The outgoing Pac-12 has been the top story on the field for the first half of the college football season, and the 2023 Sporting News Midseason All-American Team reflects that.
Seven players from the conference made the first team – including the Washington connection of quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and wide receiver Rome Odunze.
Penix has emerged as the Heisman Trophy front-runner. He averages 384.2 yards of total offense and led the Huskies to a 36-33 victory against Oregon in Week 7. Odunze and Ohio State's Marvin Harrison Jr. were among the seven SN Preseason All-Americans who made the Midseason Team.
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The SEC remains the dominant conference. The conference had nine players on our first team, including Georgia tight end Brock Bowers – who might miss the rest of the season with an ankle injury. Bowers had 41 catches for 567 yards and four TDs through seven games for the defending national champions. Safety Malachi Starks also made the first team. Alabama also had two first-team selections with Dallas Turner and Kool-Aid McKinstry.
Notre Dame had the most players on this list with three, including running back Audric Estime, tackle Joe Alt and defensive lineman Howard Cross III. Ohio State had two players on the first team in Harrison and cornerback Denzel Burke.
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Colorado's Travis Hunter also made the first team despite missing three games. The two-way star made an impression in Deion Sanders' first month as the Buffaloes' coach, however, and that should continue down the stretch.
Sporting News is one of five outlets used to determine consensus All-American status, so it's a good idea to stay on this team. With that in mind, our picks for 2023 midseason All-Americans.
This list is sure to change some in the second half of the season.
Sporting News Midseason All-Americans
Offense
A look at the offensive players on the Sporting News Midseason All-American team:
| PLAYER | POS | SCHOOL |
| Michael Penix Jr. | QB | Washington |
| Audric Estime | RB | Notre Dame |
| Ray Davis | RB | Kentucky |
| Marvin Harrison | WR | Ohio State |
| Rome Odunze | WR | Washington |
| Malik Nabers | WR | LSU |
| Brock Bowers | TE | Georgia |
| Jackson Powers-Johnson | C | Oregon |
| Zak Zinter | G | Michigan |
| Cooper Beebe | G | Kansas State |
| Olu Fashanu | T | Penn State |
| Joe Alt | T | Notre Dame |
| Travis Hunter | ATH | Colorado |
Defense
A look at the defensive players on the Sporting News Midseason All-American team:
| PLAYER | POS | SCHOOL |
| Jonah Elliss | DL | Utah |
| Howard Cross III | DL | Notre Dame |
| Laiatu Latu | DL | UCLA |
| Dallas Turner | EDGE | Alabama |
| Jason Henderson | LB | Old Dominion |
| Edgerrin Cooper | LB | Texas A&M |
| Jay Higgins | LB | Iowa |
| Kool-Aid McKinstry | CB | Alabama |
| Denzel Burke | CB | Ohio State |
| Jaylin Simpson | S | Auburn |
| Malachi Starks | S | Georgia |
Special teams
A look at the special teams' players on the Sporting News Midseason All-American team:
| PLAYER | POS | SCHOOL |
| Graham Nicholson | K | Miami, Ohio |
| Tory Taylor | P | Iowa |
| Zachariah Branch | RET | USC |