Seven SAC Football Players Named to Don Hansen All-America Team
After earning 36 spots on the Don Hansen All-Region Football Team earlier this week, SAC players have accounted for seven positions on the Don Hansen All-America Team, which was announced Friday.
PITTSBURG, Kan. – After earning 36 spots on the Don Hansen All-Region Football Team earlier this week, SAC players have accounted for seven positions on the Don Hansen All-America Team, which was announced Friday.
Three of the SAC's selections were to the first-team offense, as Lenoir-Rhyne running back Isaiah Whitaker, Wingate receiver Chris Bowden and Carson-Newman center Kevin Day were each named to the team.
Whitaker finished the season with 874 yards on the ground for the SAC-champion Bears, who finished second in the nation in rushing in 2012. Day, meanwhile, anchored a Carson-Newman offensive line that helped the Eagles finish as Division II's top rushing offense.
Bowden, a 2012 Harlon Hill Trophy top-eight finalist, averaged 9.64 receptions and 123.55 yards per game, which ranked tied for second and third in the nation, respectively. He finished the season with 1,359 receiving yards, which was the second-high single-season total in SAC history.
Linebacker Cory Johnson and cornerback Jumal Rolle – a pair of Catawba teammates – were selected to the first-team defense. Johnson finished 2012 with a SAC-best 130 tackles, while Rolle's six interceptions were tied for the second-most in the league.
Two more SAC players were named to the third-team offense. Brevard's Jordan Ollis earned a spot at fullback, while Tusculum's Xzanvion Smith garnered the accolades as an all-purpose runner.