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Florida Atlantic University Athletics
Athletics Honors 2009 Football Season
2/13/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
Feb. 13, 2010
BOCA RATON, FL - Florida Atlantic University's athletics department today recognized the 17 seniors who have represented the University at its year-end football banquet at the Embassy Suites of Boca Raton.
The senior class participated in 49 games, including 24 victories, two bowl game victories, one Sun Belt Conference title, five all-conference selections, one all-state selection, two Palm Beach County amateur athlete of the year honors, and two national player of the week selections.
The banquet was also a day to honor the football players who led the squad in 2009. Running back Alfred Morris led the list of honorees as the 2009 Team Most Valuable Player. Morris concluded his sophomore campaign with 1,392 yards. Morris is the current record-holder for yards in a single season and tallied seven games with more than 100 yards.
The team's Offensive MVP honors fell upon William Rose, a player that was instrumental in making things happen through running, pass catching, and blocking. There were many occasions that Rose was the reason for gaining the short yardage necessary for the first down, whether he was credited for moving the chains or not. In 2009, the fullback gained 307 yards for an average of 5.0 per carry. He also had 10.4 yards per reception and was credited with two scores. During his four-year career, he recorded 14 touchdowns, 4.9 a carry and 8.9 per reception for 1,737 all-purpose yards.
The Defensive MVP honor was bestowed to Edward Bradwell. The senior from Fort Lauderdale was inserted into the starting line-up as a senior and quickly assumed the leadership role. He played in every game as a senior and finished his final campaign with 91 tackles, five for a loss of 23 yards and 1.5 sacks for a total of 11 yards. During his four-year career, Bradwell accumulated 150 tackles, nine for a loss of 40 yards.
Mickey Groody was another who capitalized on a strong 2009 season and was recognized as the team's Special Teams MVP. The redshirt sophomore moved into the everyday punting role during the University of Nebraska game and never looked back. Despite various protection schemes, Groody averaged 40.6 yards and used both the traditional and the running rugby kick to prevent opponents from a long return. His longest kick was 55 yards, which he hit twice. He had just two kicks blocked, and 19 were downed inside the 20. In a season in which the punters were used 52 times, Groody accounted for 46 of those punts and just 10 were returned.
Lester Jean was honored with the Most Improved Player award after the redshirt junior earned 10 starts at wide receiver. Jean's off-season and often extra work after practice paid off with 38 receptions for 501 yards and four touchdowns. He ended his junior campaign as the top wide receiver and second on the team with 41.8 yards per game.
The Non-Scholarship MVP honor was awarded to senior offensive lineman Carl Spitale. Spitale proved his merit in the 2008 Motor City Bowl game and translated it into a starting right tackle spot through 12 games in 2009. Spitale graded above 85 each week, and ended the season with 25 knockdown blocks. He was also the only starting non-scholarship player on the offensive line that was in the nation's top-20 in sacks allowed until deep into the season.
The surprise of the season was Marcus Bartels, as he broke into the starting rotation in game three. The redshirt sophomore anchored the strong safety position and ended his 2009 campaign as the team's leading tackler with 112 tackles. More important than his total tackles was the force he brought with each stop, especially on special teams. Bartels fittingly earned the "Ramon Rickards Bone" award for his bone-crushing tackles. He captured the Game Ball "Bone Award" following the team's first victory versus the University of North Texas. He also received a defensive game ball following University of Louisiana-Lafayette and Arkansas State University.
Marking another first, Alfred Morris became the first player to earn Team MVP and Student-Athlete of the Year honors in the same season. The redshirt sophomore has been a member of the 3.0 club for four of the five collegiate semesters. He holds a 3.1 GPA in Exercise Science and Wellness.
The final award is not an annual award, but one given when an individual's extraordinary efforts merits the recognition. The "Team Above Self" special award was awarded to senior offensive lineman David Matlock. Matlock started an unprecedented 50 consecutive games during his four-year career. He did so by playing through a torn ACL and MCL in 2007, similar surgery following the 2008 season, and playing much of the first part of 2009 with broken ribs.
FAU will begin "Spring Drills" on Wednesday, March 31 and will conclude with the Spring Game on Saturday, April 24. Tickets for the 2010 football season will go on sale in early March. For more information, call 1-866-FAU-Owls.
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