CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Illinois defensive tackle Jer'Zhan Newton has been named a Consensus All-American, the NCAA officially announced Thursday. Newton cemented his place as one of the all-time greats in Illinois history as the program's 22nd Consensus All-American and the 13th since 1950.
With four All-America first-team selections of the five official All-America teams (AFCA, AP, FWAA, Sporting News), Newton will be honored forever at Illinois with a plaque in Grange Grove, a banner in the Great West Hall of Memorial Stadium, and his jersey hung in the Smith Center staircase.
Newton is the second Illini defender to earn Consensus All-American honors in as many years, following DB Devon Witherspoon becoming the program's 21st all-time Consensus selection last season. It is the first time Illinois has had back-to-back seasons with Consensus All-Americans since 1994 and 1995, when linebackers Dana Howard (1994) and Kevin Hardy (1995) were both honored.
Newton's long list of accolades this season have included Nagurski Trophy finalist, as one of the nation's top-five defensive players, and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. He led Power-5 defensive tackles in quarterback pressures for the second straight season in 2023, according to PFF. His 44 pressures during the regular season led all Big Ten defensive tackles by 15, and he also led Big Ten defensive tackles in sacks with 7.5, which ranked second overall in the conference. Over the last two seasons, Newton totaled 103 quarterback pressures, by far the most in the nation among defensive tackles.
Newton ranked in the top three of nearly every statistical category among defensive tackles this season, including third in sacks, defensive stops, and quarterback hits, plus first in snaps played. He also ranked seventh in the nation in tackles among defensive tackles with 52, which ranked third among Power-5 defensive tackles and first among Big Ten defensive tackles, and led the nation in blocked kicks with four.
Newton will begin training and preparation for the 2024 NFL Draft. He is predicted to be a first-round selection.
Illinois Consensus All-Americans
Ralph Chapman, G, 1914
Perry Graves, E, 1914
Bart Macomber, HB, 1915
John Depler, C, 1918
Charles Carney, E, 1920
Jim McMillen, G, 1923
Harold "Red" Grange, HB, 1923, 24, 25
Bernie Shively, G, 1926
Alex Agase, G, 1946
Johnny Karras, HB, 1951
J.C. Caroline, HB, 1953
Bill Burrell, G, 1959
Dick Butkus, C, 1963, 64
Jim Grabowski, FB, 1965
David Williams, WR, 1984, 85
Moe Gardner, NT, 1989, 90
Dana Howard, LB, 1994
Kevin Hardy, LB, 1995
J Leman, LB, 2007
Whitney Mercilus, DE, 2011
Devon Witherspoon, CB, 2022
Jer'Zhan Newton, DT, 2023
In 1950, the National Collegiate Athletic Bureau (the NCAA's service bureau) compiled the first official comprehensive roster of all-time All-Americans. The compilation of the All-America roster was supervised by a panel of analysts working in large part with the historical records contained in the files of the Dr. Baker Football Information Service.
2023 Consensus All-Americans
Offense
WR—Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio St., 6-4, 205, Jr.
WR—Malik Nabers, LSU, 6-0, 200, Jr.
WR—Rome Odunze, Washington, 6-3, 215, Jr.
TE—Brock Bowers, Georgia, 6-4, 240, Jr.
OL—Joe Alt, Notre Dame, 6-8, 322, Jr.
OL—Cooper Beebe, Kansas St., 6-4, 335, Sr.
OL—Olumuyiwa Fashanu, Penn St., 6-6, 317, Jr.
OL—Zak Zinter, Michigan, 6-6, 322, Sr.
C—Jackson Powers-Johnson, Oregon, 6-3, 320, Jr.
QB—Jayden Daniels, LSU, 6-4, 210, Sr.
RB—Ollie Gordon II, Oklahoma St., 6-1, 211, So.
RB—Cody Schrader, Missouri, 5-9, 214, Sr.
PK—Graham Nicholson, Miami (OH), 6-0, 185, Jr.
Returner/All-Purpose—Travis Hunter, Colorado, 6-1, 185, So.
Defense
DL—Jonah Elliss, Utah, 6-2, 246, Jr.
DL—Laiatu Latu, UCLA, 6-5, 265, Sr.
DL—Jer'Zhan Newton, Illinois, 6-2, 295, Jr.
DL—T'Vondre Sweat, Texas, 6-4, 362, Sr.
LB—Edgerrin Cooper, Texas A&M, 6-3, 230, Jr.
LB—Dallas Turner, Alabama, 6-4, 252, Jr.
LB—Payton Wilson, NC State, 6-4, 238, Sr.
DB—Cooper DeJean, Iowa, 6-1, 207, Jr.
DB—Malaki Starks, Georgia, 6-1, 205, So.
DB—Xavier Watts, Notre Dame, 5-11, 204, Jr.
DB—(tie) Beanie Bishop Jr., West Virginia, 5-10, 184, Sr.
DB—(tie) Kool-Aid McKinstry, Alabama, 6-1, 195, Jr.
P—Tory Taylor, Iowa, 6-4, 232, Sr.
