Feb. 27, 2013
NORFOLK, Va. - Old Dominion University sophomore quarterback Taylor Heinicke and head football coach Bobby Wilder were honored at the 67th Annual Portsmouth Sports Club Jamboree Tuesday night.
Heinicke was named the Male Collegiate Player of the Year while Wilder was named the Coach of the Year.
Heinicke won the highest honor for an FCS player this season, earning the Walter Payton Award given to the best player in the FCS. The sophomore quarterback also was named the Dudley Award Winner to the top division I player in the state of Virginia. The CAA Offensive Player of the Year received six First-Team All-America honors and was named Player of the Year by two of those publications.
Heinicke became the first player in FCS history to throw for 5,000 yards, breaking Steve McNair's record of 4,863 yards he set for Alcorn State in 1994.A native of Atlanta, Ga., Heinicke led the FCS with 5,076 passing yards, 390.5 passing yards per game, 44 passing touchdowns and 55 total touchdowns. Along with setting the single-season passing yardage record, Heinicke also set the record for completions with 398. He surpassed Brett Gordon's record of 385 he set for Villanova in 2002.
Heinicke finished the season 398-of-579 for 5,076 yards and 44 touchdowns. He also carried 126 times for 470 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Wilder led the Monarchs to an 11-2 record and a 7-1 mark in the CAA to finish atop the league. ODU earned the No. 4 national seed in the FCS playoffs and advanced to the quarterfinals. ODU finished the season ranked No. 6 in the final FCS The Sports Network Poll and the FCS Coaches Poll.
Old Dominion's offense led the country in scoring offense, total offense and passing offense while sophomore quarterback Taylor Heinicke set FCS records for passing yards in a season and completions and won the Walter Payton Award for the best player in the FCS.
Under Wilder's guidance, ODU had six players garner All-America honors this season, including Heinicke, left tackle Nick Mayers, defensive linemen Chris Burnette, linebacker Craig Wilkins and punter Jonathan Plisco.In just four seasons at ODU, Wilder has a record of 38-10 for a winning percentage of .791
The Monarchs finalized their 2013 schedule earlier this week and begin the season on the road at East Carolina on Aug. 31.