12/09/2021
Taijh Alston has been selected as one of nine semifinalists for the 2021 Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award. The , in association with the , and , selected the college football student-athletes as those who have overcome injury, illness or other adversity to excel on the field this season as semifinalists. The three winners will be announced on Tues., Dec. 21 and honored at the Fiesta Bowl on Sat., Jan. 1.
, a redshirt junior defensive lineman for , suffered the second major knee injury of his career in the second game of the 2019 season versus Missouri. During his rehab, the native of Lumberton, NC tore his Achilles tendon, which forced him to miss the entire 2020 season.
The 6-foot-4, 245-pound defensive lineman began his college career at East Carolina, but before ever playing a down for the Pirates, he suffered his first major knee injury. He transferred to Copiah-Lincoln Community College in Wesson, Mississippi and had an impressive 2018 season, recording 78 tackles seven sacks and 15 tackles for loss.
He transferred to West Virginia in 2019 and despite missing most of that season and the entire 2020 campaign, he has been a force for the Mountaineers this season. STATS: 33 tackles, 10 TFL, 5 Sacks, 3 QBH
The other eight semi-finalists include: Terrel Bernard (LB, Baylor); Jack Coan (QB, Notre Dame); Ryan Hubley (WR, Johns Hopkins); Aidan Hutchinson (DE, Michigan); McKenzie Milton (QB, Florida State); Cameron Rising (QB, Utah); Avery Samuels (OL, Stetson); and J.J. Weaver (LB, Kentucky).