WOODBURY, NJ - Temple senior linebacker Troy Bennett was honored as the College Defensive Back of the Year by the Touchdown Club of South Jersey Wednesday evening at the Woodbury Country Club. Bennett was accompanied by position coach Toby Neinas at the 37th annual event.
A Street & Smith's Preseason Honorable Mention All-American in 2004, Bennett concluded his Temple career by playing in 46 consecutive games and making 23 straight starts. He ranked sixth in the Big East with 95 total tackles (8.6 avg.) and had 105 total stops (9.5 avg.) according to unofficial coaching film estimates. Bennett posted double-digit tackles in three games and seven or more in eight contests this season.
Bennett received Temple's Most Valuable Defensive Player Award as selected by a vote of his teammates. He was unable to participate as a true freshman under NCAA guidelines in 2000 but through his hard work in the classroom that earned him multiple citations on the Athletic Director's Honor Roll as a criminal justice major, he earned the year back in 2004.
Bennett made 259 (125 solo) career tackles, including seventeen stops for losses. He made a career-best 16 tackles at then nationally-ranked Maryland this season.
