Ian Foster Named to Jet Award Watch List
8/6/2025 1:52:00 PM | Football
OMAHA -- The Jet Award Foundation has named Southern Miss safety and return specialist Ian Foster as one of 16 players to watch for its 2025 Player of the Year award. The prestigious award recognizes the most outstanding return specialist in college football.
Now in its 15th year, the Jet Award, named after Heisman Trophy winner and College Football Hall of Famer Johnny 'The Jet' Rodgers, celebrates the nation's most electrifying talents in the return game.Â
At Marshall, Foster was named All-Sun Belt First Team as a return man after leading the FBS in return average among qualifying players (32.4). The Brundidge, Ala. native had 16 kick returns for 518 yards and led the FBS in 50+-yard returns (3) and 40+-yard kickoff returns (5).Â
"This year's preseason watch list is stacked with game-breaking talent; get ready to witness some electrifying returns," said Johnny Rodgers, co-founder of the Jet Award Foundation. "These players on the preseason watch list demonstrate the impact a single explosive play can have on a game, and that's what the Jet Award celebrates."
The 2025 Jet Award recipient is voted on by a panel of voters from the Football Writers Association of America, former winners of the Jet Award, and founders Johnny Rodgers and William Reed. The winner will be announced at the Jet Award Gala on April 1, 2026.Â
2025 Jet Award Watch List
Zachariah Branch, Georgia
Mel Brown, UConn
Chris Culliver, North Carolina
Dylan Edwards, Kansas State
Ian Foster, Southern Miss
Kenny Johnson, Pittsburgh
Tyler Kind, New Mexico State
Parker Kingston, BYU
Keelan Marion, Miami
Jeremiah Patterson, Arizona
Koi Perich, Minnesota
Rayshawn Pleasant, Auburn
Henry Rutledge, Charlotte
Kam Shanks, Arkansas
Zavion Thomas, LSU
Kaden Wetjen, Iowa
About the Jet Award Foundation
The Jet Award Foundation raises money to provide scholarships to students majoring in the trades at Metro Community College and Iowa Western Community College. Since 2017, more than 450 students have received aid.
Follow @SouthernMissFB on X, Instagram, and Facebook for the latest Southern Miss news.Â
Now in its 15th year, the Jet Award, named after Heisman Trophy winner and College Football Hall of Famer Johnny 'The Jet' Rodgers, celebrates the nation's most electrifying talents in the return game.Â
At Marshall, Foster was named All-Sun Belt First Team as a return man after leading the FBS in return average among qualifying players (32.4). The Brundidge, Ala. native had 16 kick returns for 518 yards and led the FBS in 50+-yard returns (3) and 40+-yard kickoff returns (5).Â
"This year's preseason watch list is stacked with game-breaking talent; get ready to witness some electrifying returns," said Johnny Rodgers, co-founder of the Jet Award Foundation. "These players on the preseason watch list demonstrate the impact a single explosive play can have on a game, and that's what the Jet Award celebrates."
The 2025 Jet Award recipient is voted on by a panel of voters from the Football Writers Association of America, former winners of the Jet Award, and founders Johnny Rodgers and William Reed. The winner will be announced at the Jet Award Gala on April 1, 2026.Â
2025 Jet Award Watch List
Zachariah Branch, Georgia
Mel Brown, UConn
Chris Culliver, North Carolina
Dylan Edwards, Kansas State
Ian Foster, Southern Miss
Kenny Johnson, Pittsburgh
Tyler Kind, New Mexico State
Parker Kingston, BYU
Keelan Marion, Miami
Jeremiah Patterson, Arizona
Koi Perich, Minnesota
Rayshawn Pleasant, Auburn
Henry Rutledge, Charlotte
Kam Shanks, Arkansas
Zavion Thomas, LSU
Kaden Wetjen, Iowa
About the Jet Award Foundation
The Jet Award Foundation raises money to provide scholarships to students majoring in the trades at Metro Community College and Iowa Western Community College. Since 2017, more than 450 students have received aid.
Follow @SouthernMissFB on X, Instagram, and Facebook for the latest Southern Miss news.Â
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