Ty Touchstone Selected for $18,000 Scholarship
from the National Football Foundation
Senior only Division II Player out of 15 Recipients

PORTALES, N.M. — Eastern New Mexico University senior free safety Ty Touchstone (5’11”, 190 lbs., Lubbock, TX/Monterey HS) is one of just 15 football players nationwide selected as National Scholar-Athletes for 2004 by The National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, Inc. Touchstone, who is majoring in Business Administration and Computer Information Systems with a 4.0 grade point average, is the only student-athlete from an NCAA Division II college or university chosen for the $18,000 post-graduate scholarship.

“We at Eastern are obviously very proud of Ty,” said Dr. Steven G. Gamble, president of ENMU. “We stress academic success to our student-athletes, and Ty has exemplified this at the highest level. At ENMU, we want our student-athletes to compete in and outside of their sports. Ty has shown how to be competitive in the classroom and on the football field.”

Touchstone is currently third on the ENMU defensive chart with 69 total tackles, including 44 unassisted tackles. He leads the Greyhounds with two blocked field goals, and is tied for the team lead with three interceptions. He has broken up three passes and has been an important tackler on running plays. He also has averaged 11.1 yards on nine punt returns.

He recorded 15 tackles (10 solo) in Eastern’s near upset of Texas A&M University-Kingsville on Oct. 23. The Greyhounds led 22-21 late in the game, but TAMUK, ranked #2 in NCAA Division II, scored with 1:07 remaining for a 29-22 win.

During his four years at Eastern, Touchstone has accumulated 281 total tackles, with 178 solo stops. He has recorded 8 interceptions which he has returned for a total of 124 yards. He has forced two fumbles, recovered two fumbles, blocked two kicks and broken up nine passes. He has played in all 42 games, including 30 starts.

“He’s had a great year as a free safety, and he’s one of the better free safeties in the league,” Head Coach Harold “Bud” Elliott said. “He continues academically to do extremely well in the classroom, has provided exceptional leadership for our team and has found time to do several public service projects.

“He’s kind of the leader back there,” Elliott commented about Touchstone’s work in the defensive secondary. “I just think he’s a good player ... he knows the scheme, he knows what has to be done in the scheme and he’s an excellent run supporter.”

Touchstone was named First Team All-LSC South in 2002 and was chosen LSC South Defensive Player-of-the-Week on Sept. 7, 2002. He led the ENMU defense in 2002 with 109 total tackles and 73 solo tackles.

He was chosen First Team CoSIDA Academic All-America in 2003 and was selected Second Team CoSIDA Academic All-America in 2002. He was voted to the LSC South All-Academic Team in 2002 and 2003 in balloting by the LSC South sports information directors.

Touchstone, the other Scholar-Athlete selections and this year’s College Football Hall of Fame Division I-A Inductees will be honored at The National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame’s 47th Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 7. The event will be held at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City. One of the 15 Scholar-Athletes will be selected that evening to receive the Draddy Trophy from The National Football Foundation, which adds $7,000 to the Scholar-Athlete award for a total post-graduate scholarship of $25,000.

Ty's career statistics

* Stats for 2004 and career totals are updated through Eastern’s game at Midwestern State University on Oct. 30, but do not include the final game of the season against Western New Mexico University on Nov. 6.

Abbreviations: GP - Games Played; GS - Games Started; UT - Unassisted Tackles; AT - Assisted Tackles; TOT - Total Tackles; TFL - Tackles for Losses; YDS - Yards; QBS - Quarterback Sacks; PBU - Passes Broken Up; INT - Interceptions; TD - Touchdowns; FF - Forced Fumbles; FR - Fumble Recoveries; BLK - Blocked Kicks.