GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Furman defensive end Joshua Stoneking is among three players invited to the 2025 Buck Buchanan Award announcement, set for Jan. 3 in Nashville, Tenn.

The Buck Buchanan Award, in its 31st season and presented to the FCS national defensive player of year, is selected by a national voting panel from 30 finalists representing 13 FCS conferences.

Stoneking, a 6-foot-3, 264-pound redshirt sophomore from Raleigh, N.C., had FCS regular season highs in sacks (14.5), tackles for loss (23.0), and tackle yards for loss (132). He had at least one TFL in 11 of 12 games, and he matched his season high of 10 tackles out of 79 overall in the other game. He also totaled nine quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles, two pass breakups, and one blocked kick.

His 14.5 sacks accounted for 56 percent of Furman's 26 total sacks, and his 23 tackles for loss represented 33.3 percent of the Paladins' tackles for loss this season — by far the highest percentages among SoCon defenders.

He was named Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Week a league best three times this fall and was accorded all-conference honors in voting by league head coaches.

In Furman's 28-24 win over Campbell on Sept. 13 he tallied six tackles, including 4.5 tackles for loss of 21 yards, 2.5 sacks, and a forced fumble. His final sack, which came on fourth down and with 16 seconds on the clock and Campbell at Furman's 17-yard line, preserved the win for the Paladins.

Stoneking's 23.0 tackles for loss rank third in Furman history, and his 14.5 sacks tied for the fourth highest season tally by a Paladin.

Joining Stoneking in earning invitations to the Stats Perform FCS National Awards Show in Nashville are Fordham linebacker James Conway and Mercer defensive end Andrew Zock.

Furman linebacker Will Bouton placed third in Buck Buchanan Award balloting in 2001.

The Buck Buchanan Award is named for legendary defensive lineman Junious "Buck" Buchanan, who starred at Grambling State as part of his Hall of Fame career.

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2025 Buck Buchanan Award Voting

The following is a breakdown of the voting results (top three to be announced on Jan. 3). A first-place vote was worth five points, a second-place vote four points, a third-place vote three points, a fourth-place vote two points and a fifth-place vote one point. The final number is the combined point total.

1, 2, 3 TBA (Jan. 3) between James Conway, Joshua Stoneking and Andrew Zock
4. Caden Dowler, Montana State: 5-3-4-5-6-65
5. Lando Brown, Southern Utah: 2-5-5-7-1-60
6. A.J. Pena, Rhode Island: 5-1-4-7-3-58
7. Kaleb Proctor, Southeastern Louisiana: 5-1-4-4-0-49
8. Tye Niekamp, Illinois State: 4-3-2-1-2-42
9. Maximum Pulley, Wofford: 2-2-1-3-5-32
10. Erick Hunter, Morgan State: 1-2-3-1-2-26
11. Tyler Ochojski, Lehigh: 0-3-1-2-4-23
12. David Hoage, West Georgia: 1-1-1-3-3-21
13. Kimal Clark, Indiana State: 1-1-1-3-1-19
14. Logan Kopp, North Dakota State: 0-2-1-2-2-17
15. Abu Kamara, Yale: 0-1-3-0-2-15
16. Sean Allison, Drake: 1-0-1-2-1-13
T17: Luke Banbury, William & Mary: 1-1-0-1-1-12
T17. Theron Gaines, Tennessee Tech: 0-0-3-0-3-12
19. Jarod Washington, South Carolina State: 1-1-0-0-1-10
20. Jaco Psyk, UC Davis: 0-1-1-1-0-9
21. Quincy Ivory, Jackson State: 0-2-0-0-0-8
T22. Jaydon Southard, Stephen F. Austin: 0-1-0-0-1-5
T22. Shane Hartzell, Villanova: 0-0-1-0-2-5
24. Robert Holz, Gardner-Webb: 0-1-0-0-0-4
25. Rashon Myles Jr., Abilene Christian: 0-0-1-0-0-3
26. Kasyus Kurns, Tarleton State: 0-0-0-1-0-2
T27. Jack Stoll, Central Connecticut State: 0-0-0-0-0-0
T27. Jalen Jones, William & Mary: 0-0-0-0-0-0
T27. Nate Robinson Jr., Marist: 0-0-0-0-0-0
T27. Ty Bartrum, Harvard: 0-0-0-0-0-0

In addition to the Buck Buchanan Award, the Walter Payton Award (FCS Offensive Player of the Year), Jerry Rice Award (FCS Freshman Player of the Year), Eddie Robinson Award (FCS Coach of the Year), HBCU National Player of the Year and Doris Robinson Scholar-Athlete of the Year will be presented at the Stats Perform FCS National Awards Show