CHICAGO – Stats Perform on Thursday announced 21 additions to the watch list for the Buck Buchanan Award, which is presented annually to the national defensive player of the year in college football’s Division I subdivision, and three Southern Conference football student-athletes were added to the list.
ETSU defensive back Alijah Huzzie, Mercer linebacker Isaac Dowling and Chattanooga defensive lineman Jay Person were added to the watch list Thursday, joining Chattanooga defensive lineman Devonnsha Maxwell and VMI linebacker Stone Snyder,
who were on the initial watch list.
Huzzie leads the FCS in passes defended this season with 2.0 per contest and is tied for second with four interceptions. The redshirt sophomore from Franklin, Georgia, has totaled 11 pass breakups and 15 passes defended, along with adding 45 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss. Of his tackles, 35 have been solo hits.
Dowling paces the Bears with 62 tackles (23 solo), including 9.0 tackles for loss for 27 yards and 1.0 sack for 5 yards. The sophomore from Snellville, Georgia, ranks 41st in the FCS in tackles per game at 8.9 and is 35th with 1.3 TFLs per game. Dowling has helped 11th-ranked Mercer rank 12th in the FCS in scoring defense and 11th in total defense.
Person ranks second in the FCS with 2.0 tackles for loss per game and is fifth in the subdivision with 1.08 sacks per contest. The junior from Cleveland, Tennessee, has totaled 25 tackles (12 solo), including 12.5 for 70 lost yards. Heh as 7.0 sacks for 59 yards for the eighth-ranked Mocs, who rank 10th in the FCS in both scoring defense and total defense.
More players can join the watch list before a national media panel selects the winner following the regular season. First awarded in 1995, the Buchanan includes recipients such as Dexter Coakley, Rashean Mathis, Jared Allen and Arthur Moats.
Also this season, Stats Perform will present the Walter Payton Award (FCS offensive player of the year), Jerry Rice Award (FCS freshman player of the year), Eddie Robinson Award (FCS coach of the year) and FedEx Ground Doris Robinson Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Defensive Linemen
Thor Griffith, Harvard (Ivy)
Muhindo Kapapa, San Diego (Pioneer)
Jay Person, Chattanooga (Southern)
Nominated in Preseason: Brevin Allen, Campbell; Ty French, Gardner-Webb; Jeblonski Green, South Carolina State; Malik Hamm, Lafayette; Jonathan Hammond, Davidson; Titus Leo, Wagner; Jordan Lewis, Southern; Nate Lynn, William & Mary;
Devonnsha Maxwell, Chattanooga; Clay Patterson, Yale; Kevin Peprah, Sacred Heart; Markel Perry, Sam Houston; Josiah Silver, New Hampshire; B.J. Thompson, Stephen F. Austin; Spencer Waege, North Dakota State
Linebackers
Joe Andreessen, Bryant (Big South)
Johnny Buchanan, Delaware (CAA)
BJ Davis, South Carolina State (MEAC)
Mike DeNucci, Lehigh (Patriot)
Isaac Dowling, Mercer (Southern)
Nyles Gaddy, Jackson State (SWAC)
Bryce Norman, Southeast Missouri (Ohio Valley)
Callahan O’Reilly, Montana State (Big Sky)
John Pius, William & Mary (CAA)
Chizi Umunakwe, Central Connecticut State (Northeast)
Zeke Vandenburgh, Illinois State (MVFC)
Antoine Williams, Austin Peay (ASUN)
Kordell Williams, McNeese (Southland)
Nominated in Preseason: Kelechi Anyalebechi, UIW; Adam Bock, South Dakota State; Spencer Cuvelier, Northern Iowa; Jacob Dobbs, Holy Cross; John Ford II, UT Martin; Ryan Greenhagen, Fordham; David Hoage, Northern Colorado; Matthew Jackson, Eastern Kentucky; James Kaczor, North Dakota State; Isaiah Land, Florida A&M; Patrick O’Connell, Montana;
Stone Snyder, VMI; Tristan Wheeler, Richmond
Defensive Backs
Maxwell Anderson, Weber State (Big Sky)
Myles Harden, South Dakota (MVFC)
Myles Heard, Stephen F. Austin (WAC)
Alijah Huzzie, ETSU (Southern)
TaMuarion Wilson, Central Arkansas (ASUN)
Nominated in Preseason: Anthony Adams, Portland State; Montrae Braswell, Missouri State; Justin Ford, Montana; Robby Hauck, Montana; Ferlando Jordan, Southeastern Louisiana; Michael Tutsie, North Dakota State; Kedrick Whitehead, Delaware