NDSU, NAU, Illinois St put players on FCS All-America Team
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.
____
Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen http://www.westwoodonepodcasts.com/pods/ap-top-25-college-football-podcast/
___
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