QB Eric Sanders of UNI was the runnerup for the 2007 Walter Payton Award, announced Thursday, Dec. 13, at the Sports Network FCS Awards Dinner.  QB Jayson Foster of Georgia Southern won the award.  And LB Kye Stewart of Illinois State was fourth in the Buchanan balloting -- that award was won by Kroy Biermann of Montana.

Other Gateway players to earn mention on the Payton balloting included QB Nick Hill of Southern Illinois (6th), RB Herb Donaldson of Western Illinois (13th) and OL Chad Rinehart (22nd, as a write-in candidate).  Stewart was the only Gateway player on the Buchanan ballot.

Jayson Foster wins 2007 Walter Payton Award
Chattanooga, TN (Sports Network) - Georgia Southern quarterback Jayson Foster was named the 21st winner of the Walter Payton Award tonight at the Sports Network FCS Awards Dinner, held on the eve of the NCAA Division I Football Championship.

"I feel very honored, very privileged to win the Walter Payton Award," said Foster. "You cannot win an elite award like this without having talented teammates and a great coaching staff. The Payton Award is a very prestigious honor, there are many great names who have won this award. It is humbling to be mentioned with such great collegiate football players."

Foster rushed for an NCAA all-divisions quarterback record of 1,844 yards (7.1 yards per carry) with 24 touchdowns during the 2007 season. The senior also completed 109-of-170 passes for 1,203 yards and six touchdowns.

Foster opened the season in top form, running for 231 yards on just 11 carries and three touchdowns and adding 124 yards passing with another TD in a 45-21 victory over West Georgia.

He added 253 yards rushing and six touchdowns as the Eagles beat Coastal Carolina, 42-34, in the second week of the season, and piled up 210 yards on the ground and 340 yards of total offense in a 45-38 loss to Chattanooga.

Never previously recognized for his passing ability, Foster showed off his improving skills in that area on Oct. 6, when he hit on 23-of-31 passes for 225 yards and a touchdown in Georgia Southern's 41-38 victory over South Dakota State.

The elusive 5-9, 164-pound speedster from Canton, GA sparked Georgia Southern to a 38-35 victory over Appalachian State on Oct. 20 with 175 yards rushing and one touchdown. The win ended the Mountaineers' Division I-best 30-game home winning streak.

Foster saved his best game for Nov. 3 in a key Southern Conference contest against Wofford, breaking league records for rushing yards in one quarter and one half. He finished with 279 yards on the ground, three TDs and 336 yards of total offense as the Eagles beat the Terriers, 38-35.

With a playoff berth riding on a win in the final game against FBS Colorado State, Foster keyed a late comeback that fell just short, running for 195 yards and three TDs and finishing with 302 yards of total offense in a 42-34 loss.

Foster was the starting quarterback for the Eagles in 2005, guiding them to an 8-4 record and an FCS playoff berth. A new head coach moved Foster to wide receiver in 2006, and Georgia Southern's fortunes sunk during a 3-8 season, the worst in school history.

But first-year head coach Chris Hatcher moved Foster back to quarterback for 2007, and was rewarded as the quarterback led GSU to a 7-4 record. The Eagles came within two points of winning a share of the Southern Conference championship and an automatic bid in the FCS playoffs.

Foster is the second Georgia Southern player to win the Payton Award, joining 1999 honoree Adrian Peterson, and is the fourth Southern Conference player to be so honored, along with Peterson, 1992 winner Michael Payton of Marshall and 2000 recipient Louis Ivory of Furman.

Foster received 24 first-place votes and 224 points out of 100 ballots cast by a panel of sports information directors and selected media. He finished 40 points ahead of Northern Iowa quarterback Eric Sanders, and 58 points in front of San Diego quarterback Josh Johnson.

Delaware running back Omar Cuff was fourth with 154 points, and 2006 Payton Award winner and New Hampshire quarterback Ricky Santos was fifth with 151 points. Santos, the 2006 Payton honoree, was attempting to become the first two-time winner of the Award.

The Walter Payton Award, named for the legendary Jackson State and Chicago Bears running back and established in 1987 by The Sports Network, is presented annually to the top player in FCS.

Previous winners of the honor include current NFL players such as the Dallas Cowboys' Tony Romo (2002, Eastern Illinois), Philadelphia Eagles running back Brian Westbrook (2001, Villanova), and quarterback Steve McNair of the Baltimore Ravens (1994, Alcorn State).

2007 Walter Payton Award Voting
NAME (SCHOOL) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th Total
1. Jayson Foster, Georgia Southern 24 19 3 4 11 224
2. Eric Sanders, Northern Iowa 21 9 5 11 6 184
3. Josh Johnson, San Diego 10 14 11 10 7 166
4. Omar Cuff, Delaware 7 8 15 16 10 154
5. Ricky Santos, New Hampshire 9 10 10 11 14 151
6. Nick Hill, Southern Illinois 9 11 9 5 8 134
7. Tim Hightower, Richmond 6 5 7 6 8 97
8. Tyler Roehl, North Dakota State 2 6 8 7 1 73
9. Mike McLeod, Yale 2 4 7 3 3 56
10. Kevin Richardson, Appalachian State 3 3 6 3 3 54
11. Terrell Hudgins, Elon 0 3 5 9 8 53
12. Dominic Randolph, Holy Cross 2 1 5 3 10 45
13. Herb Donaldson, Western Illinois 4 1 2 5 1 41
14. Jordan Scott, Colgate 2 4 3 2 1 40
15. Ramses Barden, Cal Poly 1 1 3 4 4 30
16. Liam Coen, Massachusetts 0 0 3 2 2 15
17, *Matt Nicholls, Eastern Washington 0 1 0 2 2 10
18. *Joe Flacco, Delaware 0 2 0 0 0 8
19. *Kerry Brown, Appalachian State 0 0 1 1 1 6
20. *Scott Riddle, Elon 1 0 0 0 0 5
21. *Bryant Lee, Southern 0 1 0 0 0 4
22. *Chad Rinehart, Northern Iowa 0 0 0 0 1 1

Kroy Biermann captures 2007 Buck Buchanan Award
Chattanooga, TN (Sports Network) - Montana defensive end Kroy Biermann was named the 13th winner of the Buck Buchanan Award tonight at the Sports Network FCS Awards Dinner, held on the eve of the NCAA Division I Football Championship. The Buchanan Award, named for the legendary Grambling and Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle, is presented annually to the top defensive player in FCS.

"Obviously, it is an amazing feeling to be recognized for such a prestigious award," said Biermann. "To be chosen as the top defensive player in the FCS is truly a great experience. I think some of the credit should go to my coaches, my teammates, and to my University. To get the opportunity to be a part of the Montana Grizzly football program is something I am very thankful for and will cherish the rest of my life."

Biermann finished second nationally with 16 sacks, and was 24th with 18.5 tackles for loss. He had 70 total tackles, 34 solo stops, five forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, two blocked kicks and one pass break-up.

The 6-3, 241-pound senior defensive lineman helped his team to an 11-0 record and a Big Sky Conference championship during the regular season. The Grizzlies were seeded No. 3 in the playoffs, but fell, 23-22, to Wofford in the first round.

With Biermann as the leader, Montana finished second nationally in scoring defense (14.8 points per game), 21st in rushing defense (125 yards per game) and 32rd in total defense (339 yards).

The Hardin, MT native finished his career with 33 sacks, 46 tackles for loss, nine forced fumbles, and seven fumble recoveries for a team that went 43-10 and won a share of four consecutive Big Sky titles during his time with the program.

Biermann received 35 first-place votes and 305 points to edge Appalachian State free safety Corey Lynch by five points in the closest Buchanan Award voting in history. Lynch also received 35 first-place votes out of the 105 ballots cast by a panel of sports information directors and selected media. McNeese State defensive end Bryan Smith was third in the voting with 205 points.

The Buck Buchanan Award was established in 1995 by The Sports Network. Past winners of the honor include current NFL standouts such as Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Jared Allen (2003, Idaho State), Jacksonville Jaguars safety Rashean Mathis (2002, Bethune-Cookman), along with former Dallas Cowboys Pro Bowl linebacker Dexter Coakley (1995-96, Appalachian State).

2007 Buck Buchanan Award Voting
NAME (SCHOOL) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th Total
1. Kroy Biermann, Montana 35 24 7 6 1 305
2. Corey Lynch, Appalachian State 35 16 13 6 10 300
3. Bryan Smith, McNeese State 6 22 19 11 8 205
4. Kye Stewart, Illinois State 1 6 9 20 6 102
5. Eric Bakhtiari, San Diego 6 3 10 5 10 92
6. Bobby Daly, Montana State 3 6 5 8 12 82
7. Tony LeZotte, James Madison 3 1 7 11 9 71
8. Joe Mays, North Dakota State 4 2 9 3 7 68
9. Brian Johnson, Gardner-Webb 4 4 4 5 9 67
10. Ladarius Webb, Nicholls State 1 6 5 5 6 60
11. Mike Gallihugh, Colgate 2 0 5 10 5 50
12. Jason Hatchell, Massachusetts 1 5 3 3 4 44
13. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Tenn St 2 1 1 3 7 30
14. Bobby Williams, Bethune-Cookman 0 1 2 4 2 20
15. Jarmaul George, Southern 0 2 1 0 0 11
16. *Brian Bradford, Towson 1 0 1 0 1 9
17. *Zach East, Prairie View 1 0 0 0 0 5
18. *Steve Williams, Harvard 0 1 0 0 0 4
19. Donald Thomas, Eastern Illinois 0 0 0 0 3 3
20. *Cyrus Igono, Northern Arizona 0 0 0 0 1 1
20. *Charles Walker, Massachusetts 0 0 0 0 1 1