Complete Buchanan Watch List
Murray State senior Nathan Williams is making the most of his final year of college football as the linebacker is putting together one of the finest seasons in Racer history. The efforts on the field are not going unnoticed, Williams is one of 16 players named to the Buck Buchanan Award Watch list.
The Buchanan Award, established in 1995, honors the best defensive player in the Football Championship Subdivions (FCS). The award is named after Junious "Buck" Buchanan, the NAIA All-American and Pro Football Hall of Fame, defensive lineman who played for Grambling State from 1959 through 1962. He was selected to the NFL’s All-Time Roster, indicative of his standing as one of the greatest football players of all time. Buchanan died of cancer July 16, 1992. His uniform number, 86, was retired by Kansas City in 1992.
The original list was announced in August and the Buchanan watch list will undergo one more revision in early November, and the final ballot will be unveiled at the end of the regular season.
The winner of the 14th Buck Buchanan Award, symbolic of the top defensive 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 Walter Payton Award, which goes to the top player in FCS, and the Eddie Robinson Award, which is bestowed upon the top coach, will also be awarded on the eve of the NCAA Division I football championship game.
Williams (Murray, Ky.) leads the nation in tackles this season with 105 (15 tackles a game). He also ranks among the Ohio Valley Conference leaders with eight tackles-for-loss and 3.5 sacks. In the victory over Austin Peay two weeks ago, Williams recorded his first career interception.
"Nate is one of the hardest working players I have ever coached," said head football coach Matt Griffin. "He is a leader by example and a coach on the field."
He has recorded double-digit tackles in five of the seven games this season and owns two of the top five single-game tackle performances in the FCS. He is tied for single-game high this season after posting a career-best 23 tackles against Illinois State. He has also added 19 tackles against Tennessee Tech, 17 against Lambuth and 16 against UT Martin.
This season almost didn’t happen for Williams. He thought that his collegiate career was over when he tore his ACL in the season opener against Louisville in 2007. After having successful surgery and going through extensive rehab, Williams was awarded a sixth year by the NCAA.
The thought of not playing his sixth year was never an option for Williams.
"I couldn’t imagine not playing football when I was given the opportunity to play football," said Williams. "So for me, there was never any doubt, any question whether I was coming back."
The three other addtions to the Watch List are cornerback K.J. Gerard of Northern Arizona, free safety Marcus Haywood of James Madison and defensive end Greg Miller of Villanova. Gerard, Haywood, Miller and Williams join 12 other players on the Buchanan watch list: linebacker Bobby Abare of Yale, strong safety Colt Anderson of Montana, defensive end Jovan Belcher of Maine, linebacker Bobby Daly of Montana State, linebacker Zach East of Prairie View, defensive tackle John Faletoese of UC Davis, linebacker Cyrus Mulitalo of Sacramento State, defensive end Greg Peach of Eastern Washington, linebacker Andy Romans of Lafayette, linebacker Andy Schantz of Portland State, free safety Lardarius Webb of Nicholls State and linebacker Jason Williams of Western Illinois.