Wofford free safety and consensus first-team All-America Matt Nelson placed third in voting for The Sports Network's Buck Buchanan Award, honoring Division I-AA's top defensive player.

Named this week to All-America teams by The Sports Network, American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), and Associated Press, Nelson finished behind Idaho State defensive end Jared Allen and Illinois State linebacker Boomer Grigsby in the voting.

Allen recorded 28 tackles for loss, including 17.5 sacks, among his 102 stops. He also forced six fumbles while recovering three. He added nine pass breakups.

Allen received 28 first-place votes and 253 points from the panel of 91 I-AA sports information directors and selected media. Grigsby had 13 first-place votes and 193 total points. Nelson registered 10 first-place votes and 160 points.

The Buck Buchanan Award was established in 1995 by The Sports Network. The Award is named for All-Pro defensive end Junious “Buck” Buchanan, who played for the Kansas City Chiefs after beginning his career at Grambling State.

Former Buchanan winners include Dallas Cowboys All-Pro linebacker Dexter Coakley (Appalachian State, 1995, 1996), Baltimore Ravens starting LB Ed Hartwell (Western Illinois, 2000), and Jacksonville Jaguars starting defensive back Rashean Mathis (Bethune-Cookman, 2002).

Nelson received SoCon Defensive Player of the Year honors from the league media and was a unanimous first-team All-SoCon selection from the coaches.

He posted a team-best 167 tackles this season as he concluded his career with a Terrier record 452 stops. He is also the school leader in all-time solo tackles with 296.

The senior from Grove City, Ohio, had six interceptions for Wofford's highest total since 1993. Nelson also led the Terriers with 16 pass breakups while forcing two fumbles and recovering one. He had three red-zone takeaways.

Nelson was key in Wofford topping all of Division I football (I-A and I-AA) in turnover margin at 1.64 (+23). The Terriers were also third nationally in I-AA in scoring defense, allowing just 14.8 points per game.