Collins wins Upshaw Award as top Division II lineman
1/7/2009 6:00:00 AM | Football
MANHEIM, Pa. ? Four years ago when Sam Collins was part of ACU head coach Chris Thomsen's first signing class, the Wildcats' leader said he thought his team had “something special” in the undersized center from Denton Ryan High School.
For four years Collins proved his head coach correct as he started a school-record 46 consecutive games for the Wildcats, serving as the unquestioned leader of one of the top offensive lines in NCAA Division II football.
Over the last two seasons, Collins and his linemates blocked for running back Bernard Scott who rushed for 4,321 yards and just last month won the Harlon Hill Award as the top player in NCAA Division II football.
Wednesday, Collins was rewarded for his four years of hard work when the Manheim (Pa.) Touchdown Club announced that he is the 2008 winner of the Gene Upshaw Award, which recognizes the top lineman in Division II football. Collins will be honored during a banquet in the spring in Pennsylvania.
“This is a tremendous honor and it means a lot,” Collins said. “Obviously Gene Upshaw is one of the greatest offensive linemen to ever play the game, and to have my name associated with his is very special. I've been fortunate to have been able to be surrounded by great coaches, great players and great people during my four years, and I've enjoyed every minute of my time at ACU.”
The Upshaw Award winner is selected by the Sports Information Directors of the 150 Football Playing NCAA Division II institutions and is named in honor of the late Gene Upshaw, former Executive Director of the National Football League Players Association. Gene Upshaw passed away August 20, 2008.
Upshaw was a standout lineman at Texas A&I University (now Texas A&M-Kingsville) before achieving All-Pro status six times during his 16 year career with the NFL Oakland Raiders. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1987, his first year of eligibility and served as the NFLPA Executive Director from 19983 until his death in 2008. Upshaw is the only player in NFL history to play in three Super Bowls in three different decades ? in the 60's, 70's and 80's.
He was voted into the College Hall of Fame in 1987.
“We are extremely excited that Sam has been recognized as the best lineman in Division II football,” Thomsen said. “He has been a cornerstone in our program for the last four years. He is the epitome of leadership in that he goes out every single day with total focus and maximum effort. He was very well prepared coming out of a great high school program at Denton Ryan and we knew he had a chance to start as a freshman. He started the first game of the season as a true freshmen and never missed a start. Obviously he has had a very special career.”
The Wildcats' offensive play over the course of Collins' career has been unparalleled in ACU history, especially over the last three seasons. From 2006-08 (covering 36 games in which ACU went 29-7 with one Lone Star Conference championship and three straight trips to the NCAA Division II playoffs), the Wildcats racked up 18,548 yards of total offense, 215 offensive touchdowns and 1,657 points.
While the offense averaged 515.2 yards and 46.0 points per game in those 36 games, Collins and his offensive linemates allowed ACU quarterbacks to be sacked just 28 times, including eight times in each of the last two seasons. That's a staggeringly low number considering Wildcat quarterbacks dropped back to pass 1,218 times over the last three seasons. On average, ACU quarterbacks were sacked just once every 43.5 pass attempts over the last three seasons.
Collins helped lead 2008 ACU offense, which finished No. 1 in Division II football in total offense (558.8 yards per game) and scoring offense (52.3 points per game), while finishing second in the nation in sacks allowed per game (0.67).
Collins was selected first team all-America by Daktronics and second team Associated Press Little all-America, and he was a first team Daktronics all-Super Region 4 selection. A two-time first team all-LSC South Division performer, Collins was also a pre-season all-America by Consensus Draft Services and d2football.com. A mathematics major who will graduate from ACU in December 2009, Collins was a three-time academic all-LSC performer and in 2008 was a first team ESPN The Magazine academic all-District VI selection.
“Sam is what I call a ?Triple Crown' type of individual,” Thomsen said. “He's a great student, a great player and an even better person. When you build a football team, we have always tried to build up the middle. Sam anchored that middle for us for the last four years. He's a leader, he's smart, and he's a competitor. We finished 11-1 last year and Sam's leadership played a huge role in that season. It's easy to be a good coach when you have a player like Sam Collins.”
The balloting for this year's award winner was very close said Don Harris, past president of the Manheim Touchdown Club. Northwest Missouri State University right guard Jeremy Davis was second in the voting, followed by Ferris State University defensive tackle Jake Visser finishing third.
The other finalists for the award included Carson-Newman offensive guard Thomas Battle, Delta State offensive tackle Mark Ellis, Bloomsburg University defensive lineman Jon Ochs, Grand Valley State University defensive tackle Daniel Skuta, and the only junior of the group, California of PA's defensive end Willie Walker.
“After speaking with Abilene Christian's Head Coach Chris Thomsen, it's easy to see why Collins was this year's award winner,” Harris said. “Sam Collins started every game in his college career, and set a record for starts at Abilene Christian with 46 consecutive starts. Anyone who can start on a Division II football team as a freshman and not miss a game is someone special. I know that Gene would be pleased with this year's award winner.”
