UNH's Brosmer, who is transferring to Minnesota, a finalist for FCS' top offensive player award
Dec. 4—University of New Hampshire quarterback Max Brosmer is one of three players invited to attend the announcement of the 37th Annual Walter Payton Award, which honors the top offensive player at the FCS level.
The invitation was officially extended to Brosmer one day after he posted on social media that he would transfer from UNH to the University of Minnesota, which offered Brosmer a scholarship last Monday.
"After talking to my family, I have decided to commit to The University of Minnesota," Brosmer wrote on his X account. "I want to thank the entire Gopher coaching staff and team for welcoming me into their program. Let's rock!"
Brosmer, a three-year starter for the Wildcats, gave his commitment during his visit to Minnesota last weekend. He also had offers from Buffalo, Wake Forest and Western Michigan. He has one year of eligibility remaining.
Minnesota ranked 126th out of 133 FBS teams with an average of 153.2 passing yards per game last season. Athan Kaliakmanis, Minnesota's starting quarterback, announced in late November that he planned to enter the transfer portal with two seasons of eligibility remaining. Kaliakmanis threw for 1,838 yards and 14 touchdowns for the Gophers, but was intercepted nine times.
There were 30 finalists for the Walter Payton Award, and the top three in the voting were invited to attend the Jan. 6 award ceremony. Monmouth running back Jaden Shirden and South Dakota State quarterback Mark Gronowski are the other players who received invitations. The winner will be announced in Frisco, Texas, prior to the FCS national championship game.
UNH running back Dylan Laube was among the 30 finalists, who were announced Nov. 22. Laube placed sixth in the voting with 45 points; he received two first-place votes, four second-place votes, three third-place votes, four fourth place votes and two fifth-place votes.
Brosmer completed 294 of 459 passes for an FCS-best 3,464 yards and 29 touchdowns this past season, when he was intercepted six times. He completed 64% of his passes and passed for multiple touchdowns in nine of UNH's 11 games.
Two UNH players have won the Walter Payton Award: running back Jerry Azumah (1998) and quarterback Rick Santos (2006). Santos is now UNH's head coach.
