Congrats to Jason!!!
Murrietta, Santos and Whitlock named Walter Payton Award top-3 finalists
Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Northern Arizona quarterback Jason Murrietta, New Hampshire quarterback Ricky Santos and Southern Illinois running back Arkee Whitlock have been selected as the top three finalists for the 2006 Walter Payton Award, which will be presented at the 20th Annual I-AA College Football Awards in Chattanooga, TN, on Dec. 14th. More than 110 ballots were cast for the Payton, which goes to I-AA’s top player, as well as for the Buck Buchanan Award (I-AA defensive player of the year) and Eddie Robinson Award (I- AA coach of the year). Winners of the Buchanan and Robinson will also be announced on Dec. 14th, and the voting breakdown for those awards will not be revealed until that time.
Murrietta, a senior from Glendale, AZ, threw for 2,827 yards with 34 touchdown passes and only five interceptions for the 6-5 Lumberjacks, who won four of their final five games. Murrietta was named the Big Sky Conference Offensive Player of the Year for the second time in his career for his efforts. Murrietta’s 94 career touchdown passes rank second in Big Sky history, and his 10,726 career passing yards place him sixth in conference annals.
Santos, a junior from Bellingham, MA, completed the regular season with 2,681 passing yards and 23 touchdowns and added 12 rushing touchdowns to lead New Hampshire to an 8-3 record and its third consecutive playoff berth. Santos was named the Atlantic 10 Football Conference Co-Offensive Player of the Year. He threw for 318 yards and five touchdowns to lead the Wildcats to victory against Hampton in the first round of the playoffs, and New Hampshire will travel to Massachusetts in a quarterfinal game on Saturday.
Whitlock, a senior from Rock Hill, SC, ran for 1,541 yards and 21 touchdowns during the regular season to lead the Salukis to an 8-3 record and their fourth consecutive playoff berth. He turned it on at the end of the year with 568 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns in the month of November. Whitlock kept his strong play going in the first round of the NCAA Division I Football Championship, as he tallied 207 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Salukis past UT Martin, 36-30. Southern Illinois travels to Montana in a quarterfinal game on Saturday.
The 2005 Walter Payton Award went to Eastern Washington quarterback Erik Meyer. Former winners Tony Romo (2002, Eastern Illinois, Dallas Cowboys), Brian Westbrook (2001, Villanova, Philadelphia Eagles), Adrian Peterson (1999, Georgia Southern, Chicago Bears), Brian Finneran (1997, Villanova, Atlanta Falcons), and Steve McNair (1994, Alcorn State, Baltimore Ravens) are among those serving in the NFL.
Voting, which is based on regular season performance only, was conducted among 112 media members and media relations professionals covering I-AA/FCS. The top three finalists (in terms of votes received) for the Walter Payton Award are annually invited to attend the presentation of the Awards, with the winner of the Payton not announced until the event. The 20th Annual I-AA College Football Awards will be held Dec. 14th in Chattanooga, TN, on the eve of the NCAA Division I Football Championship title game.
Murrietta, Santos and Whitlock named Walter Payton Award top-3 finalists
Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Northern Arizona quarterback Jason Murrietta, New Hampshire quarterback Ricky Santos and Southern Illinois running back Arkee Whitlock have been selected as the top three finalists for the 2006 Walter Payton Award, which will be presented at the 20th Annual I-AA College Football Awards in Chattanooga, TN, on Dec. 14th. More than 110 ballots were cast for the Payton, which goes to I-AA’s top player, as well as for the Buck Buchanan Award (I-AA defensive player of the year) and Eddie Robinson Award (I- AA coach of the year). Winners of the Buchanan and Robinson will also be announced on Dec. 14th, and the voting breakdown for those awards will not be revealed until that time.
Murrietta, a senior from Glendale, AZ, threw for 2,827 yards with 34 touchdown passes and only five interceptions for the 6-5 Lumberjacks, who won four of their final five games. Murrietta was named the Big Sky Conference Offensive Player of the Year for the second time in his career for his efforts. Murrietta’s 94 career touchdown passes rank second in Big Sky history, and his 10,726 career passing yards place him sixth in conference annals.
Santos, a junior from Bellingham, MA, completed the regular season with 2,681 passing yards and 23 touchdowns and added 12 rushing touchdowns to lead New Hampshire to an 8-3 record and its third consecutive playoff berth. Santos was named the Atlantic 10 Football Conference Co-Offensive Player of the Year. He threw for 318 yards and five touchdowns to lead the Wildcats to victory against Hampton in the first round of the playoffs, and New Hampshire will travel to Massachusetts in a quarterfinal game on Saturday.
Whitlock, a senior from Rock Hill, SC, ran for 1,541 yards and 21 touchdowns during the regular season to lead the Salukis to an 8-3 record and their fourth consecutive playoff berth. He turned it on at the end of the year with 568 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns in the month of November. Whitlock kept his strong play going in the first round of the NCAA Division I Football Championship, as he tallied 207 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Salukis past UT Martin, 36-30. Southern Illinois travels to Montana in a quarterfinal game on Saturday.
The 2005 Walter Payton Award went to Eastern Washington quarterback Erik Meyer. Former winners Tony Romo (2002, Eastern Illinois, Dallas Cowboys), Brian Westbrook (2001, Villanova, Philadelphia Eagles), Adrian Peterson (1999, Georgia Southern, Chicago Bears), Brian Finneran (1997, Villanova, Atlanta Falcons), and Steve McNair (1994, Alcorn State, Baltimore Ravens) are among those serving in the NFL.
Voting, which is based on regular season performance only, was conducted among 112 media members and media relations professionals covering I-AA/FCS. The top three finalists (in terms of votes received) for the Walter Payton Award are annually invited to attend the presentation of the Awards, with the winner of the Payton not announced until the event. The 20th Annual I-AA College Football Awards will be held Dec. 14th in Chattanooga, TN, on the eve of the NCAA Division I Football Championship title game.
