Coleman, Schieffer Share Top Honor at Annual Awards Banquet
2/13/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
Feb. 13, 2004
Air Force seniors Monty Coleman and Joe Schieffer were named co-recipients of the Brian Bullard Memorial Award at the 2004 Football Awards Banquet Friday evening at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. The Bullard Award is the top award an Air Force football player can win.
Seniors Marchello Graddy, Brett Huyser Andrew Martin and junior Darnell Stephens also took home honors at the banquet. Graddy was named the team's overall most valuable player, while Huyser and Martin were named lineman of the year and special teams player of the year, respectively. Stephens won the most valuable back award.
Senior David Goodale, a native of Colorado Springs, Colo., took home the Levi "Pee Wee" Cordova award as the team's top manager. Senior fullback Steve Massie took home the Jack Braley Mr. Intensity Award as the most outstanding player in the weight room. Massie ranked first on the team in bench press with a maximum lift of 405 pounds. He squatted 515 pounds and cleaned 319 until a wrist injury forced him to slow down.
The Bullard Award, established in 1984, is based on the criteria that typifies the late Brian Bullard - unselfishness, 110 percent effort, total team commitment and pride in his role on the team whether he's a starter or not. Bullard was a 1982 graduate of Air Academy High School in Colorado Springs. He attended the Academy the following year and played on the football team for two years. During Thanksgiving vacation in 1983, Bullard and his girlfriend, fellow cadet Dianne Williams, died from carbon monoxide poisoning while returning from a trip to Kansas in a snow storm.
Coleman, a three-year starter, was a leader on and off the field. In his second year at defensive end, Coleman found the position to his liking. He finished fifth in the conference in tackles for loss with 12.5 for 55 yards. He ranked fifth in the conference in sacks with 5.5 for 44 yards. Coleman's 12.5 tackles for loss is the most by a Falcon since 2000 when C.J. Zanotti had 13 for 54 yards. Coleman's tackle for loss yardage of 55 is the most since 1998 when Shawn Thomas had 15 TFL's for 81 yards.
While Coleman rolled up big numbers on the field, it's off the field where he is having his biggest impact. Coleman helped start a mentoring program called Hope Springs, which is a pilot program under the umbrella of Big Brothers, Big Sisters. The program benefits teenagers from single-parent homes and that live with mothers or grandparents.
Schieffer finished the season with 90 yards rushing and 234 yards receiving in 2003. His biggest play was a five-yard run on four-and-two at midfield against Wyoming earlier in the season. He took a bad pitch and turned it up field for a first down to help run out the clock and seal the game in Air Force's 35-29 win over the Cowboys. His biggest contribution, however, was his leadership on and off the field. Schieffer was one of the team's organizers in its annual visit to the Salvation Army over Christmas.
Marchello Graddy was named first-team all-Mountain West Conference after leading the league in tackles most of the season. A two-time MWC defensive player of the week selection, Graddy recorded a career-high 18 tackles against Navy which was the most by a player in the conference all season. He recorded 10 or more tackles in a game six times during the season. He turned recovering fumbles into an art form, getting five on the season. He recorded nine for his career to establish a new Academy record. Graddy's season was capped by earning Colorado defensive player of the year honors and earning a trip to the Hula Bowl.
Darnell Stephens established himself as one of the premier running backs in the Mountain West Conference. The junior rushed for 604 yards and four touchdowns to rank second on the team. He rushed for a career-high 93 yards against BYU to help the Falcons to their first win in Provo since 1982. A versatile player, Stephens caught six passes for 70 yards and a touchdown. He earned MWC honorable mention all-conference.
Brett Huyser is widely considered one of the best offensive linemen in school history by the coaches. Huyser finished second on the team in knockdown blocks this season with 14 per game while earning second-team all-conference honors by the media. He was also selected to play in the 2004 East-West Shrine game.
Andrew Martin averaged 43.2 yards per punt on the season which ranked third in the Mountain West Conference. Martin didn't have enough attempts to qualify for the national statistics, but his average ranked among the top 10 all season. Martin kicked a career-long 69-yarder against Northwestern during the season which was the longest by any player in the Mountain West Conference. Martin's 43.2 average ranks fifth all-time at the Academy and was instrumental in the Falcons leading the conference in net punting with a 41.5 mark.
