Nine SAC Football Players earn Academic All-District Honors

The South Atlantic Conference was well represented on the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Football Teams (college division), with seven representatives making the team from District III and two more earning the honor from District IV.

Wingate University led the way with five represntatives, while Tusculum had two make the District IV team. Catawba and Presbyterian each had one honoree on the District III team. The teams are selected by members of CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America).District III (college division) includes all non-NCAA Division I schools (Division II, III and NAIA) in Florida, Georgia, Virginia and North and South Carolina. District IV includes colleges from Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Ohio and Michigan.

Four of Wingate's five student-athletes are repeat performers from 2005: senior wide receiver Dan Brooks (Monroe, N.C.), senior defensive end Frank Marino (Matthews, N.C.), senior safety Jeremy Kent (Danbury, N.C.) and redshirt junior offensive lineman Greg Keziah (Charlotte, N.C.). Redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Cam LeGrand (Concord, N.C.) rounds out Wingate’s honorees.

Wingate was the only school from the Carolinas with multiple selections.

Twenty-three student-athletes were named first team Academic All-District III in football. The first team members will advance to the national ballot.

Brooks tallied his 100th career catch against Catawba on Oct. 28, 2006. He has 109 catches for 1721 yards and 22 touchdowns in his three seasons in the Bulldog blue-and-gold. A second team All-SAC selection at wide receiver in 2005, Brooks sports a 3.52 GPA in his Management major.

Marino received the Herschel “Red” and Mary B. Edwards Scholarship Award at Wingate’s spring 2006 athletic awards ceremony. A two-year team captain, Marino has 27 tackles (eight solo, 19 assists) this season. He has three tackles for loss and two fumble recoveries. In 2005, Marino recorded 25 tackles and two sacks. He has a 3.96 GPA in his Finance major.

Jeremy Kent is fifth on the Wingate team tackle charts with 56 total stops (30 solo, 25 assists) in 2006. A two-year starter, he has one interception and one forced fumble. In 2005, Kent had 78 tackles (46 solo, 32 assists) and two interceptions. He was second on Wingate’s team in tackles last season. Kent has a 3.37 GPA in his Computer Science major.

Greg Keziah was named to the pre-season All-SAC team in 2006. Keziah has started every game for the Bulldogs during his three seasons (he redshirted in 2003). Keziah and the Bulldog offensive line have played a big role in Wingate’s passing offense. Wingate leads the SAC in passing offense (259.4 yards per game). In the classroom, Keziah has compiled a 3.39 GPA in his Psychology major.

Cam LeGrand is a first-year starter for the Bulldogs. With the graduation of three starters from 2005, LeGrand has played an integral role in Wingate’s offensive successes this season. The Bulldogs are second in the SAC in total offense (326.8 yards per game). LeGrand sports a 3.54 GPA in his Management major.

Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a private four-year co-educational institution offering students active learning opportunities through personalized instruction, faith nurturing, career development, community service and study abroad.

Wingate offers more than 37 undergraduate majors in arts and sciences, business, education, fine arts, music and sport sciences. It also offers pre-professional programs and graduate degrees in business, education, physical education and sport administration. In the spring of 2007, Wingate University will award its first-ever doctor of pharmacy degrees. Bulldog student-athletes compete in 17 NCAA Division II sports.

Dan Brooks	Cam LeGrand	Greg Keziah	Jeremy Kent	Frank Marino

Presbyterian

Presbyterian running back Corey Fidler was chosen to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District 3 Football team in the college division.

"Corey is one of the finest student-athletes that I have ever had the privilege to coach," noted PC head football coach Tommy Spangler. "He has meant a great deal to our program on and off the field. I cannot imagine anyone being as deserving as Corey for this award."

A Savannah, Ga. native, Fidler is a senior captain for the Blue Hose on the gridiron. Fidler has missed the past three Blue Hose games due to injury, but has played in seven games for PC in 2006. A 2006 preseason South Atlantic Conference first team selection, Fidler has two rushing touchdowns this season.

The Savannah Christian product led the Blue Hose in rushing last season with 664 yards and six touchdowns.

In the classroom, the redshirt senior maintains a 3.4 grade-point-average as a religion-philosophy major. Fidler has also been a member of the dean's list for the past two years.

Fidler does not just confine his thoughts to the football field and the classroom. In fact, Fidler spent the summer of 2005 in Africa on a medical mission trip.

The members of the College Sports Information Directors of America (by districts) selected the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District III football team. Twenty-three student-athletes were named first team Academic All-District III in football.

Catawba

Catawba College junior football punter Cory Darnell (Rural Hall, NC) has been selected to the 2006 ESPN The Magazine District III All-Academic Football Team. Darnell was named first team.

Darnell has a 3.86 GPA and is majoring in environmental science. Darnell has averaged 33.1 yards over 32 punts this season and has had nine downed inside the opponent 20-yard line.

Tusculum

Tusculum College's Glen Black and Gavin Mauldin have been named to the 2006 ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District IV College Division Football Team announced officials Thursday.

Black, a senior kicker from Bristol, Tenn., was named to the Academic All-District First Team, while Mauldin, a senior offensive lineman from Elba, Ala., was named to the Second Team.

Being named to the First Team, Black now advances to the Academic All-America® ballot, which will be announced later this month.

Black has posted a 3.82 cumulative grade point average while majoring in Accounting. Black is enjoying a solid season on the gridiron and is second on the team in scoring with 40 points. The Tennessee High School graduate is 22-of-24 on extra points and 6-of-9 on field goals. Black has been named South Atlantic Conference Player of the Week twice during his career, including once this season. He has recorded 69 career extra points, the most in school history.

Earlier this season, Black was named to the America Football Coaches' Association Good Works Team which recognizes community service, along with academic and athletic achievement. He is one of only 22 collegiate football players across the nation to earn this award. In 2005, Black was also recognized as the SAC Football Scholar Athlete of the Year.

Mauldin has posted a 3.59 GPA while majoring in Environmental Science at Tusculum. Mauldin has been a two-year starter at offensive tackle and earned All-Conference Second Team honors in 2005 and was a Preseason All-SAC First Team selection this season. Mauldin is also a member of the SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll and the Tusculum Athletic Director's Honor Roll.

Tusculum (6-4, 3-3 SAC) will play its season finale this Saturday when it hosts Carson-Newman College for a 1:30 p.m. kickoff at Pioneer Field.

ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District III football team
College Division

Name                   School                    Position
Cory Darnell           Catawba                   Punter
Jeff Highfill          Bridgewater               Quarterback
Dan Brooks             Wingate                   Wide Receiver
Daniel Hackett         Washington & Lee          Wide Receiver
Ryan Neff              Washington & Lee          Tight End
Corey Fidler           Presbyterian              Running Back
Greg Keziah            Wingate                   Offensive Line
Jon Mullins            Virginia-Wise             Offensive Line
Jonathon Gladden       Apprentice (Va.)          Offensive Line
Cam LeGrand            Wingate                   Offensive Line
Ben Stasko             Shenandoah                Offensive Line
Ray Damm               Virginia-Wise             Place Kicker
Kyle Luby              Washington & Lee          Defensive Back
Mark Snoddy            Washington & Lee          Defensive Back
Jeremy Kent            Wingate                   Defensive Back
Ricky Wilkerson        Apprentice (Va.)          Defensive Back
Kyle Harvey            Washington & Lee          Linebacker
Chris Joseph           Washington & Lee          Linebacker
Wes Fry                Shenandoah                Linebacker
Frank Marino           Wingate                   Defensive Line
Charlie Lawrence, III  Fayetteville State        Defensive Line
Walker Williams        Washington & Lee          Defensive Line
Travis Kivett          North Carolina Wesleyan   Defensive Line