SLIPPERY ROCK — Marcus Martin refers to his postseason accolades as “enjoying the fruits of my labor.”

He must be getting pretty full.

The 6-foot-2, 255-pound senior Slippery Rock University defensive end won the Gene Upshaw Award as the best lineman — offensive or defensive — in Division II football by a record margin Wednesday.

He followed that up an hour later by being named one of 10 finalists for the Harlon Hill Trophy, awarded to the best football player in Division II. Martin is the first defensive player to be a finalist for that award in 10 years.

The Harlon Hill Trophy will be presented during a luncheon at the University of North Alabama on Jan. 5.

“I'm enjoying all of this stuff now with very limited stress,” Martin said. “I think of all of those hours I spent working out by myself, sometimes in darkness, I was grinding ... I just wanted to be as good as I could.”

Earlier this off-season, Martin became the first football player in PSAC history to win a major conference award in each of his four years. He was PSAC West Rookie of the Year as a freshman and Defensive Player of the Year for three straight seasons.

He is an Academic All-American who will graduate Dec. 16 with a 3.56 grade point average as a safety management major. And he is the only Division II finalist among 13 total finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy, known as the “Academic Heisman.”

That award will be presented Dec. 5 in New York City.

“He is the poster boy, the ideal collegiate student athlete,” SRU defensive coordinator Dom Razzano said. “I asked Marcus to make a list of all the personal sacrifices he made along the way to get to where he is today.

“For the rest of my career, I'm going to be reading that list to my players.”

Martin received a first-place vote on 73 percent of all ballots submitted for the Upshaw award. He finished 125 points ahead of runner-up Jake Daugherty from Ferris State.

Martin becomes the second SRU player to win the Upshaw award, joining Seneca Valley graduate Brandon Fusco. Now the starting right guard for the San Francisco 49ers, Fusco won the award in 2010.

Only two other Rock players have ever been a Harlon Hill finalist: running back Greg Paterra (fifth) in 1988 and quarterback Randy McKavish (seventh) in 2000.

Only one defensive player has ever won the Harlon Hill Trophy. Linebacker Ronald McKinnon of North Alabama claimed the honor in 1995.

“I won't be surprised if he wins it,” Razzano said. “Not at all. College football has been around for 150 years and Marcus has already done things in the game no one else has ever done.”

Martin had 26.5 tackles for loss and 15.5 sacks this season. His career totals are 92.5 and 56 in those categories. The 56 sacks are a record for all of college football. No other Division II player has ever recorded more than 46.5 sacks and 77 tackles for loss in a career.

“This guy went three straight games without a sack and still achieved what he did,” SRU coach Shawn Lutz said. “Marcus Martin never stops trying to get better in everything he does.

“I'll be using him as an example for the rest of my life. Passion, enthusiasm, work ethic ... He's about all of those things.”

Martin credits the talent around him at SRU for helping him to achieve his goals.

“The chemistry we've had here has been incredible,” he said. “We won the conference title in 2015 and I lined up against Cory Tucker (offensive lineman with the CFL's Montreal Alouettes) every day in practice. Running back Shamar Greene forced me to become a better tackler and we've had elusive quarterbacks.

“When your team is constantly bringing in good players, you become pretty good yourself.”

Razzano said Martin “treated practice every day like he was playing in a game. His belief in himself and discipline set him apart.”

By winning the Upshaw award, Martin qualifies to play in the East-West college all-star game Jan. 20 in Tampa, Fla. But he committed himself to the NFLPA all-star game at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., on the same day.

“I'll stick with my original commitment. It wouldn't be professional to opt out of that,” Martin said.

Lutz believes Martin could get drafted by an NFL team in April. How he plays that day at the Rose Bowl may go a long way in determining that.

“Here's a guy from Slippery Rock ... Scouts are gonna want to see how he does when he lines up against an offensive lineman from Michigan or Miami of Florida,” Lutz said. “They'll be checking Marcus out very closely that way.”

Martin has no problem with that.

“This is what I've been preparing myself for,” he said. “If I'm going to be an NFL-caliber player, facing a Division I college lineman shouldn't shake me up. And it won't.”