Dec. 2, 2009

ATHENS, Ohio-The Ohio football team earned a school-record 12 citations on the 2009 Mid-American Conference First, Second and Third Teams, the league office announced Wednesday.

 

Only Temple’s 15 citations eclipsed the Bobcats’ total of 12, which was the most since the program registered 10 in 1968 and 1971. MAC West champ Central Michigan was third with 11.

 

Ohio seniors Chris Garrett and Lee Renfro were named to the All-MAC first team, as was redshirt freshman kicker Matt Weller.

 

Garrett is Ohio’s all-time leader in kick return average (26.79), kick return yards (2,063) and kick return touchdowns (3). Renfro boasts 93 tackles from his outside linebacker spot and is a captain on this year’s team. He is the team’s second-leading tackler, with seven tackles for loss, two sacks, five breakups and one fumble recovery. Weller, a Freshman All-America candidate, sports 19 field goals this season, which is one shy of the school record and the most of any freshman in the nation. He was named MAC East Special Teams Player of the Week three times this season.

 

The Bobcats has five second team selections, including senior wide receiver Taylor Price, junior linebacker Noah Keller, senior cornerback Thad Turner and junior wideout LaVon Brazill, who earned second team honors at both wide receiver and punt returner.

 

Price sits just one touchdown catch shy of Todd Snyder’s all-time school record of 15 and is just one reception away from having sole possession of the school’s career catches record. This season, he has a team-best 51 catches for 733 yards and five scores. Keller is second in the MAC in tackles per game (10.2) and was also named to the All-MAC second team last season. In 2009, Keller also recorded 8.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, one interception, two pass breakups and a pair of forced fumbles. Turner stands sixth on the squad in tackles (50), and also has a half tackle for loss, an interception and six pass breakups. Brazill, a MAC East Special Teams Player of the Week honoree on Nov. 23, has had a breakout year in 2009, becoming the school’s most prolific punt returner of all time with four career punt returns for TDs. He also amassed 49 catches for 670 yards and six touchdowns at his receiver position.

 

Four Ohio student-athletes dotted the third team, as tackles Chris Rodgers and Joe Flading were honored along the offensive line. Redshirt junior defensive tackle Ernie Hodge and redshirt freshman free safety Gerald Moore rounded out the honorees.

 

Rodgers and Flading both recorded team-high grades of 1.86 this season and combined for 52 pancake blocks, 29 decleaters, while yielding just 2.5 sacks between them. Hodge, a defensive end-turned-defensive tackle for Ohio, is the team’s seventh-leading tackler with 42 stops, 5.5 tackles for loss, two pass breakups and one fumble recovery. Moore, Ohio’s other Freshman All-America candidate, has six interceptions this season, which is tied for first among freshmen nationally. He also boasts 53 tackles, one tackle for loss, a half sack, a fumble recovery and a forced fumble.

 

Central Michigan’s Dan LeFevour won both the Vern Smith Leadership Award and the Offensive Player of the Year honor. Temple’s Adrian Robinson and CMU’s Antonio Brown gained Defensive Player of the Year and Special Teams Player of the Year acclaim, respectively. The Owls’ Bernard Pierce was selected as the league’s Freshman of the Year.

 

Temple’s Al Golden was named MAC Coach of the Year after leading the Owls, who were picked second in the Eastern division of the MAC’s Preseason Poll, to a 9-3 overall record and a 7-1 mark in the MAC.

 

The Bobcats (9-3 overall, 7-1 MAC), the MAC East’s fourth-place selection in the preseason, defeated Temple to gain the MAC East’s berth in the Marathon MAC Championship (Detroit, Mich.-Ford Field) where they will face the Chippewas Friday at 8 p.m. The game will be shown to a national TV audience on ESPN2.

 

 

2009 MAC Specialty Award Winners

 

Vern Smith Leadership Award Winner:  Dan LeFevour, Central Michigan

 

Coach of the Year:  Al Golden, Temple

 

Offensive Player of the Year:  Dan LeFevour, Central Michigan

 

Defensive Player of the Year:  Adrian Robinson, Temple

 

Special Teams Player of the Year:  Antonio Brown, Central Michigan

 

Freshman of the Year:  Bernard Pierce, Temple

 

 

 

All-MAC First Team Offense

 

Quarterback - Dan LeFevour, Central Michigan #^~

 

Center - Eddie Adamski, Northern Illinois %

 

Offensive Lineman - Allen Ollenburger, Central Michigan

 

Offensive Lineman - Jason Onyebuagu, Northern Illinois %

 

Offensive Lineman - Darius Morris, Temple

 

Offensive Lineman - Colin Madison, Temple

 

Tight End - Jesse Rack, Buffalo

 

Wide Receiver - Freddie Barnes, Bowling Green

 

Wide Receiver - Antonio Brown, Central Michigan @

 

Wide Receiver - Naaman Roosevelt, Buffalo @&

 

Wide Receiver - Stephen Williams, Toledo #!

 

Running Back - Bernard Pierce, Temple

 

Running Back - Chad Spann, Northern Illinois

 

Placekicker - Matt Weller, Ohio

 

 

 

All-MAC First Team Defense

 

Outside Linebacker - Lee Renfro, Ohio

 

Outside Linebacker - Elijah Joseph, Temple

 

Inside Linebacker - Nick Bellore, Central Michigan @

 

Inside Linebacker - Cobrani Mixon, Kent State

 

Down Lineman - Andre Neblett, Temple #!

 

Down Lineman - Adrian Robinson, Temple

 

Down Lineman - Muhammad Wilkerson, Temple

 

Down Lineman - Frank Zombo, Central Michigan @

 

Defensive Back - Barry Church, Toledo @^~

 

Defensive Back - Davonte Shannon, Buffalo @^

 

Defensive Back - Jaiquawn Jarrett, Temple

 

Defensive Back - Brian Lainhart, Kent State #

 

Punter - Matt Rinehart, Kent State

 

 

 

All-MAC First Team Specialists

 

Kickoff Return Specialist - Chris Garrett, Ohio

 

Punt Return Specialist - Antonio Brown, Central Michigan @^

 

  

 

All-MAC Second Team Offense

 

Quarterback - Tim Hiller, Western Michigan %

 

Center - Colin Miller, Central Michigan

 

Offensive Lineman - Peter Bittner, Buffalo

 

Offensive Lineman - Brandon Brooks, Miami

 

Offensive Lineman - Anthony Parker, Western Michigan

 

Offensive Lineman - Devin Tyler, Temple

 

Tight End - Jimmy Scheidler, Bowling Green

 

Wide Receiver - Eric Page, Toledo

 

Wide Receiver - Bryan Anderson, Central Michigan @!~

 

Wide Receiver - Taylor Price, Ohio

 

Wide Receiver - LaVon Brazill, Ohio

 

Running Back - Brandon West, Western Michigan %!

 

Running Back - MiQuale Lewis, Ball State @

 

Placekicker - Mike Salerno, Northern Illinois #

 

 

 

All-MAC Second Team Defense

 

Outside Linebacker - Austin Pritchard, Western Michigan @

 

Outside Linebacker - Robert Eddins, Ball State

 

Inside Linebacker - Brian Wagner, Akron

 

Inside Linebacker - Noah Keller, Ohio #

 

Down Lineman - Brandon Crawford, Ball State #&

 

Down Lineman - Jake Coffman, Northern Illinois

 

Down Lineman - Monte Simmons, Kent State

 

Down Lineman - Brandon Bice, Northern Illinois

 

Defensive Back - Mike Newton, Buffalo #

 

Defensive Back - Thad Turner, Ohio

 

Defensive Back - Josh Gordy, Central Michigan

 

Defensive Back - Miguel Graham, Akron

 

Punter - Zach Johnson, Eastern Michigan

 

 

 

All-MAC Second Team Specialists

 

Kickoff Return Specialist - James Nixon, Temple

 

Punt Return Specialist - LaVon Brazill, Ohio

 

  

 

All-MAC Third Team Offense

 

Quarterback - Tyler Sheehan, Bowling Green

 

Center - John Palumbo, Temple

 

Offensive Lineman - Joe Flading, Ohio

 

Offensive Lineman - Shane Steffy, Bowling Green

 

Offensive Lineman - Chris Rodgers, Ohio

 

Offensive Lineman - Corey Woods, Akron

 

Tight End - Steve Maneri, Temple

 

Wide Receiver - Robert Arnheim, Western Michigan

 

Wide Receiver - Juan Nunez, Western Michigan %

 

Wide Receiver - Armand Robinson, Miami

 

Wide Receiver - Brett Hamlin, Buffalo

 

Running Back - DaJuane Collins, Toledo %

 

Running Back - Me’co Brown, Northern Illinois

 

Placekicker - Alex Steigerwald, Toledo

 

 

 

All-MAC Third Team Defense

 

Outside Linebacker - Andre Hatchett, Eastern Michigan

 

Outside Linebacker - Amara Kamara, Temple

 

Inside Linebacker - Alex Joseph, Temple

 

Inside Linebacker - Archie Donald, Toledo

 

Down Lineman - Almondo Sewell, Akron %!

 

Down Lineman - Ernie Hodge, Ohio

 

Down Lineman - Larry Knight, Central Michigan

 

Down Lineman - Sean Murnane, Central Michigan %

 

Defensive Back - Gerald Moore, Ohio

 

Defensive Back - Dominique Harris, Temple

 

Defensive Back - Anthony Kokal, Miami

 

Defensive Back - Jalil Carter, Akron

 

Punter - Ben Armer, Western Michigan

 

 

 

All-MAC Third Team Specialists

 

Kickoff Return Specialist - Dashan Miller, Akron

 

Punt Return Specialist - Tommy Davis, Northern Illinois

 

 

Key

@ 2008 First team All-MAC

 

# 2008 Second team All-MAC

 

% 2008 Third team All-MAC

 

^ 2007 First team All-MAC

 

! 2007 Second team All-MAC

 

& 2007 Third team All-MAC

 

~ 2006 First team All-MAC