Austin Carr wins Richter-Howard Receiver of the Year award

Northwestern senior wide receiver Austin Carr has won the Richter-Howard Receiver of the Year award, honoring the Big Ten’s top receiver.

Carr, a Biletnikoff finalist, was far and away the best receiver in the conference, leading the Big Ten in all major receiving categories, and the margins between his numbers and that of the second-leading receiver are astronomical. His 84 catches are 19 ahead of Curtis Samuels; his 1196 yards are 245 ahead of DeAngelo Yancey; and his 12 touchdowns are two ahead of Yancey.

Carr led a complete revival of the Northwestern passing game. He was remarkably consistent, even against top competition. In fact he did some of his top work against notoriously tough defenses such as Iowa (6 catches, 73 yards, 3 touchdowns), Ohio State (8 catches for 158 yards) and Wisconsin (12 catches, 132 yards, 1 touchdown). He caught over half of quarterback Clayton Thorson’s 21 touchdown passes.

The Richter-Howard Receiver of the Year award was started in 2011 and honors Wisconsin’s Pat Richter and Michigan’s Desmond Howard. Carr is the first Northwestern player to win the award.