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UCA’s Walker grabs Buck Buchanan as FCS’ top defensive player

Defensive lineman from Stuttgart won going away with 23 of the 56 first-place votes and 164 total votes

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UCA defensive lineman David Walker picking up the Buck Buchanan Award

CONWAY, Ark. — Central Arkansas defensive end David Walker earned the top individual defensive prize at the FCS level Saturday night when he was awarded 2024 Buck Buchanan Award at the FCS National Awards banquet.

Walker, a 6-foot-2, 260-pounder from Stuttgart, Ark., won going away with 23 of the 56 first-place votes and 164 total votes. He finished with a comfortable margin over Mercer cornerback T.J. Moore (93) and Richmond defensive end Jeremiah Grant (74). Walker was a finalist for the past three years, finishing third overall in 2022 as a sophomore.

Walker, who transferred to UCA after his freshman season at Southern Arkansas, racked up 68 tackles (45 solos), 23 tackles for loss (121 yards) and 10.5 sacks in 12 games, while also setting career highs with four forced fumbles, eight quarterback hurries and six pass breakups. He set school career records with 60 tackles for loss and 31 sacks in just three seasons as a Bear. He also broke the school single-game record with 6.5 tackles for loss against Tarleton State in 2023.

Walker was named the conference Defensive Player of the Year for three consecutive seasons, once in the Atlantic Sun Conference (2022) and twice in the United Ahtletic Conference (2023, 2024). He was recently named the national defensive player of the Year by the FCS Athletic Directors Association, along with numerous All-America honors.

The Buck Buchanan Award is named for legendary defensive lineman Junious “Buck” Buchanan, who starred at Grambling State as part of his Hall of Fame career, and goe to the nation’s top defensive player at the FCS level. Past recipients include Dexter Coakley, Rashean Mathis, Jared Allen and Arthur Moats.

2024 Buck Buchanan Award Voting

Following is a breakdown of the voting results. A first-place vote was worth five points, a second-place vote four points, a third-place vote three points, a fourth-place vote two points and a fifth-place vote one point. The final number is the combined point total.
1. David Walker, DE, UCA: 23-8-3-3-2-164
2. TJ Moore, CB, Mercer: 3-10-8-6-2-93
3. Jeremiah Grant, DE, Richmond: 6-5-6-3-0-74
4. Mi’Quise Grace, DL, South Dakota: 7-5-4-1-2-71
5. Josiah Silver, DE, New Hampshire: 2-2-7-3-4-49
T6. Ckelby Givens, DE, Southern: 1-7-0-1-8-43
T6. Bryce Norman, LB, Southeast Missouri: 2-3-2-7-1-43
8. Blake Gotcher, LB, Northwestern State: 4-2-2-1-2-38
9. Brody Grebe, DE, Montana State: 4-2-2-1-1-37
10. Elijah Williams, DE, Morgan State: 1-4-3-0-1-31
11. Brandon Tucker, LB, East Texas A&M: 1-0-3-5-2-26
12. Kenny Gallop Jr., S, Howard: 2-1-0-2-1-19
13. A.J. Pena, LB, Rhode Island: 0-0-3-3-3-18
14. Eli Mostaert, DT, North Dakota State: 0-1-2-3-1-17
15. Gideon Lampron, LB, Dayton: 0-1-0-2-7-15
16. Keyshawn James-Newby, DE, Idaho: 0-1-1-2-0-11
T17. Eli Ennis, LB, McNeese: 0-0-2-1-2-10
T17. Cabel Francl, LB, South Dakota State: 0-1-1-1-1-10
T17. David Meyer, LB, UC Davis: 0-1-1-0-3-10
20. Ben Bogle, LB, Southern Illinois: 0-0-0-3-3-9
21. Noah Martin, LB, Samford: 0-0-0-3-2-8
T22. Andrew Jones, LB, Grambling State: 0-1-1-0-0-7
T22. Jalen Jones, CB, William & Mary: 0-0-1-1-2-7
T24. Brayden Manley, DE, Mercer: 0-0-0-1-3-5
T24. Saiku White, S, Lafayette: 0-0-1-0-2-5
T26. Abu Kamara, S, Yale: 0-0-0-2-0-4
T26. Finn Claypool, DE, Drake: 0-1-0-0-0-4
T28. Mason Chambers, S, UIW: 0-0-1-0-0-3
T28. Matt Jaworski, DE, Fordham: 0-0-1-0-0-3
T28. Hayden McDonald, CB, Columbia: 0-0-1-0-0-3
31. Jalen McClelland, CB, Tennessee State: 0-0-0-1-0-2
32. Kimal Clark, S, Central Connecticut State: 0-0-0-0-1-1

Boys High School Basketball Poll

GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL RANKINGS
Following is the overall Top 10 girls high school basketball teams in Arkansas and the top five in Classes 6A, 5A, 4A, 3A, 2A and 1A as voted by a panel of sports media from around the state for the week ending January 5. Ranking is given with first-place votes received, records, total points and last week's rankings:
OVERALLRecordPtsPrv
1.Conway (19)27-11991
2.Farmington (1)23-11802
3.Green Co. Tech24-21343
4.Springdale Har-Ber23-41284
5.Fort Smith Northside21-41085
6.Springdale23-31056
7.Pulaski Academy28-0897
8.Mountain Home23-4419
9.Little Rock Central18-6398
10.Vilonia19-721
Others receiving votes: North Little Rock 17, Dover 11, Little Rock Christian 10, Valley View 8, West Side Greers Ferry 5, Marion 2, DeQueen 1, Nashville 1
CLASS 6A
1.Conway (20)28-11001
2.Springdale Har-Ber23-4672
3.Fort Smith Northside21-4573
4.Springdale23-3524
5.Little Rock Central18-6195
Others receiving votes: North Little Rock 5.
CLASS 5A
1.Farmington (20)23-11001
2.Green Co. Tech24-2772
3.Mountain Home23-4453
4.Vilonia19-7344
5.Little Rock Christian21-4235
Others receiving votes: Valley View 19, Marion 2.
CLASS 4A
1.Pulaski Academy (20)28-01001
2.DeQueen26-1802
3.Nashville20-7543
4.Watson Chapel20-4384
5.Arkadelphia17-6125
Others receiving votes: Forrest City 7, Stuttgart 4, Brookland 3, Pottsville 1, Pea Ridge 1.
CLASS 3A
1.Dover (20)18-01001
2.Lamar27-2762
3.Dumas25-1573
4.Mountain View22-7314
5.Harding Academy20-214
Others receiving votes: Fouke 9, Elkins 4, Bergman 3, Centerpoint 3, Melbourne 1, Salem 1, Manila 1.
CLASS 2A
1.Quitman (8)27-1831
2.Riverside (6)29-3762
3.Barton (6)29-1683
4.Izard County23-4324
5.Sloan-Hendrix29-415
Others receiving votes: Poyen 14, Dierks 13, Cutter-Morning Star 1.
CLASS 1A
1.West Side Greers Ferry (20)32-31001
2.Earle22-6782
3.Marked Tree24-6393
4.Taylor26-4364
5.Rural Special27-6325
Others receiving votes: Scranton 10, Jasper 4, Wonderview 1.

Girls High School Basketball Poll

BOYS HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL RANKINGS
Following is the overall Top 10 boys high school basketball teams in Arkansas and the top five in Classes 6A, 5A, 4A, 3A, 2A and 1A as voted by a panel of sports media from around the state for the week ending January 5. Ranking is given with first-place votes received, records, total points and last week's rankings:
OVERALLRecordPtsPrv
1.Springdale (15)25-31931
2.Benton (3)24-31703
3.Jonesboro (2)23-31672
4.Little Rock Mills26-11394
5.Bryant17-91185
6.Maumelle21-6757
7.Valley View22-3436
8.Forrest City22-2408
Fayetteville19-7409
Harrison23-54010t
Springdale Har-Ber16-94010t
Others receiving votes: Nettleton 14, North Little Rock 8, Little Rock Christian 8, Farmington 3, Bergman 1, Conway 1.
CLASS 6A
1.Springdale (17)25-3971
2.Jonesboro (3)23-3832
3.Bryant17-9563
4.Springdale Har-Ber16-9305
5.Fayetteville19-7254
Others receiving votes: North Little Rock 9, Bentonville 1, Conway 1.
CLASS 5A
1.Benton (2024-31001
2.Maumelle21-6723
3.Valley View22-3392
4.Harrison23-5384
5.Little Rock Christian21-5235
Others receiving votes: Nettleton 12, Farmington 11, Sylvan Hills 4, Marion 1.
CLASS 4A
1.Little Rock Mills (20)26-11001
2.Forrest City22-2782
3.Magnolia16-1533
4.Morrilton19-7274
5.Little Rock Hall18-6255
Others receiving votes: Dardanelle 8, Joe T. Robinson 5, Blythevile 2, Brookland 1, Camden Fairview 1.
CLASS 3A
1.Bergman (20)32-21001
2.Lamar 24-3732
3.Osceola19-6533
4.Subiaco Academy20-4305
5.Elkins26-4184
Lincoln24-418
Others receiving votes: Melbourne 4, Dumas 2, Newport 2.
CLASS 2A
1.England (18)26-3901
2.Cedar Ridge (1)24-5652
3.Riverside (1)30-6593
4.Izard County21-9464
5.Ozark Catholic32-4235
Others receiving votes: East Poinsett County 13, Mount Vernon-Enola 2, Sloan-Hendrix 1, Hackett 1.
CLASS 1A
1.Earle (20)17-31001
2.Marked Tree22-5702
3.Nevada County25-7503
4.County Line25-5344
5.Jasper25-7135t
Others receiving votes: Brinkley 10, Clarendon 8, Dermott 7.

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