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Photo by: John McGillen
USC’s Anthony Beavers Jr. Named to Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Award Watch List
September 30, 2025 | Football
LOS ANGELES—USC linebacker Anthony Beavers Jr. has been named to the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Award Watch List, today (Sept. 30).
The award, presented by Albertsons and Tom Thumb, is the first college football honor to focus primarily on a player's leadership, both on and off the field.
Nominated by their schools, the members of the watch list have all demonstrated a record of leadership by exhibiting exceptional courage, integrity and sportsmanship both on and off the field.
Beavers, a redshirt senior has also been named to the 2025 Allstate Wuerffel Trophy Watch List and is a nominee for the 2025 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.
A native of South Central Los Angeles, Beavers is extremely active in the community with the goal of inspiring local children to pursue higher education.
Over the summer, Beavers spearheaded a philanthropic event with his teammates on USC's campus. On June 24, the USC football team hosted 75 first through fifth graders from LA's BEST, an after-school enrichment program for LAUSD elementary students, for a day of fun and football. LA's BEST provides students with academic support, nutritious meals and opportunities to participate in enrichment activities, all at zero cost. Beavers, an alum of LA's Best, wanted to give back to an organization that helped shape him as a child.
As a first-generation college graduate, one of Beavers' goals with this event was to encourage the children of LA's Best to pursue higher education. This was the first time many of the children had been on a college campus and interacted with student-athletes. In his four years at USC, Beavers has earned his bachelor's degree in psychology with a minor in occupational science, a graduate certificate in gerontology and is currently pursuing his master's degree in gerontology.
After the devastating wildfires destroyed the Pacific Palisades and Altadena in Los Angeles in January, Beavers worked at a fire relief event with USC's collective, House of Victory, in conjunction with local organizations including Impact LA, ANE Foundation, AFTP Foundation and LoveChild Hospitality. He assisted in the intake of donations, sorting, organizing and packing outgoing donations at a donation resource center.
Beavers has also volunteered at the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank where he sorted and packaged foods that were distributed to local families in need.
Beavers has volunteered at the Dream Center in Echo Park, Calif. The Dream Center is a resource center focused on providing support for the homeless and the hungry through residential and community outreach programs. Through its hot meal program, the Dream Center serves thousands of free meals daily. Beavers helped prepare and serve lunches during the Dream Center's meal service and assisted with the Outdoor Pantry.
He also enjoys volunteering his time to coach youth football.
Beavers' leadership across USC's campus is extensive. He is an ambassador for the USC Shoah Foundation Witness for the Future Student Leadership program. The Student Leadership program brings student-athletes to Washington, D.C., and Europe for a transformational travel and educational experience that encourages them to embrace and activate their own leadership platforms as they learn to recognize the components and consequences of antisemitism.
Beavers recognized that many of his teammates did not have passports or had ever traveled out of the country, as there is little time to travel abroad while playing Division I football. In 2024, he recruited five other football players to join him to travel to Washington D.C. and Poland to learn about racism and antisemitism. They visited Auschwitz and learned about the Holocaust. The story was featured on Big Noon Kickoff.
Beavers continues to be an ambassador for the Shoah Foundation Witness for the Future Student Leadership program. This summer, he also recruited another group of teammates to join him on another educational trip to Washinton D.C. and Berlin, Germany.
Beavers is the Co-President of USC's United Black Student-Athletes Association. The UBSAA exists to empower and protect Black student-athletes at USC by providing a community and giving them a voice to advocate for support within USC Athletics and USC. They strive to use their position of influence to improve circumstances for the Black community within USC and beyond.
Additionally, Beavers attended the 2025 Black Student Athlete Summit in Chicago this past May. The Summit united student-athletes, athletic professionals and industry innovators for four days of programming. Participants engaged in career development sessions, financial literacy workshops and wellness activities designed to prepare them for life beyond sports. Beavers was a panelist and discussed the importance of having a village of support throughout one's collegiate career.
On the field, Beavers looks to make an impact in 2025 as a linebacker. Throughout his five-year career, he has collected 49 tackles, including 1.5 for loss, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery while appearing in 38 games with 6 starts.
Leadership is a term synonymous with Jason Witten, who, in addition to becoming one of the best tight ends in the history of the sport, served as one of football's most prominent role models during his 16-year pro career. In addition to winning the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award in 2012, Witten also received the Bart Starr Award, Pro Football Weekly's Humanitarian of the Year Award, Home Depot NFL Neighborhood MVP and the Bob Lilly Award, among many others. Each of those honors have recognized Witten's work in the community, achievements on the field and dedication to his teammates and family.
Twenty semifinalists will be selected by a by a subset of the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Selection Committee and announced on Tues., October 14. Three finalists will then be named for the award on Monday, December 15. The winner will be announced at the award ceremony at The Star in Frisco, Texas, on April 16, 2026.
The winner of the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year will also receive a $10,000 contribution in his name to his school's athletic scholarship fund. The contribution will be made by Jason Witten's SCORE Foundation, the official charity of Jason and his wife Michelle. The SCORE Foundation, founded in 2007, has positively impacted tens of thousands of children and families in Texas and Tennessee over the last 16 years. The foundation operates its nationally-recognized SCOREkeepers program, which places trained male mentors on staff to work with children at family violence shelters, at nine shelters in the two states.
The award, presented by Albertsons and Tom Thumb, is the first college football honor to focus primarily on a player's leadership, both on and off the field.
Nominated by their schools, the members of the watch list have all demonstrated a record of leadership by exhibiting exceptional courage, integrity and sportsmanship both on and off the field.
Beavers, a redshirt senior has also been named to the 2025 Allstate Wuerffel Trophy Watch List and is a nominee for the 2025 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.
A native of South Central Los Angeles, Beavers is extremely active in the community with the goal of inspiring local children to pursue higher education.
Over the summer, Beavers spearheaded a philanthropic event with his teammates on USC's campus. On June 24, the USC football team hosted 75 first through fifth graders from LA's BEST, an after-school enrichment program for LAUSD elementary students, for a day of fun and football. LA's BEST provides students with academic support, nutritious meals and opportunities to participate in enrichment activities, all at zero cost. Beavers, an alum of LA's Best, wanted to give back to an organization that helped shape him as a child.
As a first-generation college graduate, one of Beavers' goals with this event was to encourage the children of LA's Best to pursue higher education. This was the first time many of the children had been on a college campus and interacted with student-athletes. In his four years at USC, Beavers has earned his bachelor's degree in psychology with a minor in occupational science, a graduate certificate in gerontology and is currently pursuing his master's degree in gerontology.
After the devastating wildfires destroyed the Pacific Palisades and Altadena in Los Angeles in January, Beavers worked at a fire relief event with USC's collective, House of Victory, in conjunction with local organizations including Impact LA, ANE Foundation, AFTP Foundation and LoveChild Hospitality. He assisted in the intake of donations, sorting, organizing and packing outgoing donations at a donation resource center.
Beavers has also volunteered at the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank where he sorted and packaged foods that were distributed to local families in need.
Beavers has volunteered at the Dream Center in Echo Park, Calif. The Dream Center is a resource center focused on providing support for the homeless and the hungry through residential and community outreach programs. Through its hot meal program, the Dream Center serves thousands of free meals daily. Beavers helped prepare and serve lunches during the Dream Center's meal service and assisted with the Outdoor Pantry.
He also enjoys volunteering his time to coach youth football.
Beavers' leadership across USC's campus is extensive. He is an ambassador for the USC Shoah Foundation Witness for the Future Student Leadership program. The Student Leadership program brings student-athletes to Washington, D.C., and Europe for a transformational travel and educational experience that encourages them to embrace and activate their own leadership platforms as they learn to recognize the components and consequences of antisemitism.
Beavers recognized that many of his teammates did not have passports or had ever traveled out of the country, as there is little time to travel abroad while playing Division I football. In 2024, he recruited five other football players to join him to travel to Washington D.C. and Poland to learn about racism and antisemitism. They visited Auschwitz and learned about the Holocaust. The story was featured on Big Noon Kickoff.
Beavers continues to be an ambassador for the Shoah Foundation Witness for the Future Student Leadership program. This summer, he also recruited another group of teammates to join him on another educational trip to Washinton D.C. and Berlin, Germany.
Beavers is the Co-President of USC's United Black Student-Athletes Association. The UBSAA exists to empower and protect Black student-athletes at USC by providing a community and giving them a voice to advocate for support within USC Athletics and USC. They strive to use their position of influence to improve circumstances for the Black community within USC and beyond.
Additionally, Beavers attended the 2025 Black Student Athlete Summit in Chicago this past May. The Summit united student-athletes, athletic professionals and industry innovators for four days of programming. Participants engaged in career development sessions, financial literacy workshops and wellness activities designed to prepare them for life beyond sports. Beavers was a panelist and discussed the importance of having a village of support throughout one's collegiate career.
On the field, Beavers looks to make an impact in 2025 as a linebacker. Throughout his five-year career, he has collected 49 tackles, including 1.5 for loss, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery while appearing in 38 games with 6 starts.
Leadership is a term synonymous with Jason Witten, who, in addition to becoming one of the best tight ends in the history of the sport, served as one of football's most prominent role models during his 16-year pro career. In addition to winning the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award in 2012, Witten also received the Bart Starr Award, Pro Football Weekly's Humanitarian of the Year Award, Home Depot NFL Neighborhood MVP and the Bob Lilly Award, among many others. Each of those honors have recognized Witten's work in the community, achievements on the field and dedication to his teammates and family.
Twenty semifinalists will be selected by a by a subset of the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Selection Committee and announced on Tues., October 14. Three finalists will then be named for the award on Monday, December 15. The winner will be announced at the award ceremony at The Star in Frisco, Texas, on April 16, 2026.
The winner of the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year will also receive a $10,000 contribution in his name to his school's athletic scholarship fund. The contribution will be made by Jason Witten's SCORE Foundation, the official charity of Jason and his wife Michelle. The SCORE Foundation, founded in 2007, has positively impacted tens of thousands of children and families in Texas and Tennessee over the last 16 years. The foundation operates its nationally-recognized SCOREkeepers program, which places trained male mentors on staff to work with children at family violence shelters, at nine shelters in the two states.
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