Anthony Budd, Shaundre Mims Named to Buck Buchanan Award Watch List
Big South Preseason All-Conference defensive standouts
Anthony Budd of Monmouth and
Shaundre Mims of Charleston Southern were among the 35 initial candidates on the Buck Buchanan Award Watch List for the 2021, announced Thursday by Stats Perform.
Budd, the 2021 Big South Preseason Defensive Player of the Year and a Preseason Second-Team All-American by Stats Perform, has been the league’s interception leader the past two seasons (5 in 2019, 2 in 2020-21) while earning First-Team All-Conference honors both years. Budd was the Hawks’ third-leading tackler in the spring season with 26 stops (14 solo) and had three pass break-ups in addition to his two picks. He recorded two tackles-for-loss, registered a career-high 11 tackles and an interception in a win over Gardner-Webb, and helped Monmouth’s rush defense finish 13th in the nation, fifth in turnover margin and first in sacks.
Mims becomes the third Buccaneer defensive player in program history to be recognized on the watch list joining former CSU great Anthony Ellis (2017) and current teammate Nick Salley (2019) to receive the honor. Mims was recognized on the STATS Perform Preseason FCS All-American Third Team as the Vanceboro, N.C. native received his first preseason All-American accolade of the season and third in the last two years. He was recognized on the 2020 HERO Sports FCS All-American team and the 2020 College Football America Yearbook's FCS Preseason Starting Lineup prior to the 2020-21 season. The senior defensive tackle paced the Bucs with a team-high 5.5 tackles and added 1.5 sacks over CSU's four games this spring. Mims opened the shortened spring season with a career-high 12 tackles and added 3.0 tackles for loss in the opener against Kennesaw State in a signature effort. Over the course of the 2021 spring season he recorded at least one tackle for loss per game and finished in the top-35 in FCS in tackles for loss.