CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – Three Patriot League football players were selected to the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) 2016 FCS All-America Team when it was announced on Monday morning. Fordham junior running back Chase Edmonds and Bucknell senior offensive lineman Julie’n Davenport both earn first team nods, while Colgate junior defensive lineman Pat Afriyie was selected to the second team.
Edmonds and Davenport each earn their second First Team All-America honor of the season, after being named Associated Press (AP) FCS All-Americans last Thursday. Afriyie was a Third Team FCS AP All-America selection.
Edmonds earns his first AFCA All-America honor after leading the nation with 1,799 rushing yards and finishing third with 19 rushing touchdowns. The three-time AP All-American and All-League selection also broke Patriot League career record for rushing touchdowns (62), while becoming just the second player in League history to eclipse 5,000 rushing yards.
Davenport also earns AFCA All-America honors for the first time, while earning his third career All-America nod after being named an AP First Team All-American last week and a STATS FCS Second Team All-American following his junior season. In November, Davenport became just the 12th player in Patriot League history to earn All-League honors four times. He also became the first Patriot League player since 1987 to earn an invitation to the Reese’s Senior Bowl. Davenport started all 44 games over his four-year career at Bucknell.
Afriyie, the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year, earns his second All-America honor of the season, making the second team. Afriyie led the FCS’s third-ranked rush defense (69.4 rush yards allowed/game) while averaging 2.1 tackles for loss per game, the fifth-best average in the nation. He led the Patriot League with 21 tackles for loss, while tying for fourth in the FCS with 1.0 sack per game. He is seventh among active FCS career players, averaging 0.67 sacks per game. Afriyie becomes the first Raider to earn AP All-America honors since 2012.
The AFCA has selected an All-America team since 1945 and currently selects teams in all five of its divisions, also including the FBS, Division II, Division III and NAIA. The AFCA Coaches All-America teams are chosen exclusively by the coaches. Beginning this year, the AFCA has started selecting a first and second team.
2016 AFCA Football Championship Subdivision Coaches’ All-America Team - First Team
Offense
Pos Name Ht. Wt. Cl. School Coach Hometown (High School)
WR **Cooper Kupp 6-2 215 RSr. Eastern Washington Beau Baldwin Yakima, Wash. (Davis)
WR Brian Brown 6-2 205 Sr. Richmond Danny Rocco Richmond, Va. (Hermitage)
TE Dallas Goedert 6-4 250 Jr. South Dakota State John Stiegelmeier Britton, S.D. (Britton-Hecla)
OL Erik Austell 6-4 285 RSr. Charleston Southern Jamey Chadwell Warner Robins, Ga. (Central Fellowship Christian)
OL Julie’n Davenport 6-7 315 Sr. Bucknell Joe Susan Paulsboro, N.J. (Paulsboro)
OL Zack Johnson 6-4 331 Sr. North Dakota State Chris Klieman Apple Valley, Minn. (Eastview)
OL Mitchell Kirsch 6-6 300 RSr. James Madison Mike Houston Washington, D.C. (St. John’s College)
OL Isaiah Pinson 6-3 267 Jr. The Citadel Brent Thompson Wellford, S.C. (Byrnes)
QB Jeremiah Briscoe 6-3 220 Jr. Sam Houston State K.C. Keeler Houston, Texas (Stratford)
RB Khalid Abdullah 5-10 220 Sr. James Madison Mike Houston Newport News, Va. (Heritage)
RB Chase Edmonds 5-9 205 Jr. Fordham Andrew Breiner Harrisburg, Pa. (Central Dauphin East)
Defense
Pos Name Ht. Wt. Cl. School Coach Hometown (High School)
DL *Keionta Davis 6-4 270 Sr. Tennessee-Chattanooga Russ Huesman Chattanooga, Tenn. (Red Bank)
DL Samson Ebukam 6-3 240 Sr. Eastern Washington Beau Baldwin Portland, Ore. (David Douglas)
DL Tanoh Kpassagnon 6-7 290 Sr. Villanova Andy Talley Ambler, Pa. (Wissahickon)
DL Karter Schult 6-4 269 Sr. Northern Iowa Mark Farley Tripoli, Iowa (Tripoli)
LB Dylan Cole 6-1 240 Sr. Missouri State Dave Steckel Rogersville, Mo. (Logan-Rogersville)
LB Christian Kuntz 6-2 228 RSr. Duquesne Jerry Schmitt Pittsburgh, Pa. (Chartiers Valley)
LB Darius Leonard 6-3 220 RJr. South Carolina State Buddy Pough Lake View, S.C. (Lake View)
DB *Donald Payne 6-0 223 Sr. Stetson Roger Hughes Fayetteville, Ga. (Landmark Christian)
DB Tre Dempsey 5-10 179 Jr. North Dakota State Chris Klieman Lakeland, Fla. (Lakeland)
DB Casey DeAndrade 5-11 216 Sr. New Hampshire Sean McDonnell East Bridgewater, Mass. (East Bridgewater)
DB Brendan Langley 6-2 193 Sr. Lamar Ray Woodard Marietta, Ga. (Kell)
Specialists
Pos Name Ht. Wt. Cl. School Coach Hometown (High School)
P Miles Bergner 6-0 225 Sr. South Dakota Bob Nielson Longmont, Colo. (Longmont)
PK Eric Medina 5-11 195 Sr. Texas Southern Michael Haywood LaPorte, Texas (LaPorte)
AP Detrez Newsome 5-10 210 Jr. Western Carolina Mark Speir Raeford, N.C. (Hoke County)
**-2013-2014-2015 All-American *-2015 All-American
2016 AFCA Football Championship Subdivision Coaches’ All-America Team - Second Team
Offense
Pos Name Ht. Wt. Cl. School Coach Hometown (High School)
WR Karel Hamilton 6-1 202 Sr. Samford Chris Hatcher Valrico, Fla. (Strawberry Crest)
WR Chad Williams 6-2 193 Sr. Grambling State Broderick Fobbs Baton Rouge, La. (Madison Prep)
TE Eric Saubert 6-5 251 RSr. Drake Rick Fox Hoffman Estates, Ill. (Hoffman Estates)
OL *Casey Dunn 6-3 290 Sr. Jacksonville State John Grass Trussville, Ala. (Hewitt-Trussville)
OL *Corey Levin 6-5 305 Sr. Tennessee-Chattanooga Russ Huesman Dacula, Ga. (Dacula)
OL Michael Coe 6-3 300 Sr. North Dakota Bubba Schweigert Carlsbad, Calif. (Carlsbad)
OL Daniel Cooney 6-8 315 RSo. San Diego Dale Lindsey Western Springs, Ill. (Fenwick)
OL Carl Jones 6-2 285 RSr. North Carolina Central Jerry Mack Nashville, Tenn. (Pearl-Cohn)
QB Gage Gubrud 6-2 195 RSo. Eastern Washington Beau Baldwin McMinnville, Ore. (McMinnville)
RB Tarik Cohen 5-6 179 Sr. North Carolina A&T Rod Broadway Bunn, N.C. (Bunn)
RB Lenard Tillery 5-10 200 RSr. Southern Dawson Odums Baton Rouge, La. (McKinley)
Defense
Pos Name Ht. Wt. Cl. School Coach Hometown (High School)
DL Pat Afriyie 6-2 240 Jr. Colgate Dan Hunt Sandy Hook, Conn. (Loomis Chaffee)
DL P.J. Hall 6-1 280 Jr. Sam Houston State K.C. Keeler Seguin, Texas (Seguin)
DL Darius Jackson 6-3 237 RJr. Jacksonville State John Grass Bessemer, Ala. (McAdory)
DL Javancy Jones 6-2 245 Sr. Jackson State Tony Hughes Macon, Miss. (Noxubee County)
LB Kourtney Berry 6-0 210 RSr. Alabama State Brian Jenkins Merrillville, Ind. (Merrillville)
LB Chad Geter 6-2 253 RSr. Gardner-Webb Carroll McCray Irmo, S.C. (Dutch Fork)
LB Folarin Orimolade 6-0 235 Sr. Dartmouth Buddy Teevens Burtonsville, Md. (Blake)
DB Mike Basile 6-1 200 Jr. Monmouth (N.J.) Kevin Callahan Brick, N.J. (Memorial)
DB Deion Harris 6-3 180 Jr. North Dakota Bubba Schweigert Hibbing, Minn. (Hibbing)
DB Phillip Henry 6-2 225 RSr. South Carolina State Buddy Pough Manning, S.C. (Manning)
DB Cole Reyes 6-2 215 Jr. North Dakota Bubba Schweigert Schaumburg, Ill. (Schaumburg)
Specialists
Pos Name Ht. Wt. Cl. School Coach Hometown (High School)
P Jake Ryder 6-0 182 Sr. Towson Rob Ambrose Olney, Md. (Sherwood)
PK Griffin Trau 5-8 180 RSo. Richmond Danny Rocco Culver, Ind. (Western Reserve Academy)
AP *Willie Quinn 5-5 150 Sr. Southern Dawson Odums Miami, Fla. (Jackson)
*-2015 All-American
Team Background: The five teams now chosen for each AFCA?division evolved from a single 11-player squad in 1945. From 1945 until 1967, only one team was chosen. From 1967 through 1971, two teams, University Division and College Division, were selected. In 1972, the College Division was split into College I and College II. In 1979, the University Division was split into two teams — Division I-A and Division I-AA. In 1996, the College I and College II teams were renamed Division II?and Division III,?respectively. In 2006, the Division I-A and Division I-AA teams were renamed Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS)?and Football Championship Subdivision (FCS),?respectively. In 2006, the AFCA started selecting an NAIA-only team.
From 1965-81, a 22-player (11 offensive, 11 defensive) team was chosen. In 1982, a punter and placekicker were added to the team. A return specialist was added in 1997, giving us the current 25-player team. The return specialist position was replaced by an all-purpose player in 2006.