Related: ESU game notes vs. Mercyhurst (Saturday, 1 p.m.)

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EAST STROUDSBURG – East Stroudsburg University redshirt sophomore quarterback Matt Soltes is one of 28 candidates in the running for the 2013 Harlon Hill Trophy as the NCAA Division II College Football Player of the Year, it was released Thursday.

Soltes (Vernon, N.J./Vernon) is one of two quarterbacks in Division II to rank in the top 10 in total offense, passing yards and pass efficiency entering the final week of his sophomore year after earning the PSAC East Freshman of the Year in 2012.

He is one of just three sophomores on the list and the only underclassman from Super Region 1, which has seven representatives – including five from the PSAC, and four from the PSAC East.

He is joined in the region by Shippensburg QB Zach Zulli, the returning winner, along with Bloomsburg RB Franklyn Quiteh, West Chester RB Rondell White, Slippery Rock QB Nigel Barksdale, Merrimack QB Joe Clancy and Urbana QB D.J. Mendenhall.

Soltes comes into Saturday's season finale vs. Mercyhurst with 347.1 yards of total offense per game (8th in DII), 302.3 passing yards per game (9th in DII) and a pass efficiency rating of 173.7 (9th in DII). He is the only quarterback in Super Region 1 ranked in the top 10 nationally in all three categories.

For the season, he is 194-for-319 for 3,023 passing yards, 34 touchdowns and just three interceptions. He has rushed for 448 yards and two touchdowns on 86 carries.

Soltes is the fifth ESU quarterback to be selected as a Harlon Hill candidate, tied for third-most from one school since the award was first presented in 1986. He joins current Vanderbilt head coach James Franklin (1994), Damian Poalucci (1996-97), Jimmy Terwilliger (2003-06), who received the award in 2005, and Ray Wagner (2011).

ESU has had a quarterback named to the Harlon Hill list in nine of the last 20 seasons since Franklin was recognized in 1994 – the most in DII and one ahead of West Texas A&M.

Soltes is the eighth ESU player overall to be named to the Harlon Hill ballot. Linebacker Matt Freed was the only defensive player among 24 candidates in 2010, kicker/punter Ed Detwiler was one of just two specialist to be named a candidate when he was selected in 1992, and wide receiver/kick returner Dennis Mailhot was a finalist in 1989.

The list of candidates is selected at the regional level by an advisory committee, which receives nominations from sports information directors. The top two players from each of the country's four regions will be placed on the national ballot, with the winner to be announced on Friday, December 20 in Florence, Alabama. The NCAA DII championship game will be played Saturday at noon at Florence's Braly Municipal Stadium.

SOLTES' SEASON

Soltes leads an ESU offense that enters the season finale on pace for school records in scoring (43.9 ppg, 10th in DII) and total offense (526.9 ypg, 6th in DII). The Warriors have produced one of the three 1,000-yard rushing and receiving tandems in DII in redshirt freshman tailback Robert Healy (1,063 rushing yards) and redshirt senior wide receiver Robert Bleiler (1,093 receiving yards).

Soltes has eclipsed the 300-yard mark in total offense in six games, 350-yard mark in five games, 400-yard mark in four games and has the only two 500-yard games in the PSAC this year.

His 34-to-3 touchdown-to-interception ratio is second-best in DII, and is on pace to be one of the top marks in DII history among quarterbacks with at least 35 touchdown passes. He threw 211 consecutive passes without an interception, a school record and believed to be a PSAC record, and has a current streak of 92 passes without an interception going into Saturday.

Soltes' standout game came against No. 6-ranked Bloomsburg on Oct. 19 – going 32-for-48 for 476 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions, and rushing for 66 yards on 12 carries, for 542 yards of total offense in a 52-38 loss after bringing the Warriors even at 38-38 with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter. He had 536 yards (462 passing, 74 rushing) against Lock Haven two weeks later.

Soltes broke his own school record for completion percentage in a 48-28 win over Clarion on Oct. 5, going 29-for-34 (85.3 percent) for 444 yards and four TD's, and rushing for 37 yards for 481 yards of total offense. He also had 419 yards (387 passing, 32 rushing) at Cheyney on Sept. 28, 376 (259 passing, 117 rushing) at PSAC East co-champion Shippensburg on Sept. 21 and 319 yards (305 passing, 14 rushing) at Kutztown on Oct. 26.

Last week against Millersville, he had a career-high six TD passes and was 13-for-22 for 197 yards, while adding 25 rushing yards for 222 yards of total offense.

In the season opener, he had 263 yards (215 passing, 48 rushing) and led two second-half scoring drives in a 21-14 win over American International, which plays for the Northeast-10 championship on Saturday. He threw for 188 yards and four TD's, all in the first half, and ran for 23 yards in a 70-7 win at Seton Hill in the second week of the season.

SOLTES' CAREER

Soltes has made 17 career starts, averaging 370.0 total yards per game. He already ranks fifth at ESU in career passing TD's (55) and sixth in passing yards (5,645) and total yards (6,629).

This week, he can become the fifth quarterback in DII history to compile 7,000 yards of total offense through the end of his sophomore season. He ranks second in PSAC history in total yards as a sophomore behind ESU's Jimmy Terwilliger (7,634 yards), who won the Harlon Hill as a junior in 2005.

Last fall, he was named PSAC East Freshman of the Year after leading DII freshmen in total offense (315.8 ypg) and pass efficiency (157.5). His 402.7 yards per game in seven games as a starter would have led Division II, and he set an NCAA freshman record and PSAC record with 666 yards at LIU Post, becoming the first quarterback in PSAC history to throw for 500 yards (535) and rush for 100 (131) in a single game.

His 3,158 total yards were second-most by a PSAC freshman behind Terwilliger (3,342 yards), and he was the fourth QB in PSAC history (and first non-senior) to throw for 2,500 yards and rush for 500 yards in a season.


ESU Harlon Hill Award History

ESU has had eight players combine for 12 total mentions on the list of Harlon Hill candidates. That total is second-most in the PSAC and tied for seventh-most in DII since the award was first presented in 1986.

2013 – Matt Soltes (QB)
2011 – Ray Wagner (QB), Candidate
2010 – Matt Freed (OLB), Candidate
2006 – Jimmy Terwilliger (QB), 4th
2005 – Jimmy Terwilliger (QB), 1st
2004 – Jimmy Terwilliger (QB), 5th
2003 – Jimmy Terwilliger (QB), Candidate
1997 – Damian Poalucci (QB), Candidate
1996 – Damian Poalucci (QB), 3rd
1994 – James Franklin (QB), Candidate
1992 – Ed Detwiler (K/P), Candidate
1989 – Dennis Mailhot (WR/KR), 9th


2013 Harlon Hill Candidates

The group of 28 candidates includes 17 quarterbacks, seven running backs, three receivers and a linebacker. There are 20 seniors, five juniors and three sophomores.

SUPER REGIONAL 1
Nigel Barksdale – QB, 5-10, 170, SR – Slippery Rock – San Jacinto, Calif.
Joe Clancy – QB, 6-3, 210, SR – Merrimack – Newburyport, Mass.
D.J. Mendenhall – QB, 6-5, 230, SR – Urbana – West Jefferson, Ohio
Franklyn Quiteh – RB – 5-9, 206, SR – Bloomsburg – Tobyhanna, Pa.
Matt Soltes – QB, 6-3, 210, SO – East Stroudsburg – Vernon, N.J.
Rondell White – RB, 5-10, 185, SR – West Chester – West Chester, Pa.
Zach Zulli – QB, 6-1, 205, SR – Shippensburg – Schwenksville, Pa.

SUPER REGIONAL 2
Kyle Caldwell – QB – 5-7, 165, SR – West Alabama – Dadeville, Ala.
Luke Charles – QB, 6-1, 215, SR – UNC Pembroke – Murphy, N.C.
Bo Cordell – QB, 6-0, 205, SR – Tusculum – Cincinnati, Ohio
Freddie Martino – WR, 6-0, 195, SR – North Greenville – North, S.C.
Robbie Nallenweg – QB, 6-5, 230, SR – Wingate – Asheville, N.C.
Chris Rini – QB, 6-3, 185, SR – Lane – Key Largo, Fla.
Tavarius Wilson – LB, 5-11, 235, SR – North Alabama – Jackson, Miss.

SUPER REGIONAL 3
John Brown – WR, 5-11, 170, SR – Pittsburg State – Homestead, Florida
Marquez Clark – WR, 5-11, 190, JR – Central Oklahoma – Texarkana, Texas
Phillip Klaphake – QB, 6-1, 196, SR – St. Cloud State – Princeton, Minn.
Kevin Rodgers – QB – 6-3, 215, JR – Henderson State – Rockwall, Texas
Chris Smith – RB, 5-8, 190, JR – Upper Iowa – Brown Deer, Wisc.
Tyler Tonderum – RB, 5-10, 191, JR – Southwest Minnesota State – Armstrong, Iowa
John Wolf – QB, 6-4, 230, SR – Minnesota State-Mankato – Oak Forest, Illinois

SUPER REGIONAL 4
Chris Bonner – QB, 6-7, 225, JR – Colorado State-Pueblo – San Diego, Calif.
Glen Clinton – TB, 5-10, 200, SR – Chadron State – Cody, Wyoming
Daiquone Ford – RB, 5-7, 190, SO – Findlay – Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Keidrick Jackson – RB, 5-9, 210, SR – Midwestern State – Arlington, Texas
Jonathon Jennings – QB, 6-2, 205, SR – Saginaw Valley State – Columbus, Ohio
Jason Vander Laan – QB, 6-4, 236, SO – Ferris State – Frankfort, Illinois
Dustin Vaughan – QB, 6-5, 220, SR – West Texas A&M – Corpus Christi, Texas


Most Individual QB's as Harlon Hill candidates
6 – New Haven, West Texas A&M
5 – ESU, Grand Valley State, North Alabama
4 – Abilene Christian, Angelo State, California-Davis, California (Pa.), Nebraska-Omaha, Portland State

Most Total Harlon Hill candidates (includes multiple-time selections)
17 – North Alabama, Texas A&M-Kingsville
16 – Grand Valley State
15 – California (Pa.)
14 – Abilene Christian
13 – West Texas A&M
12 – ESU, UC-Davis