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HARRISONBURG, Va. – Five members of the 2014 Virginia Tech football team were named to the Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) Football University Division All-State team, released Tuesday morning. JMU quarterback Vad Lee was named the Offensive Player of the Year while on the defensive side of the ball, Virginia Tech cornerback Kendall Fuller and Liberty safety Jacob Hagen have been named Co-Defensive Players of the Year.

Fuller, was also named a first-team cornerback, joining teammates Bucky Hodges (tight end) and Dadi Nicolas (defensive live) on the first team. Offensive lineman Wyatt Teller and defensive lineman Corey Marshall were named to the second team.

Rounding out the major awards, Old Dominion running back Ray Lawry earned Offensive Rookie of the Year honors while Virginia safety Quin Blanding took Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. Liberty’s Turner Gill earned Coach of the Year after guiding the Flames to the second round of the FCS Playoffs.

Leading JMU to a 9-3 regular season before falling in the first round of the FCS Playoffs, Lee set school records for pass completions (282), pass attempts (465), passing yards (3,462) touchdowns (30) and total offensive yards (4,288). Earning the Bill Dudley Award last month, which honors the state of Virginia’s top Division I player, Lee won Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Week three times while setting the school’s single-game passing record twice throughout the year. He became the first JMU quarterback to throw for more than 400 yards in a game on Sept. 20 at Villanova with 406 yards before topping his record Nov. 15 with 455 yards against Richmond. Lee also had a team-high nine rushing touchdowns while ranking ninth in the CAA with 63.5 yards per game from the quarterback spot.

Fuller, who was honored by four nationally recognized All-America squads (AP, Walter Camp, Sporting News, FWAA) following the 2014 season, finished his sophomore campaign with 50 tackles, including 4.5 for loss, with two sacks, 14 pass breakups and two interceptions, one that he returned for a touchdown against North Carolina during the regular season. Fuller also earned First Team All-ACC from both the media and coaches this season. In the Military Bowl on Dec. 27, Fuller helped the Hokies to a 33-17 bowl win over American Athletic Conference co-champion Cincinnati with four tackles (three solo) and an interception in the end zone.

Helping Liberty to its most successful season in program history with a 9-5 overall record, which included a 15-14 upset of No. 2/1 Coastal Carolina on the road on the final day of the regular season, Hagen was named a First Team All-Big South honoree while earning Associated Press, FCS ADA and Walter Camp FCS All-America honors. Additionally, he was named the FCS ADA Top Collegiate Defensive Back and finished seventh in voting for the Buchanan Award, which honors the top FCS defensive player in the nation. He finished the season with eight interceptions, the most in the FCS.

Gill’s honor comes in his third season at the helm of the Flames after taking Liberty to the second round of the FCS Playoffs. The Flames finished as the Co-Big South champions after blocking a field goal in the waning seconds against Coastal Carolina to clinch the conference’s automatic berth to the playoffs. There, Liberty knocked off JMU on the road 26-21 to advance to the second round before falling at Villanova.

Lawry, who was named Conference USA Freshman of the Year, carried the ball 134 times for 947 yards, including 16 touchdowns. Along the way, he led all freshman running backs with 7.1 yards per carry. His C-USA Rookie of the Year honor made him the first ODU player to win a conference rookie of the year award. He had five 100-yard rushing games on the season, which included a career-best 216-yard performance against Florida Atlantic in the regular-season finale. He also tied the school record with four rushing touchdowns against Western Kentucky while finding the end zone three times against North Carolina State in Raleigh, North Carolina.

In his first season at Virginia, Blanding started all 12 games while making a team-high 123 tackles (60 solo). He finished tied for the team-high in interceptions with three while coming up to make 2.5 tackles for loss. Blanding was named the ACC’s Defensive Rookie of the Year while being an all-conference second-team honoree. He also earned five Freshman All-American awards following the season.

Offensive Player of the Year
Vad Lee , James Madison University

Defensive Player of the Year
Kendall Fuller, Virginia Tech
Jacob Hagen, Liberty University

Offensive Rookie of the Year
Ray Lawry, Old Dominion University

Defensive Rookie of the Year
Quin Blanding, University of Virginia

Coach of the Year
Turner Gill, Liberty University

All-State First Team
Quarterback
Vad Lee, James Madison University

Running Backs
D.J. Abnar, Liberty University
Mikal Abdul-Saboor, College of William & Mary

Wide Receivers
Darrin Peterson, Liberty University
Antonio Vaughan, Old Dominion University

Tight End
Bucky Hodges, Virginia Tech

Offensive Linemen
Jonathan Burgess, Liberty University
Austin Gund, University of Richmond
Mitch Hanson, Liberty University
Andrew Jones, College of William & Mary
Josh Mann, Old Dominion University

Defensive Linemen
Sage Harold, James Madison University
Dadi Nicolas, Virginia Tech
Mike Reilly, College of William & Mary
Eli Harold, University of Virginia

Linebackers
Lynden Trail, Norfolk State University
Henry Coley, University of Virginia
Luke Rhodes, College of William & Mary

Cornerbacks
Kendall Fuller, Virginia Tech
Maurice Canady, University of Virginia

Safeties
Jacob Hagen, Liberty University
Dean Marlowe, James Madison University

Place Kicker
John Lunsford, Liberty University

Punter
Trey Turner, Liberty University

Return Specialist
Darius Jennings, University of Virginia


All-State Second Team
Quarterback
Taylor Heinicke, Old Dominion University

Running Backs
Seth Fisher, University of Richmond
Ray Lawry, Old Dominion University

Wide Receivers
Reggie Diggs, University of Richmond
Tre McBride, College of William & Mary

Tight End
Dexter Herman, Liberty University
Deane Cheatham, James Madison University

Offensive Linemen
Mitchell Kirsch, James Madison University
Greg Ray, Liberty University
Wyatt Teller, Virginia Tech
Ross Burbank, University of Virginia
Jacob Ruby, University of Richmond

Defensive Linemen
Deon King, Norfolk State University
Chima Uzowihe, Liberty University
Evan Kelly, University of Richmond
Corey Marshall, Virginia Tech

Linebackers
Airek Green, College of William & Mary
Max Valles, University of Virginia
Nick Sigmon, Liberty University

Cornerbacks
DeAndre Houston-Carson, College of William & Mary
Taylor Reynolds, James Madison University

Safeties
Quin Blanding, University of Virginia
Keenan Lambert, Norfolk State University
Anthony Harris, University of Virginia

Place Kicker
Ian Frye, University of Virginia

Punter
Christian Faber-Kinney, Hampton University

Return Specialist
Antonio Vaughan, Old Dominion University

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