GREENVILLE, S.C. – Furman defensive end
Joshua Stoneking has been selected by the Division I Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association (FCS ADA) as its 2025 Defensive Player of the Year, it was announced today.
Stoneking is the third Furman football player to garner national player of the year honors, joining linebacker
Jeff Blankenship (1988) and running back
Louis Ivory (2001), and he becomes the seventh student-athlete in school history to land national player of the year laurels — a list that also includes
Frank Selvy, 1954 (men's basketball),
Brad Faxon, 1982 (men's golf),
Angel Myers Martino, 1986 (women's swimming), and
Natalie Srinivasan, 2020 (women's golf).
Youngstown State quarterback Beau Brungard was named 2025 FCS ADA Offensive Player of the Year.
Stoneking and Brungard were among 11 All-America honorees selected as the best player at each position.
2025 FCS ADA All-America Awards
QB Beau Brungard, Youngstown State (Missouri Valley)
RB Joshua Dye, Southern Utah (United)
WR Bryce Lance, North Dakota State (Missouri Valley)
TE Chris Corbo, Dartmouth (Ivy)
OL Trent Fraley, North Dakota State (Missouri Valley)
DL Joshua Stoneking, Furman (Southern)
LB Tye Niekamp, Illinois State (Missouri Valley)
DB Caden Dowler, Montana State (Big Sky)
RS Bugs Mortimer, SFA (Southland)
PK Eli Ozick, North Dakota State (Missouri Valley)
P Ben D'Aquila, Northern Arizona (Big Sky)
Offensive Player of the Year: QB Beau Brungard, Youngstown State
Defensive Player of the Year: DE Joshua Stoneking, Furman
Stoneking's FCS ADA All-America honor marks his seventh All-America team selection this year, which also includes scrolls from Football Central, Associated Press, Stats Perform, AFCA, Walter Camp Foundation, and Phil Steele.
A 6-foot-4, 264-pound redshirt sophomore, he posted FCS highs in sacks (14.5), tackles for loss (23.0), and tackle yards for loss (132) for the Paladins this fall. In addition to his team leading 79 tackles, he also totaled nine quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles, two pass breakups, and one blocked kick.
Stoneking's 14.5 sacks, which tied for the fourth most in Furman history, accounted for 56 percent of the squad's 26 total sacks, and his 23 tackles for loss represented 33.3 percent of the Paladins' tackles for loss this season.
The Raleigh, N.C., product was named Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Week a league best three times this fall and was accorded first team all-conference honors in voting by league head coaches.
Stoneking is among three finalists for the Buck Buchanan Award, which is presented annually by Stats Perform to the top defensive player in the FCS. This year's winner, the 31st in award history, will be announced on Jan. 3 in Nashville, Tenn., along with the winner of the 39th Walter Payton Award, given to the top offensive player. All told, six awards will be presented during the Stats Perform FCS National Awards Show, which will air on YouTube, via
The FCS Edge podcast channel, beginning around 7:45 p.m. ET.
About the FCS ADA:
Now in its 32nd year, the Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association's mission is to enhance Football Championship Subdivision football. For more information on the FCS ADA, please visit www.fcsada.com. The FCS ADA is administered by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), which is in its 60th year. For more information on NACDA and the 19 professional associations that fall under its umbrella, please visit www.nacda.com.
