Junior defensive tackle Kenny Clark was the only UCLA player named to the All-Pac-12 Conference football first team, announced Tuesday.
Eight Bruins were selected for second-team honors and three more received honorable mentions.
Redshirt junior running back Paul Perkins, the Pac-12’s third-leading rusher, earned a second-team offense nod, along with junior receiver Thomas Duarte (selected as a tight end), redshirt senior center Jake Brendel and redshirt junior offensive tackle Conor McDermott.
Junior linebacker Deon Hollins, redshirt junior safety Randall Goforth and sophomore safety Jaleel Wadood were included on the second-team defense.
Senior Ka’imi Fairbairn, a finalist for the Lou Groza Award honoring the nation’s best kicker, was also selected to the second team.
UCLA’s leading receiver, senior Jordan Payton, was listed as an honorable mention, along with redshirt junior cornerback Marcus Rios and redshirt senior linebacker Aaron Wallace, the team’s leader in sacks.
The Bruins’ leading tackler, junior linebacker Jayon Brown, did not receive an all-conference selection.
Clark, the lone first-teamer, has anchored a UCLA defense beset by injuries to fellow stars junior linebacker Myles Jack, junior defensive lineman Eddie Vanderdoes and senior defensive back Fabian Moreau. Clark ranks second for the Bruins in sacks, with five, and tied for second in tackles, with 64.
Listed at 6 feet, 3 inches and 310 pounds, the former four-star recruit has crept up draft boards this fall, climbing to ninth on CBS Sports draft analyst Rob Rang’s early November Big Board. Clark was the second-ranked defensive tackle on Rang’s list, behind only Mississippi’s Robert Nkemdiche.
“While not as athletic as my top-rated defensive tackle Nkemdiche, Clark’s burst, strength and versatility have scouts excited,” Rang wrote. “Powerful enough to anchor against double-teams and split gaps, Clark is arguably more schematically diverse than the Ole Miss star.”
Compiled by Matt Cummings, Bruin senior staff.