College Football

Ishmael, McDuffie Earn C-USA Top Honors

ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) – For the second time in school history, the UCF football team received two major conference awards in the same season, as senior free safety Kemal Ishmael (Miami, Fla./North Miami Beach) was voted as the Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year and senior kick returner Quincy McDuffie (Orlando, Fla./Edgewater) picked up C-USA Special Teams Player of the Year honors. The awards were voted on by the 12 C-USA head coaches.

The last time the Knights earned two major awards was in 2010 when Bruce Miller was voted as the defensive player of the year while Jeff Godfrey was the offensive player of the year.

Since UCF joined the league in 2005, it boasts three C-USA Defensive Player of the Year awards, the most of any school. Miller picked up that distinction in back-to-back seasons from 2009-10. The Knights, meanwhile, are tied atop the chart with East Carolina with two C-USA Special Teams Player of the Year accolades. KR/PR Joe Burnett received the honor in 2008.