Terrell Allen, a defensive end for Tennessee State football, was named the nation’s best FCS defensive player on Saturday night when he received the Buck Buchanan trophy.
The award was initially given out in 1995, and Allen was the first player from TSU to receive it.
Dylan Kelly of Albany and Billy Shaeffer of Lafayette, two finalists, were defeated by the junior who transferred from Austin Peay in 2022.
Mark Gronowski, quarterback for South Dakota State, was named the FCS’s best offensive player and received the Walter Payton trophy.
Midway through the season, Allen made it known that he intended to return for his final year of eligibility in 2024. He also led the FCS in tackles for loss (25), with 14.5 sacks. With 65 stops, he ranked second among TSU’s tacklers. He was also selected an Associated Press All-American and the defensive player of the year for the Big South/Ohio Valley Conference.
This season, he recorded 16.5 tackles for loss, 11.5 sacks, and 32 tackles in a four-game run.
After Jacksonville State defensive end Darius Jackson in 2017 and Southeast Missouri linebacker Zach Hall in 2018, Allen became the third player from the OVC to win the prize. Allen is just the seventh recipient of the honor to come from a historically black college or university.