LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - A total of 36 student-athletes from across the nation have been nominated for the 2019 Harlon Hill Trophy as the Division II College Football Player of the Year.
Ten nominees hail from Super Region One, four from Super Region Two, 10 from Super Region Three and 12 from Super Region Four.
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The sports information directors at the 167 NCAA Division II football-playing institutions nominate and vote on the award. The 36 initial candidates will be placed on regional ballots and the top two players from each of the four NCAA regions will advance to the national ballot when regional voting concludes on Monday, Dec. 2.
The winner of the 2019 award will be announced on Friday, Dec. 20 and the winner will be honored at the Little Rock Touchdown Club awards banquet on January 9, 2020.
The sports information directors at their respective schools nominate candidates. The SIDs in those Super Regions vote for their top five candidates. The winner is then determined in a nation-wide vote of the Division II sports information directors.
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The group of 36 candidates includes 13 quarterbacks, 10 running backs, seven wide receivers, three defensive linemen and three linebackers. The list features 20 seniors, 10 juniors, five sophomores and one freshman. Two nominees - Notre Dame (Ohio)’s Jaleel McLaughlin and Valdosta State’s Rogan Wells - return after advancing to the finalist stage in 2018.
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The Hill Trophy is named for the late Harlon Hill — the former University of North Alabama standout — who excelled with the Lions from 1950-53 before going on to fame in the National Football League with the Chicago Bears.
| 2019 Harlon hill candidates | ||
|---|---|---|
| SUPER REGIONAL ONE | ||
| Tyson Bagent | QB | Shepherd |
| Dominic Cizauskas | LB | Glenville State |
| Collin DiGalbo | QB | Kutztown |
| Justin Felder | RB | Stonehill |
| JaQuan Hardy | RB | Tiffin |
| Austin Hensley | QB | West Virginia State |
| Drew Mahoney | WR | Bentley |
| Quinton Maxwell | QB | Indiana (Pa) |
| Jaleel McLaughlin | RB | Notre Dame (OH) |
| Roland Rivers III | QB | Slippery Rock |
| SUPER REGIONAL TWO | ||
| Jaquan Artis | DE | Lenoir-Rhyne |
| Craig Rucker | WR | Mars Hill |
| Rogan Wells | QB | Valdosta State |
| Antonio Wimbush | RB | Carson-Newman |
| SUPER REGIONAL THREE | ||
| Brook Bolles | QB | Central Missouri |
| Cade Brister | QB | Lindenwood |
| Cole Chancey | FB | Harding |
| L’liott Curry | WR | Henderson State |
| Austin Edwards | DE | Ferris State |
| Leon Eggleston | LB | Wayne State (MI) |
| Hosea Franklin | RB | Lincoln (MO) |
| Allie Freeman | RB | Ouachita Baptist |
| Preston Haire | QB | Oklahoma Baptist |
| Al McKeller | RB | Indianapolis |
| SUPER REGIONAL FOUR | ||
| Tariq Bitson | WR | Adams State |
| Ty Currie | QB | Western Oregon |
| Daniel Davis | WR | Southwest Minnesota State |
| Chris Garrett | DL | Concordia-St. Paul |
| Nate Gunn | RB | Minnesota State |
| Chris Hoad | LB | Texas Permian Basin |
| Dalton Holst | QB | Chardon State |
| Zimari Manning | WR | Tarleton State |
| John Matocha | QB | Colorado School of Mines |
| Michael Roots | RB | Central Washington |
| Paul Terry | RB | Eastern New Mexico |
| Caden Walters | QB | Sioux Falls |
