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James Ruffin Class: RS Senior Hometown: Burnsville, Minn. High School: Burnsville Height / Weight: 6-4 / 263 Position: DL Birthdate: 02/06/1987 Experience: 3L

James Ruffin

James Ruffin

2009: Recognized as first-team FCS All-American by the Associated Press ... named to the 2009 Sports Network FCS All-America team, earning third-team accolades ... named Missouri Valley Football Conference co-Defensive Player of the Year, becoming the sixth player to win the award back-to-back ... listed on the preseason Ted Hendricks Award watch list (nation's best defensive end) as the only FCS athlete ... racked up 10.5 sacks in his senior campaign to lead the Panthers, leading the MVFC ... tied for sixth in the nation among FCS players in sacks per game ... finished his career ranked seventh among active FCS career leaders in sacks with 24 ... played in the 85th annual East-West Shrine Game ... recorded 14 tackles-for-loss and also forced 2 fumbles ... finished seventh on the team with 48 total tackles ... recorded five tackles, two sacks, and a forced fumble in a 66-7 victory over South Dakota ... tallied seven tackles and 1.5 sacks in a 30-0 win over St. Francis (Pa.) ... registered five tackles, one sack and a forced fumble in a 35-7 triumph over Missouri State ... recorded six tackles, three tackles-for-loss and two sacks in a 42-27 road win over North Dakota State ... racked up four tackles, 1.5 tackles-for-loss and a half sack against Southern Illinois ... tallied four tackles and one sack in a 28-7 victory over Youngstown State ... credited with four tackles and 1.5 sacks against Western Illinois ... recorded four tackles, two tackles-for-loss and one sack in season finale at Illinois State ... started all 11 games.

2008: First-team All-America choice by the American Football Coaches Association ... Defensive Player of the Year in the Missouri Valley Football Conference ... first-team all-MVFC pick ... second-team All-America pick by the Associated Press ... third-team All-America honoree by The Sports Network ... ranked first in the MVFC in tackles-for-loss (18) and quarterback sacks (10) ... tied for 25th in the nation in quarterback sacks per game (0.67) ... ranked fifth on the team with 69 total tackles ... tied for the team lead with three forced fumbles ... began the season with a sack of Brigham Young quarterback Max Hall, which forced Hall to fumble and teammate Mark Huygens fell on in the end zone for a touchdown against the Cougars (8/30) ... tallied a sack in the first four games of the season ... tallied six tackles, two tackles-for-loss and 1.5 quarterback sacks in a 24-13 victory over South Dakota (9/6) ... registered eight tackles, two tackles-for-loss and 1.5 sacks in leading the Panthers to a 34-20 win over South Dakota State (9/20) ... credited with six tackles, two TFLs, one sack, two quarterback hurries and a blocked kick against Southern Illinois (9/27) ... racked up two sacks in a 42-0 triumph over Missouri State (11/8) ... his sack of New Hampshire quarterback R.J. Toman late in the fourth quarter helped the Panthers held on for the 36-34 win over the Wildcats (12/6) in the FCS quarterfinals ... started all 15 games.

2007: First-team all-MVFC selection ... ranked second on the team with eight tackles-for-loss ... ranked third on the team with 3.5 quarterback sacks ... tallied a season-high six tackles (coaches' film) in a 24-13 win over Iowa State (9/8) ... secured five tackles and two tackles-for-loss in a 30-24 win over Southern Illinois (10/13) ... recorded a season-high 2.5 tackles-for-loss and two quarterback sacks against Delaware (12/1) in the FCS quarterfinals.

2006: A member of the MVFC's All-Newcomer squad ... played in all 11 games ... drew seven starting assignments, including the final six games of the season ... had at least one tackle in nine games ... secured a season-high five tackles and notched a quarterback sack at Iowa State (9/30) ... batted down three passes in a 34-14 win at Indiana State (10/14) ... also recorded five tackles in a 31-20 victory over Western Kentucky (11/4).

2005: Redshirted.

High School: Two-year starter in basketball and three-year starter in football, playing both fullback and linebacker ... 2004 played primarily defense but still rushed for a team-high seven touchdowns ... three-time first-team all-conference performer ... also a shot put and discus thrower ... honor roll student ... Student Hall Leader.

Personal: Born Feb.6, 1987, in Newark, N.J. ... son of James and Donna Ruffin ... majoring in construction management.

Ruffin's Career Defensive Stats
Year	G-GS	UT	AT	Total	TFL	Sacks	INT	FF	FR	PBU	BK
2006	11-7	18	8	26	3.0	1.0	0-0	0	0	3	0
2007	13-13	20	32	52	8.0	3.5	0-0	0	0	1	0
2008	15-15	31	38	69	18.0	10.0	0-0	3	1	2	1
Totals	39-35	69	78	147	29.0	14.5	0-0	3	1	6	1

Ruffin's Game-by-Game Stats (Solo-Ast)
2006
@Drake	1-0
North Dakota	0-0
South Dakota State	1-0
@Iowa State	4-1
Missouri State	3-0
@Indiana State	1-1
@Youngstown State	1-3
Western Illinois	0-0
Western Kentucky	4-1
@Southern Illinois	2-0
Illinois State	3-1

2007
Minnesota State	1-0
@Iowa State	5-1
@South Dakota State	1-2
@Drake	2-0
@Illinois State	3-2
Southern Illinois	4-1
@Western Illinois	2-1
Youngstown State	0-5
@Missouri State	3-0
Indiana State	2-1
Southern Utah	0-1
New Hampshire	2-3
Delaware	2-3

2008
@BYU	2-1
South Dakota	4-2
South Dakota State	3-5
@Southern Illinois	5-1
Nicholls State	2-4
Illinois State	2-5
North Dakota State	2-2
@Youngstown State	1-1
@Western Illinois	0-1
Missouri State	2-1
@Indiana State	2-5
@Southern Utah	1-0
Maine	2-1
New Hampshire	2-2
Richmond	1-7