{"id":4499,"date":"2016-12-09T07:00:51","date_gmt":"2016-12-09T12:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordoncollegefootball.com\/?p=4499"},"modified":"2025-11-13T17:45:53","modified_gmt":"2025-11-13T22:45:53","slug":"vanderbilts-zach-cunningham-true-butkus-award-winner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2016\/12\/09\/vanderbilts-zach-cunningham-true-butkus-award-winner\/","title":{"rendered":"Vanderbilt&#8217;s Zach Cunningham is the True Butkus Award Winner"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2 style=\"text-align: left;\">Vanderbilt&#8217;s Zach Cunningham is the True Butkus Award Winner<\/h2>\n<h3>The Voters Got It\u00a0Wrong<\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4552\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4552\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4552 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/lwosoncfb.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2016\/12\/zach1-1-300x203.jpg\" width=\"300\" height=\"203\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4552\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">#41 Zach Cunningham of the Vanderbilt Commodores. ( Photo by: Kate Pearson-Halyburton, LWOS)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.vucommodores.com\/sports\/m-footbl\/mtt\/zach_cunningham_853227.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Zach Cunningham<\/strong><\/a> was robbed of the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thebutkusaward.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Butkus Award<\/strong><\/a>. \u00a0<strong>Vanderbilt<\/strong> was disrespected. Great players at smaller programs are being denied recognition. The voters need to look at the stats and the complete body of work in a season, regardless of the logo on the jersey. The Butkus Award Foundation and its voters got it\u00a0completely wrong this time. Cunningham was cheated out of prestigious post-season honors specifically because he plays for Vanderbilt.<\/p>\n<h3>Big School Biased At Its Finest<\/h3>\n<p>It was<strong>\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.rolltide.com\/roster.aspx?rp_id=3106\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Reuben Foster<\/a><\/strong> from <strong>Alabama<\/strong>\u00a0who beat out Vanderbilt\u2019s Cunningham for the Butkus Award. Here is a passage directly from the press release on Butkus Award website: The selection committee stated: \u201cReuben Foster is a complete linebacker with the instincts, closing burst, explosion and on-field leadership traits that set the tone for the nation\u2019s top defense. He is a fearless striker who plays the game with intensity and passion. The way he uncoils on contact and the way his teammates gravitate toward him are both reminiscent of Mr. Butkus. After finishing second to <strong>Jaylon Smith<\/strong>\u00a0in the high school balloting four years ago, Foster distinguished himself in this year\u2019s collegiate class.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>Numbers Do Not Lie<\/h3>\n<p>&#8216;Distinguished himself&#8217;? The Butkus Award Foundation FAILED to give its voters ALL the facts and stats. Here are the head-to-head stats for Foster and Cunningham over the last two seasons. Foster played in ONE more game this season\u00a0and three more games than Cunningham in 2015. Yet, his numbers are not even close to matching Cunningham&#8217;s\u00a0stats.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4567 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/lwosoncfb.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2016\/12\/580065476-2-300x210.jpg\" alt=\"&quot;&lt;yoastmark\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong><u>2016: <\/u>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<u>Cunningham:<\/u><\/strong>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<strong><u>Foster:<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Fumble Return\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 1\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 0<\/p>\n<p>Solo Tackles \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a068\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 51<\/p>\n<p>Assisted Tackles \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 51 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a043<\/p>\n<p>Tackles for Loss \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 16.5 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a012<\/p>\n<p>Passes Broken Up \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 3 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a00<\/p>\n<p>QB Hurries \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 1 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a00<\/p>\n<p>Fumbles Forced\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 2 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a00<\/p>\n<p>Kicks\/Punts Blocked \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a01 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a00<\/p>\n<p>Sacks \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 4<\/p>\n<h4>And just for argument sake here are the 2015 stats:<\/h4>\n<p><strong><u>2015: <\/u>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<u>Cunningham:<\/u><\/strong>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<strong><u>Foster:<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Fumble Return\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 0<\/p>\n<p>Solo Tackles \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a069\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a048<\/p>\n<p>Assisted Tackles \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 34\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a025<\/p>\n<p>Tackles for Loss \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a016.5\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0 \u00a08<\/p>\n<p>Passes Broken Up \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 3\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 0<\/p>\n<p>QB Hurries \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 0<\/p>\n<p>Fumbles Forced\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 4\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 0<\/p>\n<p>Kicks\/Punts Blocked \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a00\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 0<\/p>\n<p>Sacks \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a00\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 1<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"line-height: 17.35pt;\">Need More Than Stats<\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4554\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4554\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4554 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/lwosoncfb.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2016\/12\/zach3-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"#41 Zach Cunningham of the Vanderbilt Commodores. ( Photo by: Kate Pearson-Halyburton, LWOS)\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4554\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">#41 Zach Cunningham of the Vanderbilt Commodores with some of the Commodore team. (Photo by: Kate Pearson-Halyburton, LWOS)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p style=\"line-height: 17.35pt;\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; color: #222222;\">Zach Cunningham has had two EXPONENTIALLY better seasons, stat wise, than Foster. How did the voters miss these stats? How did the voters pick Foster over Cunningham? Answers are needed. Do you need more than just stats to sell you on Cunningham? How about this: Cunningham was a total and complete GAME CHANGER, he <em>is<\/em>\u00a0the reason Vandy beat <strong>Georgia<\/strong> in <strong>Athens.<\/strong>\u00a0With 0:61 left on the clock, Cunningham dropped <strong>Isaiah McKenzie<\/strong> on a 4<sup>th<\/sup><span class=\"apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span>and one, only a foot shy of the first down marker, adding to a career high of 19 tackles in that game.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"line-height: 17.35pt;\">More Evidence<\/h3>\n<p style=\"line-height: 17.35pt; text-align: left;\">To emphasize Cunningham&#8217;s\u00a0football prowess, here is video evidence on the field against Auburn. Although Vandy did not win the <strong>Auburn<\/strong> game, Zach Cunningham played his position at the highest level, especially with an incredible block.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Vanderbilt LB Hurdles Line To Block Auburn Field Goal\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/BIVb4cZetxk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"line-height: 17.35pt; text-align: left;\">Football Factory<\/h3>\n<p>First and foremost, Alabama would be undefeated with <em>or<\/em> without Foster on the field. The <strong>Tide<\/strong>\u00a0is 15 deep in every position, whereas Vanderbilt is not. They are an academic institution that is fielding a promising football team. This season, the Commodores\u00a0have played relentlessly, proving that they can compete on a extremely tough and highly intelligent level. Vanderbilt is a team packed full of untapped capabilities\u00a0and limitless potential.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"line-height: 17.35pt;\">Why Not Co-Winners<\/h3>\n<p style=\"line-height: 17.35pt;\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; color: #222222;\">Cunningham is on an up and coming Vanderbilt team that receives\u00a0little to no respect. It is a shame that such an athlete\u00a0of his caliber was robbed of an honor that\u00a0statistics show he clearly deserves. It is a travesty that the voters didn\u2019t bother to take the time to look at the candidate\u2019s entire season. Maybe the voters were not given all the information and stats. The only way to right this wrong is for The Butkus Award Foundation to name Zach Cunningham <em>and<\/em> Reuben Foster Co-Winners. This needs to be fixed. NOW. People need to get mad about the &#8216;big school bias&#8217;.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height: 17.35pt;\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; color: #222222;\"><br \/>\nPlease let the Butkus Foundation know how you feel. \u00a0Write, email and call:<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"line-height: 17.35pt;\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana; color: #222222;\"><br \/>\n<strong>Ron Arp<\/strong> c\/o Butkus Foundation 18920 NE 227th Ave.<br \/>\nBrush Prairie, WA 98606<br \/>\nrarp@butkusfoundation.org<br \/>\n360-601-2991<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Main Photo<\/p>\n<div class=\"getty embed image\" style=\"background-color: #fff; display: inline-block; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue',Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; color: #a7a7a7; font-size: 11px; width: 100%; max-width: 594px;\">\n<div style=\"padding: 0; margin: 0; text-align: left;\"><a style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/621323696\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n<div style=\"overflow: hidden; position: relative; height: 0; padding: 66.498316% 0 0 0; width: 100%;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"display: inline-block; position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; margin: 0;\" src=\"\/\/embed.gettyimages.com\/embed\/621323696?et=GoV_sIB_RnF2ZNUOmGFMqw&amp;viewMoreLink=on&amp;sig=VbQSmdfonGVckJ5XQniTtAkQZFZ0hKKbWWqMCEtZTd0=&amp;caption=true\" width=\"594\" height=\"395\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p style=\"margin: 0;\">\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Vanderbilt&#8217;s Zach Cunningham is the True Butkus Award Winner The Voters Got It\u00a0Wrong Zach Cunningham was robbed of the Butkus Award. \u00a0Vanderbilt was disrespected. Great players at smaller programs are being denied recognition. The voters need to look at the stats and the complete body of work in a season, regardless of the logo on [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1643,"featured_media":4545,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,35580],"tags":[35,493,32925,977,1180,20,96,373],"class_list":["post-4499","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sec","category-vanderbilt-commodores","tag-alabama-crimson-tide","tag-awards","tag-dick-butkus-award","tag-reuben-foster","tag-ron-arp","tag-sec","tag-vanderbilt-commodores","tag-zach-cunningham"],"modified_by":"Kate Pearson Halyburton, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4499","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1643"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4499"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4499\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":82496,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4499\/revisions\/82496"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4545"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4499"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4499"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4499"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}