ELMIRA, N.Y. (WENY) - Every year, three high school football players from the Elmira area are nominated by their coaches for the opportunity to earn the prestigious Ernie Davis Award. The nominees exemplify the characteristics of Ernie Davis on the football field, but also off the field.
Elmira's Nolan Edwards, Edison's Jaden Bennett, and Horseheads' Lucas Mosher were selected as nominees for this year's award, and on Thursday, the winner was announced.
All three student-athletes were honored at the Kiwanis Club Luncheon at the Clarion Inn in Elmira as Horseheads' Lucas Mosher was named the winner of the 2024 Ernie Davis Award. Mosher is the second straight Horseheads player to earn the award after Braddock Salisbury won it last year.
Mosher helped lead the Blue Raiders to their first Section Title since 1998 where he rushed for 850 yards on 94 carries and 16 touchdowns. Through the air, Mosher caught 21 passes for 420 yards with another 5 touchdowns. Mosher was also strong defensively, recording 6 pass breakups, 3 interceptions, and 35 tackles.
Lucas is currently an honor student and has volunteered at several community events including youth athletics, wrestling clinics, and food drives among others.
"I was a little speechless but I'm honored and blessed to be up for this award let alone winning it. This means a lot for me and my family," Mosher said. "We have a lot of talent down in Horseheads and I want to continue this streak and I believe in those boys."
"Just to have the opportunity to have someone from the program win this award, such a special award, you can't find a kid better than this one right here so it means a lot," added Head Coach, Kevin Hillman. "It's really a shoutout to the kids and to the coaches that work with him and really work hard so it's a whole program thing so we're definitely excited."