BLOOMSBURG—For the third time in school history the Bloomsburg University football team has been named the 2014 Lambert Meadowlands Award winner for Division II recognizing the top football program in the eastern part of the country. The award is presented by the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC). Rutgers University was selected as the winner in the Bowl Subdivision, while the University of New Hampshire (FCS), and Wesley College (D3) were also named 2014 Lambert Award winners in their respective divisions.

Bloomsburg previously won the Lambert Award in 1985 and 2000.
 
The Huskies, under second year head coach Paul Darragh, went 11-2 on the season winning the PSAC (Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference) Eastern Division title and advancing to the PSAC championship game. Bloomsburg also earned the second seed in the NCAA Division II Super Region One playoffs. In the NCAA playoffs the Huskies beat Virginia State in the second round before falling to Concord (WV) in the NCAA quarterfinals.
 
The Huskies turned in their 16th straight winning season and 10th year with at least 10 victories. Bloomsburg has compiled a record of 142-36 since 2000, the best mark of any team in Super Region One over that span - only three Division II teams nationwide have won more games since the 2000 season.
 
Bloomsburg, which was ranked No. 12 in the final American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) poll of the year, also earned many post-season accolades for both coach and players.
 
Darragh was named the PSAC East Coach of the Year and also the AFCA Super Region One Coach of the Year. He also coached a PSAC-best 14 all-conference selections, including linebacker Justin Shirk (Harrisburg/Central Dauphin) who was named a second team AP Little America and second team All-American by Daktronics. Shirk was also the PSAC East and Daktronics Super Region One Defensive Player of the Year.
 
This year's no. 12 final ranking is the highest for the Huskies since finishing the 2008 season ranked No. 11. Bloomsburg has found a spot in 57 consecutive AFCA national Top 25 polls, dating to October 2010.

The ECAC will host the Annual Eastern College Football Awards Banquet featuring the ECAC Football Awards and Lambert Meadowlands Awards on Thursday, February 19, 2015 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. from 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.  The Banquet will honor teams and individuals for their on-field performances during the 2014 season. 

Established in 1936 as the Lambert Trophy to recognize supremacy in Eastern college football, the award has since grown to recognize the best team in the East in the Bowl Subdivision. In 1957, the Lambert Cup was created to recognize non-Division I-A teams, and in 1966 a Division III award was added. In 1983, the Lambert family decided the Meadowlands Sports Complex would be the best organization with a sincere and involved interest in college athletics to sponsor and manage the award, and since that time, the awards have been known as the Lambert Meadowlands Awards.

To be eligible for the Lambert Meadowlands Award, a school must be located in the East or play at least half of its schedule against eligible Lambert teams. The territory includes New York, New Jersey, New England and Pennsylvania, while teams in the bordering states of Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia and the District of Columbia qualify if at least half of their schedule features eligible teams or are Eastern College Athletic Conference member institutions.

Teams in Eastern-based football conferences, regardless of location, qualify if at least half their schedule is against Lambert eligible teams.

ECAC Lambert Meadowlands Football Polls
Jan. 5, 2015

Division I FBS

1.	Rutgers	8-5
2.	West Virginia	7-6
3.	Navy	8-5
4.	Penn State	7-6
5.	Maryland	7-6
6.	Boston College	7-6
7.	Pitt	6-7
8.	Temple	6-6
9.	Virginia	5-7
10.	Buffalo	5-6

Division I FCS

1.	New Hampshire	12-2
2.	Villanova	11-3
3.	Harvard	10-0
4.	Fordham	11-3
5.	Liberty	9-5
6.	James Madison	9-4
7.	Richmond	9-5
8.	Dartmouth	8-2
9.	Sacred Heart	9-3
10.	Yale	8-2

Division II

1.	Bloomsburg	11-2
2.	West Chester	11-2
3.	Slippery Rock	9-3
4.	Gannon	9-2
5.	LIU Post	8-4
6.	AIC	8-3
7.	California	8-2
8.	Mercyhurst	7-4
9.	Assumption	7-4
10.	Alderson Broaddus	7-4

Division III

1.	Wesley	12-2
2.	Hobart	12-1
3.	Widener	12-1
4.	Johns Hopkins	11-1
5.	Washington & Jefferson	10-2
6.	Amherst	8-0
7.	Muhlenberg	9-2
8.	Delaware Valley	9-2
9.	MIT	10-1
10.	St. John Fisher	9-2