Football

Norman Finishes Sixth in Buck Buchanan Award Voting

• Complete Buck Buchanan Award Annoucement and Voting

Southeast Missouri State senior linebacker Bryce Norman finished tied for sixth in balloting for the 2024 Buck Buchanan Award, which honors the national defensive player of the year in Division I FCS college football.

Additionally, Tennessee State defensive back Jalen McClelland was 31st while UT Martin linebacker Jaylon Sharpe finished 33rd; the trio were among 35 finalist nationally for the award, which is being presented for the 30th time this season.

The award, whose namesake, legendary defensive lineman Junious “Buck” Buchanan, starred at Grambling State as part of his Hall of Fame career, will be presented on Jan. 4 in Frisco, Texas on the eve of the national championship game. The winner was selected by a national voting panel after the regular season

Norman, the Big South-OVC Defensive Player of the Year, led the SEMO team in tackles for four-straight seasons, a first in program history. He finished the regular season wtih 126 tackles (10.5/game, sixth nationally), including 13.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. He added eight quarterback hurries, five breakups and two forced fumbles. Norman had a career-high 19 tackles against Lindenwood.

The Buck Buchanan Award, first presented in 1995, has a distinguished history of recipients, including two-time winner Dexter Coakley, Rashean Mathis, Jared Allen and Arthur Moats.
Like the Buchanan Award, the winners of the Walter Payton Award (FCS offensive player of the year), Jerry Rice Award (FCS freshman player of the year), Eddie Robinson Award (FCS coach of the year), the Urban Edge Network HBCU+ National Player of the Year and FedEx Ground Doris Robinson Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award will be honored at the national awards banquet.

2024 Buck Buchanan Award Voting Results
A first-place vote was worth five points, a second-place vote four points, a third-place vote three points, a fourth-place vote two points and a fifth-place vote one point. The final number is the combined point total.

1, 2, 3. TBA on Jan. 4, between DE Jeremiah Grant (Richmond), CB TJ Moore (Mercer) and DE David Walker (Central Arkansas).
4. Mi’Quise Grace, DL, South Dakota: 7-5-4-1-2-71
5. Josiah Silver, DE, New Hampshire: 2-2-7-3-4-49
T6. Ckelby Givens, DE, Southern: 1-7-0-1-8-43
T6. Bryce Norman, LB, Southeast Missouri: 2-3-2-7-1-43
8. Blake Gotcher, LB, Northwestern State: 4-2-2-1-2-38
9. Brody Grebe, DE, Montana State: 4-2-2-1-1-37 
10. Elijah Williams, DE, Morgan State: 1-4-3-0-1-31
11. Brandon Tucker, LB, East Texas A&M: 1-0-3-5-2-26
12. Kenny Gallop Jr., S, Howard: 2-1-0-2-1-19
13. A.J. Pena, LB, Rhode Island: 0-0-3-3-3-18
14. Eli Mostaert, DT, North Dakota State: 0-1-2-3-1-17
15. Gideon Lampron, LB, Dayton: 0-1-0-2-7-15
16. Keyshawn James-Newby, DE, Idaho: 0-1-1-2-0-11
T17. Eli Ennis, LB, McNeese: 0-0-2-1-2-10
T17. Cabel Francl, LB, South Dakota State: 0-1-1-1-1-10 
T17. David Meyer, LB, UC Davis: 0-1-1-0-3-10
20. Ben Bogle, LB, Southern Illinois: 0-0-0-3-3-9
21. Noah Martin, LB, Samford: 0-0-0-3-2-8
T22. Andrew Jones, LB, Grambling State: 0-1-1-0-0-7
T22. Jalen Jones, CB, William & Mary: 0-0-1-1-2-7
T24. Brayden Manley, DE, Mercer: 0-0-0-1-3-5
T24. Saiku White, S, Lafayette: 0-0-1-0-2-5
T26. Abu Kamara, S, Yale: 0-0-0-2-0-4
T26. Finn Claypool, DE, Drake: 0-1-0-0-0-4 
T28. Mason Chambers, S, UIW: 0-0-1-0-0-3
T28. Matt Jaworski, DE, Fordham: 0-0-1-0-0-3
T28. Hayden McDonald, CB, Columbia: 0-0-1-0-0-3
31. Jalen McClelland, CB, Tennessee State: 0-0-0-1-0-2
32. Kimal Clark, S, Central Connecticut State: 0-0-0-0-1-1
T33. Mike DeNucci, LB, Lehigh: 0-0-0-0-0-0
T33. Will Shaffer, LB, Abilene Christian: 0-0-0-0-0-0
T33. Jaylon Sharpe, LB, UT Martin: 0-0-0-0-0-0