Original_RMC
October 17th, 2008, 02:18 PM
http://www.northeastconference.org/News/fball/2008/10/17/musinisipaytonawardwatchlist.asp?path=fball
PHILADELPHIA, PA -- Monmouth University junior tailback David Sinisi (Cedar Grove, N.J./Cedar Grove) has recently been added to the Walter Payton Award watch list.
The winner of the 22nd Walter Payton Award, symbolic of the top player in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) will be announced at the annual Sports Network Awards banquet on Dec. 18 in Chattanooga, TN at the Marriott Hotel. The Eddie Robinson Award, which goes to the top coach in FCS, and the Buck Buchanan Award, which is given to the top FCS defensive player, will also be awarded the night before the NCAA Division I football championship game.
“Dave Sinisi is possibly the most complete football player that I have seen in my more than 30 years of college coaching,” said head coach Kevin Callahan. “Dave’s individual performances over the last three seasons have contributed to our team’s success more than any other factor.”
Sinisi leads the nation in rushing yards with 1,101 yards, while averaging 157.29 yards per game, which is third among all FCS backs. The Cedar Grove, N.J., native is second in FCS behind fellow Payton Award candidate Herb Donaldson (Western Illinois) in total touchdowns with 13. He has recorded at least 100 yards rushing in six of seven games this season, including his school record setting performance of 247 yards in a win over Saint Francis.
Last season he set the FCS record for consecutive games with a touchdown, scoring in his first 20 games for the Blue & White. Sinisi has started every game for the Hawks since his redshirt freshman year, scoring in 27 out of the 29 contests. In just two-plus years, he owns every career rushing record at Monmouth, including rushing touchdowns, rushing yards, 100-yard rushing performances, and surpassed current Dallas Cowboy Miles Austin for the top spot in scoring at Monmouth.
Off the field, the junior has spent numerous hours serving in leadership roles for other student-athletes and volunteering for various community service initiatives. He was one of the co-authors of Monmouth’s Student-Athlete Code of Conduct, and currently serving as the Vice President for MU’s Peer Leadership Program. Sinisi has represented Monmouth two times at the NCAA’s Apple Conference, presenting Monmouth’s Code of Conduct project to three hundred peers including NCAA President Miles Brand.
Sinisi has visited the Frank Antonides Middle School in West Long Branch every year to speak to 7th and 8th grade kids about drug and alcohol prevention as part of our “I Heard it From a Hawk” Program. He has also spent time at The Oak School in Lakewood, N.J., speaking to fourth graders on the same subject.
“Dave Sinisi is much more than a talented running back. He is an outstanding football player,” said Callahan. “Dave is a team captain, a key contributor on our special teams, a leader in the locker room, as well as being a great back. If you were to ask any of our opponents to comment on Monmouth football, the name “Dave Sinisi” would be the first words out of their mouth.”
Sinisi, along with two other newcomers joins 13 other players, all holdovers from the original list announced in August, on the revised list. The Payton Award watch list will undergo one further revision in November, and the final ballot will be announced at the end of the regular season.
PHILADELPHIA, PA -- Monmouth University junior tailback David Sinisi (Cedar Grove, N.J./Cedar Grove) has recently been added to the Walter Payton Award watch list.
The winner of the 22nd Walter Payton Award, symbolic of the top player in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) will be announced at the annual Sports Network Awards banquet on Dec. 18 in Chattanooga, TN at the Marriott Hotel. The Eddie Robinson Award, which goes to the top coach in FCS, and the Buck Buchanan Award, which is given to the top FCS defensive player, will also be awarded the night before the NCAA Division I football championship game.
“Dave Sinisi is possibly the most complete football player that I have seen in my more than 30 years of college coaching,” said head coach Kevin Callahan. “Dave’s individual performances over the last three seasons have contributed to our team’s success more than any other factor.”
Sinisi leads the nation in rushing yards with 1,101 yards, while averaging 157.29 yards per game, which is third among all FCS backs. The Cedar Grove, N.J., native is second in FCS behind fellow Payton Award candidate Herb Donaldson (Western Illinois) in total touchdowns with 13. He has recorded at least 100 yards rushing in six of seven games this season, including his school record setting performance of 247 yards in a win over Saint Francis.
Last season he set the FCS record for consecutive games with a touchdown, scoring in his first 20 games for the Blue & White. Sinisi has started every game for the Hawks since his redshirt freshman year, scoring in 27 out of the 29 contests. In just two-plus years, he owns every career rushing record at Monmouth, including rushing touchdowns, rushing yards, 100-yard rushing performances, and surpassed current Dallas Cowboy Miles Austin for the top spot in scoring at Monmouth.
Off the field, the junior has spent numerous hours serving in leadership roles for other student-athletes and volunteering for various community service initiatives. He was one of the co-authors of Monmouth’s Student-Athlete Code of Conduct, and currently serving as the Vice President for MU’s Peer Leadership Program. Sinisi has represented Monmouth two times at the NCAA’s Apple Conference, presenting Monmouth’s Code of Conduct project to three hundred peers including NCAA President Miles Brand.
Sinisi has visited the Frank Antonides Middle School in West Long Branch every year to speak to 7th and 8th grade kids about drug and alcohol prevention as part of our “I Heard it From a Hawk” Program. He has also spent time at The Oak School in Lakewood, N.J., speaking to fourth graders on the same subject.
“Dave Sinisi is much more than a talented running back. He is an outstanding football player,” said Callahan. “Dave is a team captain, a key contributor on our special teams, a leader in the locker room, as well as being a great back. If you were to ask any of our opponents to comment on Monmouth football, the name “Dave Sinisi” would be the first words out of their mouth.”
Sinisi, along with two other newcomers joins 13 other players, all holdovers from the original list announced in August, on the revised list. The Payton Award watch list will undergo one further revision in November, and the final ballot will be announced at the end of the regular season.