Feb. 18, 2001

EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - Lafayette College senior split end Phil Yarberough (Lebanon, Pa./Lebanon), who became Lafayette's all-time leading receiver and earned Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year honors this year, was named the 2000 Lafayette football team Most Valuable Player. Yarberough was also one of 15 student-athletes on the squad recognized for his academic and athletic achievement at the Lafayette Football Awards Banquet held today in the Bergethon Room of the College's Marquis Hall.

Honored at the banquet were five members of the Lafayette football team earned a spot on the prestigious Verizon/CoSIDA District II Academic All-America team, as well as 10 who were named to the Patriot League Fall Academic Honor Roll.

Yarberough received the Hugh H. "Stoney" Jones '27 Award as the team MVP, and was also awarded the George McGaughey Award as the MVP of the Bucknell game. He recorded one of his top career performances vs. the Bison, catching nine passes for 124 yards and three touchdowns. His first touchdown reception of the game was a spectacular 10-yard, one-handed grab that caught the eyes of the nation when it appeared on ESPN's Hidden Video.

Yarberough was ranked among the Division I-AA receiving leaders all season despite playing the final games with a torn ligament in his left elbow. The All-Patriot League First-Team honoree led the conference in every receiving statistic. Ranked sixth in the final national rankings in receiving yards per game (103.55 avg.) and ninth in receptions per game (7.00), Yarberough, who was the fourth Lafayette football player to earn Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year honors, broke the four major Lafayette receiving records this past season. He recorded single-season records of 77 receptions and 1,139 receiving yards, and he concluded his career with 160 receptions for 2,385 yards. Those numbers also place him in eighth place all-time in Patriot League history in both receptions and receiving yards.

Positional MVP awards went to sophomore center Chris Royle (Stockton, N.J./Hunterdon Central) on the offensive line, Yarberough at receiver, and senior fullback Ryan Mayo (Industry, Pa./Western Beaver) in the offensive backfield. On the defensive side, positional MVP award recipients were senior defensive lineman Jermaine Williams (Easton, Pa./Easton), junior linebacker Nick Boccagno (Burke, Va./De Matha), and senior defensive back Elijah Beamon (Middletown, N.Y./Middletown). Special teams' MVP awards were presented to senior Shawn Reilly (Export, Pa./Franklin Regional) and freshman Joel Cesare (Whitehall, Pa./Whitehall). Three Rookies of the Year were named, as receiver Jeremy Burkes (Memphis, Tenn./Memphis East), quarterback Marko Glavic (Pickering, Ontario/St. Mary Catholic), and offensive lineman Kevin Moss (New York, N.Y./Simsbury) each received the honor.

Earning Unsung Hero awards were seniors Brian Gregorek (Bethlehem, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic), Mike Palos (Bethlehem, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic), and Jeff Weinman (Towanda, Pa./Towanda).

First-year head coach Frank Tavani also presented Scout Team awards to junior Philip Burger (North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin), and freshmen Chris Holland (Andover, N.J./Lenape Valley), Kevin Kozup (Boiling Springs, Pa./Boiling Springs), and John Weyrauch (Mountain Top, Pa./Crestwood).

Lafayette concluded its 119th season of college football with a 2-9 overall record and a 1-5 mark in the Patriot League under first-year head coach Frank Tavani. The Leopards are scheduled to open the 2001 season at Towson on Sept. 8.

2000 LAFAYETTE FOOTBALL TEAM AWARDS
?Hugh H. "Stoney" Jones '27 Award (Most Valuable Player) -- Phil Yarberough '01
?Unsung Heroes -- Brian Gregorek '01, Mike Palos '01, Jeff Weinman '01
?Positional Most Valuable Players:
???? - Offensive Line -- Chris Royle '03
???? - Receivers -- Phil Yarberough '01
???? - Offensive Backs -- Ryan Mayo '01
???? - Defensive Line -- Jermaine Williams '01
???? - Linebackers -- Nick Boccagno '02
???? - Defensive Backs -- Elijah Beamon '01
???? - Special Teams -- Joel Cesare '04 and Shawn Reilly '01
?Rookies of the Year -- Jeremy Burkes '04, Mark Glavic '04, and Kevin Moss '04
?Scout Team Awards -- Phil Burger '02, Chris Holland '04, Kevin Kozup '04, John Weyrauch '04
?George McGaughey Award (Bucknell Game MVP) -- Phil Yarberough '01