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Five Big Sky Conference players have been named to the initial 2010 Walter Payton Award Watch list, The Sports Network announced on Monday.
Eastern Washington running back Taiwan Jones, Montana running back Chase Reynolds, Grizzly quarterback Andrew Selle, Northern Arizona quarterback Michael Herrick and Weber State quarterback Cameron Higgins were among the 20 players selected.
The Walter Payton Award is given annually to the top offensive player in the Football Championship Subdivision. Big Sky Conference players have captured the honor six times, most recently by Eastern Washington quarterback Erik Meyer in 2005.
This year’s award is being sponsored by Fathead.com. The winner will be announced on the eve of the Division I National Championship game in Frisco, Texas.
Herrick, Higgins and Reynolds are three of seven 2009 finalists back on the list.
Herrick, a 6-foot-1, 205-pound senior from Valencia, Calif., finished ninth in voting in 2009 after throwing for 3,356 yards with 22 touchdowns in eight interceptions in his first full season as a starter.
Higgins, a 6-2, 215-pound senior from Kai, Hawai’i, has been a Payton finalist each of the past two seasons. He was 10th in voting in 2009, after throwing for 3,321 yards and 30 touchdowns. Higgins, the 2008 Big Sky Offensive MVP, enters his senior campaign with 9,762 passing yards and 83 touchdown passes.
Reynolds, a 6-foot, 195-pound senior from Drummond, Mont., rushed for 1,502 yards and 22 touchdowns as a junior, finishing 13th in Payton voting. The past two seasons, Reynolds has rushed for 3,075 yards and 44 touchdowns. Montana has advanced to the Division I National Championship each of the past two seasons.
Selle, a 6-2, 219-pound senior from Billings, Mont., led the Big Sky in passing efficiency in his first full season as a starter. He completed 62.9 percent of his passes for 3,043 yards with 28 touchdowns and just six interceptions.
Jones burst onto the scene in his first season as a running back. The 6-1, 200-pound junior from Antioch, Calif., rushed for 1,213 yards and 15 touchdowns. He averaged 7.5 yards per carry, and finished second in the nation in all-purpose yards with an average of 195.4 per game.
The Sports Network also presents the Buck Buchanan and Eddie Robinson Awards, which are sponsored by Fathead. The Buchanan honors the FCS defensive player of the year and the Robinson goes to the FCS coach of the Year.
Payton Watch List - July 12
K.J. Black, QB, Prairie View A&M
Thomas DeMarco, QB, Old Dominion
Pat Devlin, QB, Delaware
Chris Evans, RB, Samford
Jonathan Grimes, RB, William & Mary
Michael Herrick, QB, Northern Arizona
Cameron Higgins, QB, Weber State
Ben Ijalana, OT, Villanova
Taiwan Jones, RB, E. Washington
Malcom Long, QB, South Carolina State
Kyle Minett, RB, South Dakota
Devon Moore, RB, Appalachian State
Jeremy Moses, QB, Stephen F. Austin
Chase Reynolds, RB, Montana
Scott Riddle, QB, Elon
Andrew Selle, QB, Montana
Matt Szczur, WR/Ret., Villanova
Tyson Poots, WR, Southern Utah
Steve Valentino, Sr., Dayton
Chris Whitney, QB, Villanova