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November 25th, 2008, 02:26 PM
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Tennessee State’s Javarris Williams, Murray State’s Nathan Williams Highlight 2008 All-OVC Football Selections
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. - Four different schools claimed the four major 2008 Ohio Valley Conference postseason awards which were released on Tuesday. Tennessee State senior running back Javarris Williams was named Offensive Player of the Year, Murray State senior linebacker Nathan Williams was tabbed Defensive Player of the Year, Tennessee Tech wide receiver Tim Benford earned the Freshman of the Year award and first-year Eastern Kentucky head coach Dean Hood was named the OVC Roy Kidd Coach of the Year.
Jacksonville State and Tennessee State led the way with 11 selections each over the first-team, second-team and All-Newcomer squad. UT Martin had 10 total selections and 2008 OVC Champion Eastern Kentucky had nine picks. The Colonels and Skyhawks tied for the most first-team honorees (five), while Jacksonville State had the most second-teamers (6) and Tennessee State had the most All-Newcomer picks (4). The All-OVC first-team included 14 seniors, 10 juniors and a sophomore while the second-team had 15 seniors, eight juniors and one sophomore.
Javarris Williams completed his career at Tennessee State and the OVC by rushing for 4,329 yards, the fifth-highest total in league history and fourth-highest mark nationally among active players. In 2008 he ran for 1,037 yards and 15 touchdowns in 10 games (he missed the final two games of the year due to injury). That marked his third-straight season with 1,000 or more yards and his 103.7 yards/game ranked 26th nationally while his 9.60 points per game was the seventh-highest total in Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) play. Williams netted 20 career games of 100 or more rushing yards, the fifth-highest active mark nationally. His 42 career rushing touchdowns marked the most by a player in Tennessee State history. Williams is the fourth Tiger player to be named OVC Offensive Player of the Year and first since 2004 when Charles Anthony took home the honor (ironically, it was Anthony’s career rushing touchdown record that Williams broke in his final game of the 2008 season).
Nathan Williams, a candidate for the 2008 Buck Buchanan Award (given to the nation’s top FCS defensive player) overcame season-ending injuries in each 2004 and 2007 to come back for a rare sixth-year of eligibility in 2008. This year he finished the season with 179 tackles, which was a Murray State single-season record and the most at any level of NCAA football in 2008. His 14.92 tackles/game ranked first in the FCS, as did his 76 solo stops. Williams netted 23 tackles in a game against Illinois State on Sept. 13; the 23 tackles were the most in a single-game nationally this season. Williams also had a 21-tackle game, a 19-tackle game and two 17-tackle performances. He added 13 tackles-for-loss, 8.0 sacks (second in the OVC and 26th nationally), two quarterback hurries, two pass break-ups, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery during the year. Williams was named OVC Defensive Player of the Week three times during the season and National Defensive Player of the Week by The Sports Network on Sept. 17. He is the third Racer to be named the OVC Defensive Player of the Year and first since the 1995 campaign (defensive back William Hampton).
Benford set the Tennessee Tech single-season record for receptions (68) and tied the school mark for receiving touchdowns (10) during his freshman campaign. He finished the season with 782 receiving yards (fifth most in the OVC) while his 5.7 receptions a contest was second-best in the league. Benford caught five or more passes in a game in nine of 12 contests in 2008. His best game of the season came on Oct. 25 at Austin Peay when he grabbed 10 balls for 123 yards and two scores. Benford is the second Tennessee Tech player to earn the OVC Freshman of the Year award, which was awarded for the fifth time in 2008. Previous winners include current Golden Eagle quarterback Lee Sweeney, who took home the honor in 2006.
In his first season as head coach at Eastern Kentucky, Hood led the Colonels to an 8-3 overall record, 7-1 Conference mark and the program’s 20th OVC Championship in earning the Roy Kidd Coach of the Year award. The award is named for the legendary EKU coach (who won the award a record 10 times) and for who Hood served as an assistant coach from 1994-98. After starting the year 1-3, Hood led the team to seven straight wins to close the regular season, including a dramatic 33-31 victory over UT Martin in the final game of the regular season, where a blocked field goal to end the game gave the Colonels the championship. By winning the Conference the team secured its second straight FCS playoff berth and its NCAA record 19th overall appearance in the playoffs. The season marked Eastern Kentucky’s 31st consecutive winning season, which is the second longest active streak in all of Division I (behind only Florida State). The Colonels also had its 36th consecutive non-losing season, which is now the longest streak in all of Division I (after Michigan had a losing season in 2008).
Tennessee State’s Javarris Williams, Murray State’s Nathan Williams Highlight 2008 All-OVC Football Selections
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. - Four different schools claimed the four major 2008 Ohio Valley Conference postseason awards which were released on Tuesday. Tennessee State senior running back Javarris Williams was named Offensive Player of the Year, Murray State senior linebacker Nathan Williams was tabbed Defensive Player of the Year, Tennessee Tech wide receiver Tim Benford earned the Freshman of the Year award and first-year Eastern Kentucky head coach Dean Hood was named the OVC Roy Kidd Coach of the Year.
Jacksonville State and Tennessee State led the way with 11 selections each over the first-team, second-team and All-Newcomer squad. UT Martin had 10 total selections and 2008 OVC Champion Eastern Kentucky had nine picks. The Colonels and Skyhawks tied for the most first-team honorees (five), while Jacksonville State had the most second-teamers (6) and Tennessee State had the most All-Newcomer picks (4). The All-OVC first-team included 14 seniors, 10 juniors and a sophomore while the second-team had 15 seniors, eight juniors and one sophomore.
Javarris Williams completed his career at Tennessee State and the OVC by rushing for 4,329 yards, the fifth-highest total in league history and fourth-highest mark nationally among active players. In 2008 he ran for 1,037 yards and 15 touchdowns in 10 games (he missed the final two games of the year due to injury). That marked his third-straight season with 1,000 or more yards and his 103.7 yards/game ranked 26th nationally while his 9.60 points per game was the seventh-highest total in Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) play. Williams netted 20 career games of 100 or more rushing yards, the fifth-highest active mark nationally. His 42 career rushing touchdowns marked the most by a player in Tennessee State history. Williams is the fourth Tiger player to be named OVC Offensive Player of the Year and first since 2004 when Charles Anthony took home the honor (ironically, it was Anthony’s career rushing touchdown record that Williams broke in his final game of the 2008 season).
Nathan Williams, a candidate for the 2008 Buck Buchanan Award (given to the nation’s top FCS defensive player) overcame season-ending injuries in each 2004 and 2007 to come back for a rare sixth-year of eligibility in 2008. This year he finished the season with 179 tackles, which was a Murray State single-season record and the most at any level of NCAA football in 2008. His 14.92 tackles/game ranked first in the FCS, as did his 76 solo stops. Williams netted 23 tackles in a game against Illinois State on Sept. 13; the 23 tackles were the most in a single-game nationally this season. Williams also had a 21-tackle game, a 19-tackle game and two 17-tackle performances. He added 13 tackles-for-loss, 8.0 sacks (second in the OVC and 26th nationally), two quarterback hurries, two pass break-ups, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery during the year. Williams was named OVC Defensive Player of the Week three times during the season and National Defensive Player of the Week by The Sports Network on Sept. 17. He is the third Racer to be named the OVC Defensive Player of the Year and first since the 1995 campaign (defensive back William Hampton).
Benford set the Tennessee Tech single-season record for receptions (68) and tied the school mark for receiving touchdowns (10) during his freshman campaign. He finished the season with 782 receiving yards (fifth most in the OVC) while his 5.7 receptions a contest was second-best in the league. Benford caught five or more passes in a game in nine of 12 contests in 2008. His best game of the season came on Oct. 25 at Austin Peay when he grabbed 10 balls for 123 yards and two scores. Benford is the second Tennessee Tech player to earn the OVC Freshman of the Year award, which was awarded for the fifth time in 2008. Previous winners include current Golden Eagle quarterback Lee Sweeney, who took home the honor in 2006.
In his first season as head coach at Eastern Kentucky, Hood led the Colonels to an 8-3 overall record, 7-1 Conference mark and the program’s 20th OVC Championship in earning the Roy Kidd Coach of the Year award. The award is named for the legendary EKU coach (who won the award a record 10 times) and for who Hood served as an assistant coach from 1994-98. After starting the year 1-3, Hood led the team to seven straight wins to close the regular season, including a dramatic 33-31 victory over UT Martin in the final game of the regular season, where a blocked field goal to end the game gave the Colonels the championship. By winning the Conference the team secured its second straight FCS playoff berth and its NCAA record 19th overall appearance in the playoffs. The season marked Eastern Kentucky’s 31st consecutive winning season, which is the second longest active streak in all of Division I (behind only Florida State). The Colonels also had its 36th consecutive non-losing season, which is now the longest streak in all of Division I (after Michigan had a losing season in 2008).