collectively played and coached this position for over 800 years.”