2010 Early Payton Candidates
2010 will feature some very impressive Walter Payton Award candidates despite the expectations of a slack group with the departures of ASU QB Armanti Edwards, EWU QB Matt Nichols, Elon WR Terrell Hudgins, Holy Cross QB Dominic Randolph, and SIU RB Deji Karim all gone.
EARLY CANDIDATES
WR Matt Szczur, Villanova, Sr.- Even though he claims to be returning this year, it would be smart to see how high he goes as most players drafted in the top 5 rounds, and he could be, take that money. Hopefully he returns though as the reigning CAA OFF and Special Teams Player of the Year. He rushed for 813 yards and 10 scores, passes for 2 touchdowns, and hauled in 51 passes for 610 yards and 4 more scores. Not to mention he returned 30 kickoffs for 816 yards and 1 touchdown.
RB Devon Moore, Appalachian State, Sr.- ASU always has someone on this list and with Edwards gone, Moore is sure to get more carries while they develop the new QB. A 2009 1st team All-SoCon selection, Moore rushed for 1,374 yards and 19 touchdowns in 14 games. Expect to see big numbers from Moore.
WR Tysson Poots, Southern Utah, Sr.- Poots is one of the top unknown receivers in FCS as a two-time All-American returning from a season in which he put up 1,081 yards and 15 touchdowns despite injuries forcing him out of a couple games. Don’t be surprised to see Poots with better numbers as long as their is a capable QB in place.
LT Ben Ijalana, Villanova, Sr.- Seeing a lineman on this list is unusual but Ijalana is well worthy and probably would make the official list if not for WR Matt Szczur. He is a two-time 1st team All-CAA selection and 2009 1st team All-American. Ijalana is also one of the top small school pro prospects coming out in 2010.
QB Pat Devlin, Delaware, Sr.-Devlin is the first player listed that is a returning Payton finalist. Despite not being named All-CAA Devlin was one of the best in the nation last year. His receivers did not help much last year with many dropped balls but things should be better in 2010. He threw for 2,664 yards, 16 touchdowns, and just 9 INTs last year.
RB Taiwan Jones, Eastern Washington, Jr.- Jones is one of the best running backs in college football, regardless of division, as the speedy back has the skills to play at the next level, if he continues to develop. He rushed for 1,213 yards and 15 touchdowns as a sophomore. Don’t be surprised to see those numbers go up as he will likely take more of a load this year with most of their production through the air gone.
RB Chase Reynolds, Montana, Sr.-He was second on the team in receptions (38) and rushed for 1,502 yards and 22 touchdowns last year. Reynolds has been one of the best backs in FCS over the last two years and while their line will see a major overhaul there is no reason to believe that Montana won’t reload.
QB Jeremy Moses, SFA, Sr.-Moses is another returning finalist for the award and the returning Co-SLC Player of the Year after throwing for 4,124 yards and 40 touchdowns. Don’t be surprised to see him produce big numbers again in 2010.
OTHERS WORTH MENTIONING
WR Simmie Yarbrough, SELU, Jr.
QB Michael Herrick, NAU, Sr.
RB Kyle Minett, SDSU, Sr.
RB Jonathan Grimes, W&M, Jr.
QB Malcolm Long, SCSU, Sr.
QB Scott Riddle, Elon, Sr.
RB Ed Gowins, Stony Brook, Jr.
RB Chris Evans, Samford, Sr.
I know that he is not as heralded as some of the above players, but I don’t know how you can list Pat Devlin, with a 2009 QB rating of 139 (2664 yds, 16 TDs and 9 Int.) and totally leave off Andrew Selle, with a 2009 QB rating of 157 (3043 yds, 28 TDs and 6 Int.). They threw very similar numbers of passes (356 Selle, 344 Devlin) and for very similar percentages (62.9 Selle, 63.9 Devlin), and both played in top FCS conferences. I realize that Marc Mariani was a great FCS receiver and undoubtedly helped Selle’s numbers, but someone still had to get Mariani the ball, and Selle was very good at that.
I have watched both players and I do think Selle is a very good one. One thing you have to remember with him is that he has more yards, TDs, etc. because he played in many more games. Devlin did not go to the playoffs. Another thing I looked at is Devlin’s receivers dropped a lot of passes, at least 8, in the 4 games I watched. The numbers are much closer if you only look at the regular season as well, since Devlin did not play in the playoffs, with Delvin throwing 16 TDs on a very bad offense while Selle had just 18. You can also argue that Montana has a lot more talent making it easier for Selle as well. When you watch Devlin you fall in love with his touch, accuracy, poise in the pocket, mobility, etc. I believe he will play in the NFL for sure while Selle is a player that needs to improve a good bit this fall for me to put him on the board. With that said, he did do well in the playoffs and is on track to make such improvements. As usual though I never project and only go off what I have seen so far.
Also, with Reynolds on the Payton Watch already I don’t see Selle getting on. It is rare that you see two players for one award from the same school.
Good to see two players from the same county in New Jersey on this list. How many times has that happened? Jon Grimes and Ben Ijalana…..both from Burlington County New Jersey.
Taking nothing away from Andrew Selle, who manages the Grizzlies’ gifted offense, NAU’s Michael Herrick is the best QB in the Big Sky Conference and the FCS and he should be the favorite for the Walter Payton Award this year. Based on Herrick’s 9th place in the Walter Payton Award last year, his 3,356 yards in only 11 games (Selle had 3,043 in 15 games), his 305.1 avg per game (Selle was only 202.9), his 66.3 completion percentage (Selle only 62.9)and his 298.3 yards of Total Offense (Selle had only 202.9)are evidence of his dominance. In fact, when they went head-to-head, Herrick threw for 445 yards and 4 TDs against, arguably the best team in the country, while Selle had 349 yards against probably the worst defense in the country. Both Selle and Herrick blow away Pat Devlin, who might be way over-hyped due to his history at Penn State. Herrick, too, began his career at a Div 1 school, Ole Miss. Incidentally, Herrick threw for 233 yards against his old team last season – the most of any QB against a great Ole Miss defense except for the LSU QB. So if you’re talking about who should be favored to win the award this season, I think Michael Herrick of NAU must be your favorite