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April 8, 2006
Charlottesville, VA – Seven Virginia football players were recognized by the football program during the squad’s annual awards celebration on Saturday evening.
Senior defensive end Brennan Schmidt (McLean, Va.) earned the Colonel Frank C. McCue Award as UVa’s outstanding interior lineman. Schmidt tied the ACC record for most career starts with 51. His 51 career starts tie the NCAA D1 record by a defensive lineman with Ohio State nose guard Luke Fickell (1993-96). He finished his senior campaign with 66 tackles, including 11 tackles for loss and four sacks.
Senior quarterback Marques Hagans (Hampton, Va.) took home the Ben Wilson Award as UVa’s outstanding offensive player and the Joe Palumbo Award for self-sacrifice and enthusiasm. The MVP of the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl, Hagans had the best passing game of his career against Minnesota, throwing for 358 yards. He finished the 2005 season ranked fourth on the Cavaliers’ single-season passing chart with 2492 yards and completed his career with 4877 yards to place fifth on the school’s career passing list. Hagans was Virginia’s MVP of a bowl game for the second time in his career. He was UVa’s MVP in the 2004 MPC Computers Bowl.
Junior linebacker Kai Parham (Virginia Beach, Va.) earned the Ned McDonald Award as UVa’s most outstanding defensive players. A three-year starter, Parham had a breakout season in 2005 and earned first-team All-ACC honors for the first time. He ranked fifth in the Atlantic Coast Conference in tackling with a team-leading 8.6 average. His team-leading nine quarterback sacks are second in ACC history by an inside linebacker. He led the team with 15 tackles for loss. Parham is ranked 19th in school history with 272 career tackles and eighth with 33 tackles for loss.
Junior wide receiver Deyon Williams (Upper Marlboro, Md.) captured the Speed Elliott Award as UVa’s Most Improved Player. Williams received honorable mention All-ACC recognition after making a big move last fall to become on of the ACC’s most dangerous receivers. He put up the best numbers of his career with 58 receptions for 767 yards and seven touchdowns. Williams led the conference with touchdown catches (7), while finishing second in receptions (4.8).
Freshman linebacker Clint Sintim (Woodbridge, Va.) was recognized with the Bill Dudley Award as UVa’s most outstanding first-year player. A starter in every game, Sintim was outstanding in his debut against Western Michigan and finished with five tackles. He had another notable performance against Duke with six tackles, including two for loss and his second sack of the year. Against Boston College, he made a career-high seven tackles. He ranked fourth among ACC rookies (2nd among rookie LBs) in tackling with an average of 4.4 tpg.
Senior All-American tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson (Freeport, N.Y.) earned the John Polzer Award for ability, sportsmanship and character. Called by many the best offensive lineman in the country, he is the first Cavalier tackle named to the All-ACC first team in back-to-back seasons since Ray Roberts in 1990-91. He has been a starter at the all-important left tackle position since his freshman season in 2002. He has started all 49 games in which he’s played, the most by an offensive lineman in school history. Ferguson is listed as the third-best prospect for the 2006 NFL draft by Sports Illustrated’s Peter King based on the evaluations of NFL personnel.
Senior placekicker Connor Hughes (Williamsburg, Va.) captured the George Welsh Award as UVa’s outstanding special teams player. Hughes earned first-team All-ACC honors last fall after being named to the second team two years ago. One of the top kickers in the country, he was inexplicably not among three finalists for the Lou Groza Award as the nation’s best kicker despite being nearly perfect this season. He has made all 36 extra points and 21 of 24 field goals to lead the ACC in field goal percentage (.875), while ranking second in field goals (1.75/g) and third in scoring (8.2 ppg). He was named ACC Specialist of the Week twice this season, more than the rest of the placekickers in the league combined and became UVa’s all-time leading scorer earlier in the season. In his final game, Hughes kicked a 39-yard field goal with 1:08 left to seal UVa’s win over Minnesoat in the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl.
Virginia opens the 2006 season at Pittsburgh on Sept. 2. The Cavaliers’ home opener is set for Sept. 9 against Wyoming.
Virginia Football Team Awards
Frank McCue Award: Brennan Schmidt
Ben Wilson Award: Marques Hagans
Ned McDonald Award: Kai Parham
Joe Palumbo Award: Marques Hagans
Speed Elliott Award: Deyon Williams
Bill Dudley Award: Clint Sintim
John Polzer Award: D’Brickashaw Ferguson
George Welsh Award: Connor Hughes