Jonathan Taylor, Michael Deiter earn Big Ten player of the year honors for their positions

Two Wisconsin Badgers earned individual position awards from the Big Ten Conference on Wednesday.

Sophomore running back Jonathan Taylor claimed the Ameche-Dayne Running Back of the Year award, while redshirt senior left guard Michael Deiter collected the Rimington-Pace Offensive Lineman of the Year honor.

Taylor rushed for 1,989 yards and 15 touchdowns through 12 games this season. In 11 of those 12 contests, he rushed for 100 or more yards. He currently leads the nation in rushing yards and yards per game (165.8).

Going over 200 or more yards four times this season, the sophomore back also is a Doak Walker Award finalist. Joining an elite category of collegiate running backs, the New Jersey native became the fourth player in FBS history to rush for 1,900 yards in consecutive seasons.

Wisconsin boasts three Badgers—Montee Ball (both 2011 and 2012), Melvin Gordon (2014) and now Taylor (2018)—as backs who have won this conference honor.

For Deiter, the fifth-year senior is a four-year starter who played multiple positions on the offensive line before resettling back into the left guard position this season. He also holds the school record for number of starts in a career (53).

Wisconsin ranks seventh in the nation rushing the ball (268.4 yards per game), thanks in part to Deiter’s service on an offensive line boasting three consensus first-team All-Big Ten players. He is the first Badger to claim the Rimington-Pace award since its inception in 2011.

Deiter is also an Outland Trophy semifinalist and received midseason All-America honors by the Sporting News.