From IUP Sports Information
IUP senior linebacker Damon Lloyd has been nominated for the 2019 Cliff Harris Award, which goes to the top small college defensive player in the country representing NCAA Division II, Division III and the NAIA.
The list of 150 nominees was released by the Little Rock Touchdown Club and Wright, Lindsey, Jennings. Lloyd is among 66 players in Division II and four from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) on the list.
Lloyd was named the PSAC West Defensive Athlete of the Year for 2019 and earned first team All-Super Region One honors for the second time in his career.
Lloyd finished his final season with a career-high 122 tackles, which currently ranks seventh in Division II and is the most by an IUP player since Nick Pascarella (127) in 1990. Lloyd’s 10.2 tackles per game led the PSAC and ranks 22nd in the nation. He hit double-digit tackles in eight of IUP’s 12 games, including seven of the last eight to end the season. Lloyd had a season-high 14 tackles in the season-opening win over New Haven and had 13 in three different outings.
The captain made plays all over the field, totaling 6.5 tackles-for-loss, 1.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, an interception and five more passes broken up. Lloyd’s interception, the third of his career, was returned 40 yards for a touchdown during a 35-0 victory over Gannon. It was the first score of his career.
Lloyd and the Crimson Hawks posted two shutouts during the regular season and held opposing offenses without a touchdown in two others. IUP is currently 14th in Division II in scoring defense (17.3/game), 21st in rushing defense (103.3) and 23rd in total defense (302.6). The Crimson Hawks held opponents under 300 yards six times during the year, including a season-low 26 by Millersville in the 54-0 win.
Lloyd is the second IUP player to be nominated for the Cliff Harris Award. Safety Max Redfield was a finalist in 2017.
About the Cliff Harris Award
The award is named in honor of former Dallas Cowboy great Cliff Harris, an Arkansas native who was offered only one college scholarship to then-NAIA Ouachita Baptist University. Harris was passed over for the 1970 NFL draft. He signed a free agent contract with the Cowboys and then helped lead Dallas to five Super Bowl appearances during the next decade. The hard-hitting Harris played in six Pro Bowls and changed the way the position of free safety was played. The inaugural Cliff Harris Award was presented in 2013.
