Buddy Saxon awarded Linfield's Vern Marshall Award

Buddy Saxon was a man among his NWC peers.

Linfield Senior Wide Receiver, Buddy Saxon was named the 2012 male recipient of Linfield's Vern Marshall Award.  The now yearly award is decided by a group of coaches in the Linfield athletic department as they select both a male and female student-athlete exhibiting great tenacity during their athletic career.  The award is name after Linfield Hall of Fame member Vern Marshall, who is thought to be the 1st Linfield athlete to play on NWC title teams in Football, Basketball, and Baseball.  Vern Marshall wasn't just a member on each of these teams but a standout on the field in being a 4-year starter in football and was tapped all-conference in baseball during each of his 4 years at Linfield.

Buddy Saxon is a great selection for this year's male recipient.   Buddy was named as the top WR in the Northwest Conference during the 2011 season after making 38 catches, for 463 yards, and snaring 8 TD grabs.  Saxon was very well regarded by his coaches and teammates for his sophisticated knowledge of the Linfield offense, his toughness, and leadership on the field.  Buddy was a tough customer that played football the Linfield way and was a contributor to the program since his freshman year in 2008.  The moments that stood out to me regarding Buddy is that when the stakes where the highest, he was able to elevate his game to meet the challenge and make a number of big plays during the post-season.

Immediately the memory of Boehme to Saxon to tie the score up with St. Thomas in 2010 with 17 seconds left in the game comes to mind.  Another big memory; the 'Cats were starting to gain the momentum vs Mary-Hardin Baylor in the 2009 playoffs that could have been derailed when the 'Cats fumbled the ball into the end zone, but Saxon saved the score by scrambling for the recover and TD.  Later in that game, the then Sophomore, caught a dagger of a score while walking the tightrope in the back of the end zone.  Jump forward to this past season when Linfield and CLU faced off in the post-season.  CLU's defense was tight in the red zone but early in the 2nd quarter Buddy worked the middle of the field beautifully and Mickey Inns found the 6' 6" receiver for the games 1st TD.

Buddy was a stand-out WR, and while he didn't put up jaw-dropping numbers, he did what the team needed him to do.  Simply put, he helped Linfield win football games and did it when it mattered most.

Congrats to Buddy Saxon on the well earned recognition!