College Sports

NDSU, NAU, Illinois St put players on FCS All-America Team

Posted December 17, 2019 6:00 am

By RALPH D. RUSSO

FILE - In this Jan. 5, 2019, file photo, North Dakota State defensive end Derrek Tuszka (91) waves his arms after sacking Eastern Washington quarterback Eric Barriere in the final minutes of the FCS championship NCAA college football game, in Frisco, Texas. Tuszka was selected to The Associated Press FCS All-America first team, Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019. (AP Photo/Jeffrey McWhorter) The Associated Press

Defending national champion North Dakota State placed two players on The Associated Press FCS All-America first team and five players overall on the three teams.

The team, released Tuesday and presented by Regions Bank, was selected by a panel of 11 members of the media who cover the Football Championship Subdivision.

The top-ranked Bison, who will face Montana State in the playoff semifinals Saturday, were represented on the All-America first team by defensive lineman Derrek Tuszka and offensive lineman Dillon Radunz.

No. 2 James Madison, which faces Weber State in the semifinals, led all teams with six players selected to the three All-America squads. Defensive lineman Ron'Dell Carter was the Dukes' lone first-team All-American.

Northern Arizona's Case Cookus was the first-team All-America quarterback.

FIRST TEAM

OFFENSE

Quarterback - Case Cookus, senior, Northern Arizona.

Running backs - Pete Guerriero, junior, Monmouth; James Robinson, senior, Illinois State.

Offensive linemen - Drew Himmelman, junior, Illinois State; Dillon Radunz, junior, North Dakota State; Blake Jeresaty, junior, Wofford; Spencer Blackburn, senior, Eastern Washington; PJ Burkhalter, junior, Nicholls State.

Tight end - Adam Trautman, senior, Dayton.

Wide receivers - Juwan Green, senior, Albany; Cade Johnson, junior, South Dakota State.

All-purpose player - Chris Rowland, senior, Tennessee State.

Kicker - Luis Aguilar, junior, Northern Arizona.

DEFENSE

Linemen - Derrek Tuszka, senior, North Dakota State; Ron'Dell Carter, senior, James Madison; Sully Laiche, senior, Nicholls State; Aaron Patrick, senior, Eastern Kentucky.

Linebackers - Dante Olson, senior, Montana; Willie Eubanks III, junior, The Citadel; Zach Hall, senior, Southeast Missouri State.

Secondary - Kordell Jackson, junior, Austin Peay; Brandon Easterling, junior, Dayton; Greg Liggs Jr., senior, Elon; Anthony Adams, sophomore, Portland State.

Punter - Alex Pechin, senior, Bucknell.

SECOND TEAM

OFFENSE

Quarterback - Trey Lance, redshirt freshman, North Dakota State.

Running backs - Alex Ramsey, junior, VMI; Jah-Maine Martin, junior, North Carolina A&T.

Offensive linemen - Liam Fornadel, junior, James Madison; Marcus Pettiford, senior, North Carolina A&T; Kyle Murphy, senior, Rhode Island; Kyle Anderton, senior, Austin Peay; Zack Johnson, senior, North Dakota State.

Tight end - Charlie Taumoepeau, ,senior Portland State.

Wide receivers - Aaron Parker, senior, Rhode Island; DeAngelo Wilson, junior, Austin Peay.

All-purpose player - Earnest Edwards, senior, Maine.

Kicker - Grayson Atkins, junior, Furman.

DEFENSE

Linemen - John Daka, senior, James Madison; Bryce Sterk, senior, Montana State; Elerson Smith, junior, Northern Iowa; Eli Mencer, ,senior Albany.

Linebackers - Bryson Armstrong, junior, Kennesaw State; Christian Rozeboom, senior, South Dakota State; Dimitri Holloway, senior, James Madison.

Secondary - Artevius Smith, senior, East Tennessee State; Jeremy Chinn, senior, Southern Illinois; Joseph McWilliams, senior, Grambling State; Isiah Swann, senior, Dartmouth.

Punter - Matt McRobert, junior, Sam Houston State.

THIRD TEAM

OFFENSE

Quarterback - Kevin Thomson, junior, Sacramento State.

Running backs - Julius Chestnut, sophomore, Sacred Heart; Pierre Strong, sophomore, South Dakota State.

Offensive linemen - Zach Larsen, senior, Southern Utah; Alex Taylor, senior, South Carolina State; AJ Farris, senior, Monmouth; Deiter Eislen, senior, Yale; Mitch Brott, senior, Montana State.

Tight end - Dalton Kincaid, sophomore, San Diego.

Wide receivers - Samori Toure, junior, Montana; Jeff Cotton, senior, Idaho.

All-purpose player - Troy Andersen, junior, Montana State.

Kicker - Ethan Ratke, junior, James Madison.

DEFENSE

Linemen - George Obinna, senior, Sacramento State; Mason Bennett, senior, North Dakota; Nick Salley, senior, Charleston Southern; Nick Wheeler, senior, Colgate.

Linebackers - Keith Woetzel, senior, Lehigh; Jabril Cox, junior, North Dakota State; Cam Gill, senior, Wagner.

Secondary - Adam Smith, senior, James Madison; Omar Brown, freshman, Northern Iowa; Luther Kirk, senior, Illinois State; Fernando Jordan, sophomore, Southeastern Louisiana.

Punter - Chris Faddoul, junior, Florida A&M.

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Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen http://www.westwoodonepodcasts.com/pods/ap-top-25-college-football-podcast/

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More AP college football: https://apnews.com/APTop25CollegeFootballPoll and https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

More on Regions Bank: https://www.regions.com/personal-banking

FILE - In this Sept. 7, 2019, file photo, Northern Arizona quarterback Case Cookus looks down field against Arizona in the first half of an NCAA college football game, in Tucson, Ariz. Cookus was selected to The Associated Press FCS All-America first team, Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri, File) The Associated Press

FILE - In this Nov. 16, 2019, file photo, James Madison defensive lineman Ron'Dell Carter (5) enters the field before the start of an NCAA football game, in Harrisonburg, Va. Carter was selected to The Associated Press FCS All-America first team, Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019. (Daniel Lin/Daily News-Record via AP) The Associated Press

FILE - In this Aug. 29, 2019, file photo, South Dakota State wide receiver Cade Johnson plays during an NCAA football game against Minnesota, in Minneapolis. Johnson was selected to The Associated Press FCS All-America first team, Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019. (AP Photo/Andy Clayton- King, File) The Associated Press

FILE - In this Oct. 5, 2019, file photo, Albany receiver Juwan Green, left, hauls in a touchdown pass against Richmond defender Roland Williams during the first half of an NCAA college football game, in Richmond, Va. Green was selected to The Associated Press FCS All-America first team, Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019. (Daniel Sangjib Min/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP, File) The Associated Press

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