Emory & Henry College senior running back Devontae Jordan has been selected as the 2021 winner of the Lanier Award by The Richmond Times-Dispatch. The announcement was made live on WTVR CBS 6 following the annual Army-Navy Game.
The Lanier Award is given to the top player in the state from a NCAA Division II, Division III or NAIA program. It is named for Willie Lanier, an NFL Hall of Famer and graduate of Maggie L. Walker High School in Richmond, Virginia.
Jordan is the second Wasp to win the Lanier Award. Caleb Jennings took home the honor in 2019. Jordan is the third E&H player to be selected as State Player of the Year by The Richmond Times-Dispatch. Cary Perkins won the Dudley Award in 1992 prior to the Lanier’s inception.
Jordan rewrote the Emory & Henry record book for a running back, setting nine different records on the year. He led all divisions of college football with 26 total touchdowns and finished as the number two rusher in Division II by just two yards.
Jordan set new E&H standards including rushing yardage in a season (1,853), rushing touchdowns in a game (six) and a season (26), and points scored in a game (36) and a season (156). He also became the first E&H rusher to gain more than 100 yards in all 10 games of a season and the first player to run for more than 200 yards in three straight contests.
Emory & Henry posted a 6-4 record during the 2021 season, playing an Old Dominion Athletic Conference schedule for the final time. The Wasps went 4-3 against their former league rivals, averaging nearly 40 points per game.
