Big 12 Highlights West Virginia Athletes as Candidates for Conference Athletes of the Year

It’s West Virginia’s turn for the Big 12 to highlight two deserving athletes.

The conference has been showcasing a male and female candidate from each school as possible winners of the Big 12 Athlete of the Year for each gender. This was done in alphabetical order, which meant ending with two WVU athletes on Friday.

.@WVUSports 𝐀𝐭𝐡𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐍𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐬 ⛰️

📰 https://t.co/mUwI7zhLW0 pic.twitter.com/JOSDCXx4GO

— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) July 22, 2022

As for the male choice, the respect for West Virginia offensive lineman Zach Frazier continues to roll in. And this time it’s not just about placing the Junior on a preseason watch list.

West Virginia OL Zach Frazier Named to Athlon Sports All-American Team

Frazier’s accomplishments are listed below.

• Named a permanent team captain as a sophomore.
• The two-year offensive line starter moved to center in the 2021 offseason and started all 13 games at that position.
• Academic All-Big 12 First Team.
• Allowed only three sacks per game and registered 10 games without allowing a sack or having a missed assignment.
• Earned All-American Second Team honors (AFCA, Walter Camp).

He has also been placed on just about every watch list that matters for this coming season. To be a candidate for an award like this while only entering your Junior year shows just how highly regarded Frazier is and how high the ceiling remains for the rest of his college career and beyond.

West Virginia’s female candidate may play a sport with less national recognition, but her résumé speaks for itself as to why she was chosen. Track and field star Ceili McCabe makes the cut after only her redshirt freshman season last year. McCabe is from British Columbia, Canada.

• Claimed Mid-Atlantic Region Athlete of the Year and Big 12 Runner of the Year titles after having an undefeated regular season in cross country.
• Earned All-American honors three times in the same year (Cross country, Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field).
• Holds the national sophomore record and the sixth fastest time in NCAA history in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9:31.10.
• Named Big 12 Runner of the Week twice and named National Athlete of the Week by USTFCCCA once.
• Finished first at the Big 12 Cross Country Championship, making her the first Mountaineer in program history to win the title.

The winners and owners of the male and female Big 12 Athlete of the Year will be announced at some point next week. The conference asks fans to stay tuned to Big12Sports.com and the Conference’s social media platforms for the announcement.