Official Announcement from Manheim Touchdown Club

MANHEIM, Pa. – Slippery Rock University defensive lineman Marcus Martin was named the 2017 Gene Upshaw Division II Lineman of the Year award winner with a record vote, as announced by the Manheim Touchdown Club Wednesday.
 
Martin received a first place vote on 73 percent of all ballots submitted, setting a record for first place votes in the 14-year history of the award. He finished 125 points clear of runner-up Jake Daugherty from Ferris State to become the second Slippery Rock player to win the award, joining 2010 winner Brandon Fusco, who is the current right guard for the San Francisco 49ers.
 
As the recipient of the Gene Upshaw Award, Martin will be presented with a trophy and honored at the Manheim Touchdown Club's annual banquet in May. He also receives an automatic invitation to the East/West Shrine Game, marking his second significant senior all-star bowl game invite after he was already invited to the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl.
 
The Upshaw Lineman of the Year award, which is presented by the Manheim Touchdown Club, is nominated for and voted on by the sports information directors at football playing institutions at the Division II level. Its purpose is to recognize the top lineman, offensive or defensive, in Division II football each year. Nine former winners or finalists for the award, which has been presented since 2004, are on current NFL rosters.
 
Martin closed the best statistical career by a defensive lineman in NCAA history this season by breaking the all-time NCAA all-division sack record and the NCAA Division II career records for both sacks and tackles for loss. He led the nation in sacks (15.5) and tackles for loss (26.5) in his senior season to set those career records at 56.0 sacks and 92.5 tackles for loss. The next best totals ever recorded by any Division II player ever were 46.5 sacks and 77.0 tackles for loss.
 
He was named the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division Defensive Player of the Year for the third straight season, becoming the first player in PSAC history to earn four consecutive major awards after also winning Rookie of the Year honors as a freshman. Martin also became just the eighth player in PSAC history to earn four straight first team All-Conference honors.
 
The Upshaw award is the latest in a growing list of postseason accolades for Martin. He is the only Division II finalist and one of just 13 total finalists in the nation for the prestigious William V. Campbell Trophy, known as the "Academic Heisman," which will be presented at a black-tie awards dinner in New York City Dec. 5. He is also a candidate for the Harlon Hill Trophy as the best overall player in Division II football, a candidate for a third straight Defensive Player of the Year honor in Super Region One and a candidate for a third straight Academic All-America honor.
 
A breakdown of Martin's season and career highlights can be found below, along with the final results of the Upshaw voting. The complete release from the Manheim Touchdown Club is linked at the top of this page.
 
2017 GENE UPSHAW VOTING RESULTS
341 points – Marcus Martin, Slippery Rock
216 points – Jake Daugherty, Ferris State
215 points – Lavonte Hights, Shepherd
214 points – Evan Perrizo, Minnesota State
211 points – Alex Cappa, Humboldt State
188 points – Chris Gomez, Central Missouri
169 points – Harley Vaughan, West Georgia
167 points – Victor Tampba, Jr., Bowie State
 
MARTIN'S 2017 STATS
Martin finished the season ranked first in the nation in total sacks (15.5), total tackles for loss (26.5), sacks per game (1.4) and tackles for loss per game (2.4) on his way to setting the all-time Division II career records in both sacks and tackles for loss and the NCAA all-division record for sacks ... he broke SRU records for single-game sacks (4.5) and single-game tackles for loss (6.5) ... finished the year ranked second on the team in total tackles with 82 ... forced two fumbles, recovered three fumbles, including one that was returned 74-yards for a touchdown ... His 26.5 TFL went for a total loss of 117 yards.
 
MARTIN'S 2017 HIGHLIGHTS
One of the 13 national finalists from all divisions and the only Division II finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy (Academic Heisman) presented by the National Football Foundation and the College Football Hall of Fame ... Winner of the Gene Upshaw Lineman of the Year award with a record vote … one of the eight national finalists for the Upshaw for the second straight year ... has already received an invite to play in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl at the Rose Bowl in January and the East/West Shrine Game in Florida ... PSAC West Defensive Player of the Year for the third straight year ... first team All-PSAC West for the fourth straight year ... Led the nation in total sacks (15.5), total tackles for loss (26.5), sacks per game (1.4) and tackles for loss per game (2.4) … broke the NCAA all-time Division II records for both sacks (56.0) and tackles for loss (92.5) and broke the NCAA all-division sack record (56.0) … earned first team preseason All-America honors from every publication this season ... team captain ... nearly every NFL team sent scouts to SRU to visit Martin this fall.
 
MARTIN'S CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
First player in PSAC history to win four straight major postseason awards after being named Rookie of the Year in 2014 and Defensive Player of the Year in 2015, 2016 and 2017 ... Just the eighth player in PSAC history to earn four straight first team All-PSAC honors ... The only player in the country to be a two-time national finalist for the Gene Upshaw Lineman of the Year Award … NCAA all-time record holder in career sacks among all players at any level with 56.0… NCAA Division II record holder in sacks (56.0) and tackles for loss (92.5) … the next highest totals in Division II history are 46.5 sacks and 77.0 tackles for loss … Three-time Super Region One Player of the Year (Rookie of the Year in 2014, Defensive Player of the Year for both in 2015 and 2016 ... 2017 not out yet) … consensus All-American in each of the last two seasons … double-digit All-America honors over the last three years … Two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American, including a first team selection as a junior last year (2017 not out yet) … SRU record holder in single-season sacks (ranks first, second and third in that category) … SRU record holder in single-game sacks and TFL and career sacks and TFL … PSAC and Super Region One record holder in both categories … never missed a start, starting in 48 straight games over his career… three-time finalist for Cliff Harris Award …  named one of 13 national finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy this year … he is the only Division II finalist and one of only two non-Division I finalists for the award … Martin earns an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship and will be honored alongside the College Football Hall of Fame induction class in New York City Dec. 5.
 
TEAM RECORD
SRU was 8-3 overall in 2017 and at least appeared in the votes section of every AFCA poll released, including the preseason poll and the final regular season poll ... SRU reached as high as No. 9 in the rankings this season … Over Martin's four-years in which he never missed a start (48 games), SRU went 36-12 overall, 21-2 at home, won two PSAC titles and made the NCAA playoffs twice.
 
COACH SAYS
"Marcus is the best football player I have ever seen at this level in my 22 years of coaching in Division II. While he has the numbers and the NCAA all-time records to show that, he also has a drive I've never seen in another player. He works incredibly hard every single day on and off the field and he never settles. You'll never see him give up on a play or stop running on the field and you'll almost never see him even come off the field. This year, we even had him playing kick coverages because he just wants to be on the field doing whatever he can to help us win. I don't think many NFL prospect linemen are playing kickoff coverage, but that is the kind of guy Marcus is. He's humble and quiet, especially for the success he has had. On top of everything he has earned on the field, to see him be a first team Academic All-American and a finalist for the Campbell Trophy shows you what kind of person he is off of it. We've been so lucky he chose our program and we are incredibly proud of him." – Shawn Lutz, SRU head coach



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