Dowling Chosen As Jerry Rice Award Finalist

MACON, Ga. – Mercer linebacker Isaac Dowling was selected as one of 16 finalists for the Stats Perform FCS Jerry Rice Award, bestowed upon the Football Championship Subdivision's National Freshman of the Year.

The award is named for NFL Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice and is celebrating its 10^th anniversary this season. Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp is the most prominent winner of the award, and the most recent recipient in 2019, former North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance, is projected to be one of the early selections in the NFL Draft on April 29.

Dowling is one of two Southern Conference finalists and the lone defensive player from the SoCon on the list.

"As a man, a person, a student and obviously as a football player, Isaac Dowling is awesome," stated head coach Drew Cronic. For him to come in as a true freshman and perform like he did was tremendous. We're blessed to have him, and he's going to just continue to get better as he gets older. He has bright future, and we're really proud of him. People are taking notice of Mercer football and the success we're having as a team. This is a tremendous honor for him and Mercer football."

Dowling, a five-foot-ten-inch linebacker from Lawrenceville, Ga., burst onto the collegiate gridiron in October with back-to-back 16-tackle games to begin his collegiate career. To begin the Drew Cronic era, Dowling made six solo stops and 16 total tackles with one tackle for a loss and two sacks in the season opener at Jacksonville State on October 10. Following an open week, the Army Black Knights' offensive coordinators made sure to know where Dowling was on the field at all times, but it did little good as he again made 16 stops – 7 solo and 9 assisted – while taking down two players for a loss and recording two sacks. To end the fall, Dowling made nine tackles and had one sack in the Bears' lone home game of the fall.

In Mercer's second game of the spring season, the Lawrenceville, Ga., native began a streak of four consecutive games with a sack and also recorded six tackles. Mercer began a four-game winning streak against Western Carolina on March 27, and Dowling made four stops, while tallying 27 total tackles in the four victories.

Dowling ended the 2020-21 campaign with two consecutive games reaching double-digit tackles, including 10 in a win over No. 20 ETSU, Mercer's third consecutive triumph over a ranked foe. In the season finale, he made 17 stops – 11 solo and 6 assisted for a new career high and tied for the third most in a single game in program history, and his 6.5 sacks are the third best in single-season history. Dowling is tied for the fifth most solo tackles (42) and tackles for loss (8.5) in a over the course of a Mercer football season.

Five leagues – the Southern, Big South, Missouri Valley, Ohio Valley and Southland conferences – have two finalists. The Big Sky Conference, Colonial Athletic Association, Northeast Conference, Patriot League, Pioneer League and Southwestern Athletic Conference each have one finalist.

A 40-member panel comprised on national media members will select the award winner which will be announced on May 3.

Jerry Rice Award finalists
Bronson Barron, Weber State, QB (Big Sky)
Quinton "Pig" Cage, Nicholls, Nickel (Southland)
Isaac Dowling, Mercer, LB (Southern)
Draylen Ellis, Austin Peay, QB (Ohio Valley)
Ty French, Gardner-Webb, DE (Big South)
Mark Gronowski, South Dakota State, QB (Missouri Valley)
Billy Lucas, Duquesne, RB (Northeast)
Seth Morgan, VMI, QB (Southern)
Tony Muskett, Monmouth, QB (Big South)
Ryan Nettles, Alabama State, QB (SWAC)
Tommy Schuster, North Dakota, QB (Missouri Valley)
Matthew Sluka, Holy Cross, QB (Patriot)
Devon Starling, Tennessee State, RB (Ohio Valley)
Keyon Turner, Valparaiso, CB (Pioneer)
Jared Verse, Albany, DE (CAA)
Cameron Ward, UIW, QB (Southland)

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Players Mentioned

Isaac Dowling

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