By Keon Edington and Matthew Sotlar / The Jambar
Junior Beau Brungard was recognized in a trifecta of Football Championship Subdivision honors as he became the first Youngstown State University football player to earn the FCS Walter Payton Award, the 2025 Walter Camp FCS Player of the Year award and a spot on to the FCS All-America Team.
Brungard was honored with the FCS Walter Payton Award on Jan. 3 at the Stats Perform FCS National Awards Show in Nashville, Tennessee. First awarded in 1987, the honor is designed to showcase the best FCS offensive player of the season.
After accepting the award, Brungard expressed gratitude for his teammates and the support system around him at YSU.
“It goes a lot further than me just getting the award. My name might be on it, but it goes to show my offensive line, the players around me, my coaches. Coach Phillips taking a chance on me — he was my only offer coming out of high school. So it’s so much bigger than just me,” Brungard said.
Brungard was chosen as the recipient over two other finalists — redshirt senior Cole Payton from North Dakota State University and redshirt sophomore Taron Dickens from Western Carolina University.
Only the third player to be recognized as Walter Camp FCS Player of the Year, Brungard was honored Dec. 19, 2025 in a ceremony presented by Crabtree Lexus of New Haven, Connecticut.
Since the award’s establishment in 2023, Brungard joins previous winners Tommy Mellott from Montana State University in 2024 and Jaden Shirden from Monmouth University in 2023.
To round out his honors, the American Football Coaches Association named Brungard to its FCS All-America Team on Dec. 18, 2025 as the first-team offense quarterback. First awarded in 1889, the honor recognizes the top-performing college football players in America based on position.
Throughout the 2025 season, Brungard posted 23 touchdowns and only three interceptions. He threw for 3,230 yards, completed nearly 70% of passes and rushed for 24 touchdowns with 1,378 yards total on the ground.
The quarterback will return to YSU as a senior to compete in the 2026-27 football season.