Schor Named State’s Top Division I Player, Wins Bill Dudley Award

RICHMOND, Va. – On the cusp of James Madison's first appearance in the national semifinals in eight years, junior quarterback Bryan Schor was named the winner of the 2016 Bill Dudley Award Monday night at the Dudley/Lanier awards banquet at the Hilton Richmond Hotel & Spa/Short Pump.

The award recognized Schor as the top Division I player in the Commonwealth of Virginia, as he was a near unanimous winner in his first year as a full-time starter for the Dukes. He received 11 of the possible 12 first-place votes. This is the fourth straight year JMU has won the award and the third straight by a JMU quarterback.

"When I think about the award and its previous winners, I think of names like Tiki Barber and Tyrod Taylor," Schor said. "It's truly an honor to just be mentioned in the same sentence as those guys. To follow up my guy Vad Lee and make it four years in a row for JMU is very special. I know it's not an individual honor, it goes to our team this year."

Schor was voted Colonial Athletic Association Offensive Player of the Year and was a First Team All-CAA honoree this season. The Milford, Pa., native has passed for 2,648 yards and 24 touchdowns while rushing for 534 yards and 10 scores.

A finalist for the STATS FCS Walter Payton Award, in which he finished 12th, Schor leads the country in completion percentage (74.5%), pass efficiency (183.8) and yards per pass attempt (9.92). He also ranks fifth in the FCS in point responsibility (204), 14th in passing touchdowns, 22nd in rushing touchdowns and 24th in total offense per game (265.2).

He was a four-time CAA Offensive Player of the Week this season. Schor passed for more than 250 yards in five games and rushed for over 100 twice. He produced three or more total touchdowns in seven outings and tied the program record of five passing touchdowns on two separate occasions.

In JMU's second-round playoff win against New Hampshire, Schor was 30-of-37 for a career-high 371 yards and five touchdowns. In the Homecoming win versus Rhode Island on Oct. 29, Schor set the program record for highest completion percentage, going 21-of-22 (95.5%) for 309 yards and five scores.

"I really have to thank our coaching staff," Schor said. "They installed a lot of confidence to me this year and brought my game to another level once I knew they had my back and let me go out there and play freely. It's an attribute to them and the hard work they've put in to help our team grow this year."

Schor joins Vad Lee (2014, 2015), Stephon Robertson (2013) and Rodney Landers (2008) as JMU winners of the Dudley Award. The Dukes have claimed five of seven Dudley Awards won by an FCS program. The two other FCS winners were Old Dominion's Taylor Heinicke (2012) and Richmond's Marc Megna (1998).

JMU's four straight Dudley wins ranks second next to Virginia Tech, which won five in a row from 2002 to 2006.

The Dudley Award is named after Bill Dudley, who was a standout at the University of Virginia and with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Detroit Lions and Washington Redskins. He is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Schor was joined as a finalist by Richmond wide receiver Brian Brown and Virginia linebacker Micah Kiser.

No. 4 JMU travels to Fargo, N.D., on Friday to face top-seeded North Dakota State in the FCS semifinals in a nationally-televised game on ESPN2. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET (6 p.m. CT) at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome. JMU's run through the 2016 postseason is presented by Excel Heating and Cooling.

Calendar