Liberty quarterback Malik Willis has been named a finalist for the Dudley Award following his sensational 2020 season with the Flames. Willis is one of three finalists for the award joining Virginia Tech running back Khalil Herbert and VMI quarterback Reece Udinski. This year’s ceremony will air on Saturday at 7 pm on CBS 6 in Richmond, Virginia and online at WTVR.com.
The Dudley Award, named after former Virginia running back Bill Dudley, is presented annually by the Richmond Times-Dispatch to honor the top NCAA football player in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It has resided in the Charlottesville the past three seasons after Virginia’s Micah Kiser won the award in 2017 and Bryce Perkins won it in both 2018 and 2019.
The award is traditionally given out in December; however, this year, a number of Virginia colleges are playing spring football seasons, leading to the decision to delay voting on the award until April when all teams have had the opportunity to compete.
Herbert will attempt to break a Dudley-less streak for the Hokies that dates to 2011 when running back David Wilson took home the award. Herbert led the nation with 1,791 all-purpose yards this season, including a Tech record 357 yards against Duke in October. He picked up 1,182 of those yards rushing and was named third-team all-ACC as a running back.
The Keydets produced one of the most memorable seasons in school history, clinching their first conference title since 1977 and their first ever berth in the FCS playoffs. Udinski is VMI’s all-time leading passer with 7,862 yards. In four games played this spring, Udinski has completed 72.1% of his 172 passes for 1,087 yards, 7 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions.
Liberty has never had a Dudley winner, but the Flames had the state’s most wins this season including a win over Virginia Tech, and Liberty’s nominee had a big hand in that. QB Malik Willis led Liberty to a 10-1 record in the shortened season, ending the year with a dramatic bowl victory over Coastal Carolina. Willis had 20 passing touchdowns and 13 rushing touchdowns this year as he now holds the Liberty school records for touchdowns in a season (33) and rushing yards in a season by a quarterback (855). He finished with 2,260 passing yards while completing 64.2% of his passes with a passer rating of 156.2.
While Liberty has never had a Dudley Award winner, Virginia Tech leads the way with 12 for the award which has been presented annually since 1990. Virginia has the second most award winners with 9, followed by James Madison who has 5. Old Dominion, Richmond, and Emory & Henry each have 1.
