Photos by Dave Saffran
2018 STATS FCS LIST AWARDS FINALISTS
Staten Island, NY – The accolades continue for Wagner senior running back
Ryan Fulse and junior outside linebacker
Cam Gill, each of whom have been named finalists for FCS football's two most prestigious individual awards.
In addition to being among the 25 finalists for the STATS FCS Walter Payton (Offensive Player of the Year) and Buck Buchanan (Defensive Player of the Year) Awards, Fulse and Gill picked up their fourth and third Northeast Conference (NEC) Player of the Week awards, respectively, for their efforts in the Seahawks' season-ending 41-7 victory at Robert Morris on Saturday.
The Walter Payton Award, which is regarded as the Heisman Trophy of FCS football, is presently annually to the most outstanding FCS offensive as chosen by a nationwide panel of media and college sports information directors.
The Buck Buchanan Award is awarded annually to the most outstanding FCS defensive player and was first given in 1995 after the Walter Payton Award was designated solely for offensive players.
Ryan Fulse capped his collegiate career by delivering a monster performance in Moon Township, becoming the fifth player in NEC history to rush for more than 300 yards in a conference game. Fulse, who eclipsed the 3,000-yard rushing mark in only two seasons, ran 34 times for 303 yards and three touchdowns. He also gained 10 yards on two receptions. Fulse inflicted the bulk of the damage in the first half, rushing for 252 yards and all three of his touchdowns as Wagner built a 38-7 lead by the break.
The Walter Payton Award hopeful opened the game's scoring with a 15-yard run only 2:47 into the first quarter. Fulse struck again early in the second quarter, bumping the lead to 21-7 by racing 55 yards to paydirt on the first play on the possession. He broke another long touchdown run 2:24 before halftime, sprinting 51 yards to the end zone for a 35-7 lead.
Fulse's 303 yards on the ground are the most in the Wagner Division I era and just 60 yards shy of the all-time single-game rushing record held by Terry Underwood who gained 369 vs. Hofstra on October 15, 1988.
In capping his magical two-year, 22-game Seahawk career, the 5-11, 195-pound runner finished sixth on the Wagner all-time career rushing list with 3,090 yards. His 303-yard effort today also gives him 1,784 rushing yards for the season, good for second place on the all-time Seahawk single-season rushing list, behind Terry Underwood, who gained 1,809 yards in 1988.
The 1,784-yard season by Fulse, a member of the STATS FCS Walter Payton Offensive Player of the Year Watch List, is the highest in the Wagner Division I era as the Seahawks competed at the Division III level until the formation of the NEC in 1996. Those 1,784 yards rushing rank second in all of FCS football, a scant 26 yards behind Joe Protheroe of Cal Poly who edged Fulse for the FCS rushing title with 1,810 yard.
On the season, Fulse rushed for 100 yards or more eight times in 11 games this season, and 12 times in his last 15 games. In his 22-game Seahawk career, Fulse topped the century mark 15 times, had three 200-yard-plus efforts and one 300-yard performance.
Fulse Top-Five Career Rushing Games
1. 303 yards at Robert Morris (11/17/18)
2. 271 yards vs. Bowie State (8/30/18)
3. 228 yards vs. Bryant (10/28/17)
4. 218 yards at Bryant (11/10/18)
5. 196 yards at Campbell (10/6/18)
On Saturday, in the Seahawks' 41-7 win at RMU,
Cam Gill seemingly spent the entire afternoon in the Colonials' backfield, recording 5.5 tackles for loss, for 24 yards, including a forced fumble. Among those 5.5 TFL's were 2.5 sacks that went for a combined 18 yards of loss, which helped contribute to RMU finishing with a net nine yards of rushing average.
Gill came within one half-tackle of matching the DI FCS single-game season high in tackles-for-loss. The Buck Buchanan Award hopeful totaled 11 tackles in the 41-7 road win over Robert Morris, on his way to moving into fifth place on the NEC's all-time list of single-season tackles-for-loss leaders (24.5).
For the season, the 6-1, 230-pound Georgia native finished with 13.5 sacks for minus 76 yards. Gill finished the regular season (through games of 11/17), ranked No. 4 nationally and No. 1 in the NEC with 1.23 sacks per game and No. 2 nationally and No. 1 in the NEC with 2.2 tackles for loss per game.
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