The Sports Network established the Walter Payton Player of the Year Award in
1987, and it is presented annually to the most outstanding college football
player on the FCS level. The winner is chosen by a nationwide panel of sports
information and media relations directors, broadcasters, writers and other
dignitaries from the division. When the award was established, it was the only
such award to be presented to an individual player in FCS football. It has
since been joined by the Buck Buchanan Award, which was established in 1995
and honors the outstanding defensive player in the FCS and the Jerry Rice
Award, presented annually beginning in 2011, honoring the outstanding freshman
in the FCS.
Payton, who played collegiately for Jackson State, set the NCAA record for
points scored in a career with 464. He scored 66 touchdowns for the Tigers,
while rushing for 3,563 yards. Payton also kicked five field goals and 53 PATs
in his four-year career at JSU. He set nine school records, six of which still
stand today.
However, Payton's collegiate accomplishments pale in comparison to the numbers
he posted in his professional career. Upon his retirement, he was the NFL's
all-time leading rusher with 16,726 yards, and the Chicago Bears' all-time
leading scorer with 750 points, as well as the holder of eight NFL records
and 28 Bears records. In 1977, at the age of 23, Payton became the youngest
player to be voted NFL MVP. He added a second league MVP award following the
1985 season. During his 13-year NFL career, Payton was named to the Pro Bowl
nine times. He also was named a member of the NFL's prestigious 75th
Anniversary Team.
As active as he was on the field, Payton was equally active in charity work
off the field. He was honorary chairman for the 1983 Heart Association Jump
Rope for Health, and for the Illinois Mental Health Association from 1978
through 1980. Payton also was involved with the Boy Scouts, March of Dimes,
Brian Piccolo Research Fund, United Way, the Peace Corps and the Walter &
Connie Payton Foundation, which is dedicated to supporting neglected, abused
and underpriveleged children.
