Calvin University junior center Jalen Overway has been named to the top 50 watch list for the Bevo Francis Award. Last month, he was named to the top 100 watch list and has now made the next cut for the prestigious award.
 
The Clarence "Bevo" Francis Award is presented annually to the player with the finest overall season within Small College Basketball, which includes NCAA II, NCAA III and NAIA institutions. Considerations include season statistics and individual achievements, awards, personal character and team achievements. The prestigious award will only be given to one player within the Small College Basketball ranks per season.
 
This marks the third time Overway has been named a candidate for the award through his first three seasons on the court after also making the cut for the top 50 watch lists during his freshman (2022-23) and sophomore (2023-24) seasons. During his sophomore season, Overway made the top 25 watch list for the award.
 
A 2025-26 Preseason All-American, Overway is averaging career highs this season in points (23.6) and rebounds (10.9) per game while shooting a career-best 63.0 percent from the field and recording 13 double-doubles in 23 games. In addition, he has recorded six games of 30 points or more.
 
For his career, Overway ranks seventh in Calvin men's basketball program history with 1,627 career points. He is also seventh on the Calvin career list with 829 rebounds while recording 42 career double-doubles. He also has moved into 10^th on the Calvin career list for blocked shots (86).  He is averaging 20.4 points and 10.4 rebounds during his three seasons with the Knights and is one of only six Calvin players to record at least 1,000 career points in his first two seasons.
 
Overway is a two-time All-American with the Knights from his first two seasons, as well as a two-time MIAA Most Valuable Player, MIAA First Team and NABC First Team All-District honoree. He was also the NABC District 7 Most Valuable Player as a sophomore in 2023-24 while leading Calvin to its second consecutive MIAA regular season championship.
 
The Bevo Francis Award will continue to cut the list of candidates during the rest of the season, with later watch list updates moving to top 25 candidates.
 
The Calvin men's basketball team is currently 16-7 on the season and is 8-4 in MIAA play. The Knights have a big final week of MIAA regular season play as they head to Alma Wednesday for a 7:30 p.m. contest and then host rival Hope on Saturday for a 3 p.m. contest.