Owen Chambliss is already carrying one of the more interesting labels on Nebraska’s roster: transfer addition, immediate impact candidate and now Butkus Award Watch List member.
The San Diego State linebacker was named Thursday to the 51-player list, putting the 6-foot-3, 240-pound junior in position to chase the honor that goes to college football’s top linebacker in 2026. For Nebraska, it’s a clear sign the staff believes it landed a difference-maker from outside the Power Four.
Chambliss arrives in Lincoln after a 2025 season that put him firmly on the national radar. He was the only underclassman in the Mountain West Conference to earn first-team all-defense recognition, and he backed that up with a huge year for the Aztecs: 110 tackles, 9½ tackles for loss, 4.0 sacks, five pass deflections and one interception in 13 games. He also led a San Diego State defense that finished No. 11 nationally in yardage allowed.
His rise didn’t happen overnight. Chambliss started seven games at linebacker in 2024 after redshirting his first collegiate season at Utah. In all, he has played in 25 games and made 20 starts, giving Nebraska a linebacker who already knows what it takes to handle a full-time role.
That matters because Chambliss is stepping into a linebacker room that has real experience around him. Nebraska’s 2026 group includes three players who have started at least 11 college games. Dexter Foster, a transfer from Oregon State, is listed at 6-foot-3 and 235 pounds, while Vincent Shavers has appeared in 26 games with 14 starts as a Husker and stands 6-foot-1, 225 pounds.
There’s also a schematic fit here that makes the move even more natural. Chambliss already has experience in defensive coordinator Rob Aurich’s 4-2-5 system, which puts him in early contention to handle Nebraska’s Green Dot responsibilities this fall and make the defensive calls for the group. He’s already spent a full season learning, developing and doing that.
The Butkus watch list itself carries the weight of Dick Butkus’ No. 51 jersey and honors toughness, leadership and competitiveness. Semifinalists will be announced Oct. 28, finalists on Nov. 20, and the winner during the week of Dec.
- Chambliss is one of 12 Big Ten linebackers on the list.
The standard for winning is steep. Over the last five seasons, Butkus winners have averaged 104.8 tackles and 5.1 sacks, and Iowa’s Jack Campbell was the most recent Big Ten linebacker to take the award after posting 125 tackles, two interceptions, one pass breakup and one sack in 2022.
Chambliss’ 2025 season gives him a real platform. If he can do anything close to that against Big Ten competition, he’ll make a serious case.
Nebraska has been here before. Trev Alberts won the Butkus Award in 1993 after piling up 96 tackles, 21 tackles for loss and 15 sacks, then went on to be selected fifth overall by the Indianapolis Colts.
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