(WHEELING, W.Va.)---West Liberty quarterback Zach Amedro has been named as the 2009 winner of the Hardman Award as West Virginia's top amateur athlete. The honor is the oldest award that is handed out by the West Virginia Sportswriters Association.
The Moundsville, WV junior rewrote the West Liberty and WVIAC record books during his squad's league-championship 11-2 campaign. Amedro threw for a WVIAC single-season best 4,945 yards, a figure that ranks second all-time in the NCAA Division II ranks. He exceeded the 300-yard passing mark in each game and led the country with 49 touchdown passes.
Amedro's post-season honors have rolled in almost as quickly as West Liberty's quick strike attack put points on the scoreboard. He was the runner-up for the Harlon Hill Award (Division II's version of the Heisman Trophy), the first team quarterback on the Associated Press Little All-America squad, and the WVIAC Offensive Player of the Year.
West Liberty finished the 2009 season ranked ninth in the country by D2Football.com and reached the national quarterfinals. The Toppers, which finished WVIAC play with an unbeaten 8-0 mark, smashed the league's single-season scoring record with a staggering 47.3 points per game.
The former John Marshall HS standout is the first West Liberty athlete to be honored with the Hardman Award. Amedro joins Larry Blackstone (1967, Fairmont State), Jack Deloplaine (1975, Salem), Jed Drenning (1993, Glenville State), and Jeff George (1994, Glenville State) as WVIAC football players to win the honor.
In all, 12 WVIAC athletes have been named as the Hardman Award honors. However, Amedro's victory ends a 15-year dry spell for WVIAC honorees.
Former Glenville State golfer Tim Fisher, the winner of the past two West Virginia Amateur championships, was one of the six other finalists. Kayla Williams (gymnast, Huntington), Tim Phillips (swimming, Parkersburg), Aaron Dobson (football, Marshall U.), Noel Devine (football, West Virginia U.), and Jedd Gyorko (baseball, West Virginia U.) complete the list of finalists.
Amedro will be formally honored on May 2 at WVSWA's 64th annual Victory Awards Dinner in Morgantown.
Winners of the Hardman Award as West Virginia's Amateur Athlete of the Year:
2009-Zach Amedro, West Liberty, football
2008-Pat White, West Virginia U., football
2007-Pat White, West Virginia U., football
2006-Pat White, West Virginia U., football
2005-Greg Jones, West Virginia U., wrestling
2004-Greg Jones, West Virginia U. wrestling
2003-Grant Wiley, West Virginia U., football
2002-Byron Leftwich, Marshall, football
2001-Byron Leftwich, Marshall, football
2000-Pat Carter, Huntington, golf
1999-Chad Pennington, Marshall, football
1998-J. R. House, Nitro High, football
1997-Randy Moss, Marshall, football
1996-Randy Barnes, South Charleston, track
1995-Chris Parker, Marshall, football
1994-Chris George, Glenville St., football
1993-Jed Drenning, Glenville St., football
1992-Michael Payton, Marshall, football
1991-Michael Payton, Marshall, football
1990-John Taft, Marshall, basketball
1989-Major Harris, West Virginia U., football
1988-Major Harris, West Virginia U., football
1987-Tony Petersen, Marshall, football
1986-Thomas McLean, W. Va. Wesleyan, soccer
1985-Carl Fodor, Marshall, football
1984-Mary Lou Retton, Fairmont, gymnastics
1983-Jeff Hostetler, West Virginia U., football
1982-Darryl Talley, West Virginia U., football
1981-Oliver Luck, West Virginia U., football
1980-Lowes Moore, West Virginia U., basketball
1979-Mary Ostrowski, Parkersburg Catholic, basketball
1978-Curt Warner, Pineville High, all sports
1977-Tom Pridemore, West Virginia U., football
1976-John Filliez, Marshall, football
1975-Jack Deloplaine, Salem College, football
1974-Jay Feltz, Monongah High, all sports
1973-Danny Buggs, West Virginia U., football
1972-Russell Lee, Marshall, basketball
1971-Dave Cooper, Fairmont State, basketball
1970-Jim Braxton, West Virginia U., football
1969-Carl Crennell, West Virginia U., football
1968-Mike Barrett, W.Va. Tech., basketball
1967-Larry Blackstone, Fairmont State, football
1966-Garrett Ford, West Virginia U., football
1965-Dick Leftridge, West Virginia U., football
1964-Bill Campbell, Huntington, golf
1963-Rod Thorn, West Virginia U., basketball
1962-Dave Tork, Fairmont, track
1961-tie; Lee Patrone, West Virginia U., basketball; Bruce Meredith, West Virginia U., rifle
1960-Jerry West, West Virginia U., basketball
1959-Jerry West, West Virginia U., basketball
1958-Ed Tutwiler, Charleston, golf
1957-Chuck Howley, West Virginia, all sports
1956-Rod Hundley, West Virginia U., basketball
1955-Bill Campbell, Huntington, golf
1954-Dwayne Wingler, Woodrow Wilson High, all sports
1953-Bob Orders, West Virginia U., football
1952-Paul Bischoff, West Virginia U., football
1951-Mark Workman, West Virginia U., basketball
1950-George King, Morris Harvey, basketball
1949-George King, Morris Harvey, basketball
1948-Mark Workman, Charleston High, basketball
1947-Leland Byrd, West Virginia U., basketball
1946-Bill Leskovar, Fairmont Senior High, all sports
1945-Harold Daugherty, Weir High, all sports
1944-Jimmy Walthall, West Virginia U., all sports
1943-Jimmy Walthall, West Virginia U., all sports
1942-John Abramovic, Salem College, basketball
1941-Kenny Griffith, Alderson-Broaddus, basketball
1940-Anna Lou Ballew, Mannington, rifle
1939-Delos Parsons, Huntington, tennis
1938-Delos Parsons, Huntington, tennis
1937-Ed Blickle, Huntington, tennis
1936-Tom Brand, Kingwood, golf
1935-Joe Stydahar, West Virginia U., all sports
1934-Fritzie Stifel Quarrier, Wheeling, golf