Nov. 25, 2008
Center Valley, Pa. - Three of the Patriot League's winners of major awards in football are also part of the finalist group for national honors, as Holy Cross senior quarterback Dominic Randolph, Lafayette senior linebacker Andy Romans and Colgate Head Coach Dick Biddle are all on the Football Championship Subdivision awards ballot distributed by The Sports Network this week.
Randolph, the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year, is a candidate for the Walter Payton Award for the second year in a row. Romans, the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year, is up for the Buck Buchanan Award. The Walter Payton Award goes to the Most Outstanding Player in the FCS, while the Buck Buchanan Award is given to the Top Defensive Player. Both players have been on the candidate list for the awards throughout the 2008 season, and are part of a 16-person finalist group for each of the awards.
Colgate Head Coach Dick Biddle was named a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Award on Sunday, and is one of 20 head coaches on the ballot. Biddle earned the Patriot League Coach of the Year honor after leading the Raiders to the Patriot League Championship.
Randolph led Holy Cross to a 7-4 overall and 5-1 Patriot League record with an outstanding season where he set numerous single-season and career League records. Randolph completed 340-of-520 passes for 3,838 yards with 34 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. The 340 completions set a Patriot League single-season record, and Randolph also set a League mark with eight 300-yard passing performances, which came in Holy Cross' final eight games. His 34 touchdown passes tied a Patriot League record. Randolph also recorded four rushing touchdowns, which gave him a Patriot League record 38 touchdowns responsible for the season. Randolph leads the FCS in passing yardage, total offense and completions per game in 2008, and ranks second in points responsible for per contest.
Randolph's 2008 season adds to an already stellar career. He became the Patriot League career leader in completions (821) and passing touchdowns (83) during the season, and also moved up to third on the League's career list in passing yardage (9,679) and second in total offense (9,984) and passing attempts (1,301). Randolph leads all active FCS players in passing yards and completions per game in his career, and is second in career total offense per contest and passing touchdowns.
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Romans made 96 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, two fumble recoveries and one blocked kick for the Leopards, who finished 7-4 overall and 3-3 in Patriot League play. He led a Lafayette defense that placed first in the Patriot League and in the top 20 nationally in rushing, total and scoring defense. Romans finishes his career with 326 total tackles, good for 10th place among active FCS players.
Biddle led the Raiders to a record of 9-2 overall and 5-0 in the Patriot League, completing the first undefeated campaign for any League team since leading Colgate to a 7-0 record in 2003. The Raiders won their final eight games of the season, a streak that trails only No. 1 James Madison and No. 2 Appalachian State heading into Colgate's first-round game in the NCAA Division I Football Championship on Saturday at Villanova. Biddle led Colgate to its sixth Patriot League title, with the previous crowns coming in 1997, 1999, 2002, 2003 and 2005. He will also lead the Raiders to the postseason for the sixth time in his tenure on Saturday at Villanova, as Colgate previously made the field in 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003 and 2005.
The Patriot League has at least one candidate for each of the three major FCS awards for the second consecutive season.
Patriot League representatives have won top individual honors five times. Colgate running back Kenny Gamble won the first Walter Payton Award in 1987, while the Raiders earned a second Payton Award when Jamaal Branch took home the hardware in 2003. Mark Duffner (Holy Cross, 1987) and Bill Russo (Lafayette, 1988) won the first two Eddie Robinson Awards, with Pete Lembo (Lehigh) also winning in 2001.
Voting for all three awards will be conducted this week by FCS sports information directors and selected media. Winners will be announced on Thursday, Dec. 18 during the 22nd annual Sports Network awards dinner at the Marriott Hotel in Chattanooga, Tenn., the night before the NCAA Division I Football Championship game.
