LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The Little Rock Touchdown Club and Wright Lindsey Jennings LLP announced the finalists for the sixth annual Cliff Harris Award on Friday (Dec. 14). Fort Hays State senior linebacker Jose Delgado is a finalist for the award.

This award is presented to the nation’s top small college defensive player representing almost 500 colleges and universities from NCAA Division II, Division III and NAIA colleges. A prestigious selection committee made up of former college and pro football greats will select the winner. In addition to the Cliff Harris Award overall winner, the top vote getter from each division will be announced. The Cliff Harris Award winner will be announced on December 24 and honored at the Little Rock Touchdown Club’s annual awards banquet on January 10, 2019, featuring guest speaker Barry Sanders. The winner will receive the Cliff Harris Award trophy presented by Cliff Harris.

All but one of the five previous Cliff Harris Award winners were from NCAA Division II. Last year, Michael Joseph from NCAA Division III affiliate University of Dubuque won the award, snapping a four-year run of Division II players earning the honor. Nathan Shepherd of FHSU, now with the New York Jets in the NFL, tied as the top vote receiver from NCAA Division II last year. Two of the four Division II winners of the award have been players from the MIAA.

Delgado was the 2018 MIAA Defensive Player of the Year, making it three straight years a player from FHSU earned the distinction joining Shepherd (2017) and Sie Doe, Jr. (2016). He already received All-America First Team honors from the D2CCA earlier this week. Delgado helped FHSU to back-to-back MIAA titles, leading the team in tackles three consecutive seasons. He had 117 tackles this season, going past the century mark for the third straight year, while adding eight tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, two fumble recoveries and one forced fumble.

For his career, Delgado finished with 402 tackles, 30.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks, two interceptions, two forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries, and nine pass breakups. He was a three-time All-MIAA selection overall and has earned All-America honors two straight years.

Fort Hays State has now had a finalist for the Cliff Harris Award four straight years as Delgado joins Shepherd (2017), Doe (2016), and Brock Long (2015).