Foltz was presented with the Division II/III Gold Helmet by head coach Robert Talley at this week's New England Football Writers Luncheon. (PHOTO COURTESY of Harvard Athletic Communications/Denise Archetto) |
Mount Joy, Pa., sophomore quarterback is second Skyhawk to earn weekly award for Division II/III this season, eighth all-time
New England Football Writers Gold Helmet Announcement (Harvard Athletics)
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (September 30, 2015) – Stonehill College sophomore quarterback Matt Foltz (Mount Joy, Pennsylvania/The Hill School) received the New England Football Writers Weekly Gold Helmet Award for Divisions II and III, sponsored by the Jack Grinold Eastern Massachusetts Chapter of the National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame, at the New England Football Writers weekly luncheon at Dillon Fieldhouse on the campus of Harvard University today.
Foltz is the second Stonehill student-athlete to earn the weekly honor this season and the eighth in program history after sophomore cornerback Donovan Phanor (Portsmouth, New Hampshire/Portsmouth) collected the honors after the Skyhawks week one win at No. 11/14 Bloomsburg (Pa.) University. It marks the second time Stonehill has had two Gold Helmet winners in the same season after Hall of Famer Tony Dello Iacono, '95 and Mike McLucas, '95 both earned the honors in 1994. Foltz is the fifth Stonehill quarterback to receive the award; also earning Gold Helmets from Stonehill were Phanor (September 9, 2015), quarterback Logan Meyer (September 25, 2013), quarterback Cruz Parsons (October 5, 2005), running back Tyrone Jefferson (2000), quarterback Dan Field (1995), running back Mike McLucas (1994) and quarterback Tony Dello Iacono (1994).
Foltz, also named the Northeast-10 Conference's Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season on Monday, authored his second fourth quarter comeback in three weeks by rallying Stonehill to a 40-37 triumph at LIU Post on Saturday after the Skyhawks had trailed by as much as 30-6 late in the third quarter and 37-20 with 2:13 to play. He posted the first 400-yard passing performance in program history, tossing a program-record matching six touchdown passes, as he completed a career-high 30-of-46 passes for a record 421 yards, with just one interception. Foltz connected on 14-of-24 passes for 245 yards and four touchdowns (no interceptions) in the fourth quarter alone, completing three touchdown passes in the final 1:02, including a 41-yard scrambling Hail Mary to senior wide receiver Corey White (Bergenfield, New Jersey/Bergenfield) after the Skyhawks had recovered an onside kick with 5.9-seconds to go. His 30 completions are tied for the second-highest single game total in program history, while his six touchdown tosses are one shy of the Northeast-10 Conference mark. Foltz also produced three 100-yard receivers in a game for the first time in program history.
Foltz leads the Northeast-10 in passing yards per game (249.0), touchdowns (14) and completion percentage (67.2-percent), while ranking second in completions, having connected on 80-of-119 passes with just two interceptions for an NE-10 best 172.99 pass efficiency rating, which ranks ninth nationally in Division II. Foltz also ranks third nationally for touchdown passes, tenth for points responsible for (84) and 45th for yards per game.
Foltz has started the last seven games at quarterback for Stonehill, including the final three games of the 2014 season, and has completed 126-of-191 passes (66%) for 1,605 yards and 16 touchdowns, averaging 229.3 yards per game. He has also added 68 carries for another 133 yards on the ground for six touchdowns. Foltz led the Skyhawks with six rushing touchdowns in 2014 despite playing just three games. He collected NE-10 Rookie of the Week honors twice, was named to the NE-10 Commissioner's Honor Roll both semesters and Athletic Director's Honor Roll for the fall semester his freshman year. Foltz already ranks seventh in program history for career passing touchdowns and tenth for career passing yards in just seven games played.
Stonehill (4-0, 3-0 NE-10), among teams receiving votes in this week's AFCA Division II poll, is off to its best start since opening 7-0 in 1995. The Skyhawks are back in action on Saturday when it opens a stretch of four out of five game at home by hosting Southern Connecticut State University for its Purple & White Game at Timothy J. Coughlin '80 Memorial Field at W.B. Mason Stadium at 6 p.m.
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