Vote for college football's 2016 catch of the year: Round 1
All season long we’ve asked you to vote for the best catch from each week of college football action. Now that the regular season has come to an end and bowl games are around the corner, it’s time to crown a catch of the year winner.
We’ve taken the catch of the week winners from all 14 weeks of the season and seeded them one through 14 in what basically amounts to a single-elimination tournament decided by your votes. To make it all work, the top two seeds — Ohio State’s Noah Brown and Memphis’ Anthony Miller — get a first-round bye.
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Here are the first-round matchups:
No. 3 seed Moroni Laulu-Pututau (BYU) vs. No. 14 seed Sergio Bailey (Eastern Michigan)
Moroni Laulu-Pututau, BYU — Week 7 vs. Mississippi State
BYU sophomore Moroni Laulu-Pututau had just two catches in an October overtime win over Mississippi State, but he made them count. In addition to a 15-yard touchdown grab, he also hauled in this one-handed beauty:
Here’s another angle:
Sergio Bailey, Eastern Michigan — Week 2 vs. Missouri
In an early-season road loss at Missouri, Eastern Michigan’s Sergio Bailey set the tone for a season in which he’d lead the team in receptions and touchdowns with this awesome diving TD grab.
Bailey fought through contact from the defensive back and laid out to bring in his first touchdown of the year.
No. 4 seed Bryce Bobo (Colorado) vs. No. 13 seed Mike Gesicki (Penn State)
Bryce Bobo, Colorado — Week 4 vs. Oregon
In Week 4, Colorado’s Bryce Bobo hauled in a spectacular one-handed catch to help the Buffs knock off Oregon for the first time since 1998. Bobo’s in-air adjustment — while fighting through tight coverage — and one-handed snag was originally ruled incomplete, but correctly overturned following a review.
Mike Gesicki, Penn State — Week 13 vs. Michigan State
In Penn State’s Big Ten East-clinching win over Michigan State, Gesicki set the PSU record for receiving yards at his position. This 45-yard scoring grab in traffic expanded PSU’s lead to two scores in the third in an eventual 45-12 win.
No. 5 seed Jeremy Tabuyo (Texas A&M) vs. No. 12 seed Linell Bonner (Houston)
Jeremy Tabuyo, Texas A&M — Week 5 vs. South Carolina
Texas A&M senior Jeremy Tabuyo had a career-high 89 receiving yards in an Oct. 1 win over South Carolina. 29 of those yards came on this wild one-handed catch in the second quarter. Tabuyo used impressive body control to locate the ball and rotate in the air and catch the ball with just his left hand.
Linell Bonner, Houston — Week 1 vs. Oklahoma
After QB Greg Ward escaped heavy pressure, Houston junior Linell Bonner made a clutch — and extremely difficult — first down catch for the Cougars in their Week 1 win over Oklahoma.
Bonner somehow managed to stretch out for the ball, which was a few yards out of bounds. He kept his left foot planted in the field of play to give the Cougars a 16-yard gain.
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No. 6 seed Kenny Golladay (Northern Illinois) vs. No. 11 seed Shaedon Meadors (Appalachian State)
Kenny Golladay, Northern Illinois — Week 8 vs. Buffalo
Northern Illinois had a down year, but Kenny Golladay still produced at a high level each week. In a Week 8 win over Buffalo, Golladay had seven catches for 96 yards and this crazy touchdown:
NIU dialed up a designed throwback with the quarterback rolling right and Golladay’s route coming back across the field. Golladay went with a full-out dive and was able to make the catch with one hand for a 22-yard touchdown.
Shaedon Meadors, Appalachian State — Week 9 vs. Georgia State
In a 34-10 win over Georgia Southern, App State junior Shaedon Meadors led the way with six catches for 126 yards. He had a 30-yard catch in the second quarter you have to see to believe. Even though the DB had a hand on the ball, the 6-foot-2 Meadors was strong enough to snatch it away and maintain possession as he fell out of bounds.
(The poll was mistakenly submitted with Kenny Golladay as “Kelly.” Since hundreds of votes have been tallied, it cannot be changed. We regret the error.)
No. 7 seed Dante Pettis (Washington) vs. No. 10 seed Mike Gesicki (Penn State)
Dante Pettis, Washington — Week 6 vs. Oregon
Dante Pettis had a huge game during Washington’s 70-21 dismantling of Oregon. Pettis had eight catches for 134 yards and two touchdowns, one of which was this beautiful one-hander in the third quarter.
Pettis is seventh in the country with 14 touchdown catches heading into Washington’s College Football Playoff matchup against Alabama.
Mike Gesicki, Penn State — Week 14 vs. Wisconsin
Mike Gesicki is back among for his awesome touchdown catch in the Big Ten title game. PSU was down 14-0 when Trace McSorley looked deep for Gesicki who made an impressive leaping grab over a defender. This is a 250-pound tight end making this athletic play:
No. 8 seed Zach Pascal (Old Dominion) vs. No. 9 seed Khalid Hill (Michigan)
Zach Pascal, Old Dominion — Week 12 vs. Florida Atlantic
Old Dominion senior Zach Pascal had nine catches for 178 yards and a touchdown in a Week 12 win over Florida Atlantic. One of his best plays of the day was this fingertip catch on a deep ball from David Washington.
Pascal has 63 catches for 893 yards and eight touchdowns heading into ODU’s bowl game.
Khalid Hill, Michigan — Week 10 vs. Maryland
Michigan fullback Khalid Hill’s stats won’t jump out at you, but he’s been a big part of Michigan’s success this year. has had a nose for the end zone this season. He has 144 yards of offense on the year, but he’s reached the end zone 12 times. This wasn’t one of those touchdowns, but it shows you how good his hands are when he gets an opportunity
Hill was able to extend out and tip the ball to himself twice and bring it in for a short gain. That was in a 38-0 game, too. Effort like that should be commended.
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Sam Cooper is a writer for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
