CFL B.C. Lions

Outstanding Lions Nominated for 2011 Player Awards

Published on November 2, 2011 under Canadian Football League (CFL)
B.C. Lions News Release


(Vancouver) The Canadian Football League announced this morning the team nominees for the 2011 Gibson's Finest CFL Player Awards. The players were selected by voting members of the Football Reporters of Canada (FRC) and the eight CFL head coaches.

Quarterback Travis Lulay was the unanimous selection as the club's Most Outstanding Player after guiding the Lions to nine wins in the past ten games for an overall 10-7 record to date and one win away from an opportunity to host the Western Final for the first time since 2007. Twice named the CFL Offensive Player of the Week this season (Weeks 10 & 17), the consistent third-year pivot has connected on 323 of 553 passing attempts for 4,535 yards and 28 TD's along with an efficiency rating of 94.3, ranking second only to Montreal's Anthony Calvillo.

Veteran kicker Paul McCallum is a double nominee for a second straight season, picking up unanimous Most Outstanding Special Teams Player and Most Outstanding Canadian nods. After surpassing Dave Ridgway to set a new CFL record with 30 consecutive field goals, McCallum showed virtually no signs of slowing down during his 19th season in the CFL. With one week remaining in the regular season, he currently ranks third in kicking points with 184, first in field goal success rate (93.8%) and has also enjoyed another standout season as the team's punter with a 42.1-yard average.

Second-year Lion Keron Williams was named the club's Outstanding Defensive Player after recording a team-leading 11 sacks to go along with 43 defensive tackles and a forced fumble from his rush end position. The six-year CFL'er has also added 10 tackles for a loss and a pass knockdown through 17 regular season games as part of a Lions defence that has allowed the fewest TD's of any team in the league (32).

Following up a stellar rookie season with an equally standout sophomore campaign, right tackle Jovan Olafioye earns his second nomination as the club's Outstanding Lineman in as many seasons. Showing maturity beyond his 23 years, the steady Olafioye has not missed a game in his CFL career to date and has played a significant role in a Lions offensive line that has allowed the fewest sacks in the league (29).

Following a three-week audition at Lions training camp to earn a spot as the club's primary returner, Tim Brown made the most of his debut in Week 1 with a 97-yard punt return for a TD versus the Montreal Alouettes to earn him Player of the Week kudos. Since then, the diminutive speedster out of Stockton, CA has recorded 46 punt returns for 466 yards along with 48 kickoff returns for 994 yards en route to picking up the nod as the club's Outstanding Rookie. On offence, the versatile Temple grad has also added 54 rushing attempts for 280 yards and five TD's.

The Lions have fared well in the rookie category of late with Aaron Hunt (2006), Cam Wake (2007), Martell Mallet (2009) and Solomon Elimimian (2010) each walking away with the CFL hardware in recent seasons.

In this first ballot, FRC representatives from each CFL city plus the respective head coach submitted votes for the six categories. Voters were asked to select players from their local CFL club who through on-field performance excellence, best represent the awards' title - Most Outstanding Player, Most Outstanding Canadian Player, Most Outstanding Defensive Player, Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman, Most Outstanding Rookie, and Most Outstanding Special Teams Player.

The East and West nominees for the 2011 Gibson's Finest CFL Player Awards will be announced on Wednesday, November 9th at 9:00 am PT. The league-wide winners will be announced during Grey Cup week at the Gibson's Finest CFL Player Awards on Thursday, November 24th at the Vancouver Convention Centre as part of 99th Grey Cup festivities.

The next BC Lions home game is Saturday, November 5th at BC Place versus the Montreal Alouettes at 7:00 pm presented by FortisBC. Fans can catch all the action on the home of BC Lions football, TEAM 1410 beginning with the pre-game show at 5:00 pm. For tickets visit bclions.com or call 604.589.ROAR.

Check out the B.C. Lions Statistics

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Canadian Football League Stories from November 2, 2011


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