College Sports Information Directors of America

STAMFORD, Conn., December 5, 2002 – Verizon and CoSIDA released today the 2002 Verizon Academic All-America® Football Team. Jonathan Vilma and Matt Walters from top-ranked University of Miami (Fla.) make first team defensive honors for linebacker and defensive line, respectively. Quarterback Kliff Kingsbury from Texas Tech was named Verizon Academic All-America Team Member of the Year in the University Division and quarterback Mike Bowman from Susquehanna College was named Team Member of the Year for the College Division. In the University Division, the University of Dayton had three players named to the national teams. In the College Division, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology also topped the list with three players on the national teams list. Seven players from the Big Ten Conference earned Academic All-America honors, including two from Purdue University and two from Ohio State. Ohio State’s quarterback, Craig Krenzel, was named to the second team as a junior. Krenzel, the starting quarterback for the No. 2-ranked Buckeyes, has led the team to a 13-0 record to lead the Big Ten Conference. Georgia Tech’s punter, Dan Dyke, was named for a fourth time to the Academic All-America first team. Running back Ryan Johnson from Montana State and offensive lineman Jon Stinchcomb from Georgia both were chosen to the Academic All-America first team for the third time. From the College Division, running back Jake Barkley from the University of St. Thomas was named to the first team for his third time as well. The first team also included Matt Campbell, a defensive lineman from Division III’s top-ranked Mount Union College. Campbell is one of four Academic All-America selections who'll be participating in NCAA playoff games this weekend. The others are his Mount Union teammate Josh Liddell, Hadley Prince of McNeese State and Brian Lowder of Western Kentucky. The complete list of student-athletes named to the Verizon Academic All-America Teams Program National Football Team is attached. The Verizon Academic All-America Teams program recognizes student-athletes who have succeeded on the field and in the classroom. Individuals are selected by votes from CoSIDA, the 1,800-member College Sports Information Directors of America. To be eligible, an athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve and maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.20 on a scale of 4.00. Since the program’s inception in 1952, over 12,000 student-athletes have been honored with the award. Under an agreement with CoSIDA, Verizon has been the exclusive sponsor of the Academic All-America program since 1985. Verizon, America's literacy champion, strongly believes that literacy is a key ingredient to success and outstanding achievements in life. The Academic All-America program is part of Verizon Reads, the company's national campaign to promote literacy through corporate philanthropy, partner collaboration, community outreach, and customer and employee participation. For more information about Verizon, visit www.verizon.com. For more information about the Academic All-America programs, visit www.cosida.com or email academicallamerica@millsport.com. VERIZON ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA® FOOTBALL TEAM (University Division) First-Team Offense NAME SCHOOL POSITION YR. HOMETOWN GPA MAJOR Kliff Kingsbury •• Texas Tech Quarterback Gr. New Braunfels, Texas 3.78• Management Kyler Randall Eastern Washington Wide Receiver Jr. Ferndale, Wash. 3.89 Education John Standeford Purdue Wide Receiver Jr. Monrovia, Ind. 3.51 Elementary Education Erick Streelman Nevada Tight End Sr. Bellflower, Calif. 3.97 Secondary Education Ryan Johnson Montana State Running Back Sr. Fort Collins, Colo. 3.99 Pre-Physical Therapy Jason Wright Northwestern Running Back Jr. Diamond Bar, Calif. 3.25 Psychology/Pre-Medicine Travis Barclay Ball State Offensive Line Jr. Iowa City, Iowa 3.98 Physics Kyle Eaton Oklahoma State Offensive Line Gr. Rogers, Texas 4.00• Management Information Systems Joe Iorio Penn State Offensive Line Sr. Sylvania, Ohio 3.70 Info & Science Technology Rodney Reed LSU Offensive Line Jr. West Monroe, La. 3.93 Accounting Jon Stinchcomb Georgia Offensive Line Sr. Lilburn, Ga. 3.73 Microbiology Nick Browne TCU Place-kicker Jr. Garland, Texas 4.00 Finance-Real Estate First-Team Defense NAME SCHOOL POSITION YR. HOMETOWN GPA MAJOR Jordan Carstens Iowa State Defensive Line Jr. Bagley, Iowa 3.60 Agricultural Business Vince Crochunis Pittsburgh Defensive Line So. Schuylkill Haven, Pa. 3.78 Political Science Jon Montoya Montana State Defensive Line Jr. Brandon, S.D. 3.60 Elementary Education Matt Walters Miami (Fla.) Defensive Line Sr. Melbourne, Fla. 3.45 Mechanical Engineering Hunter Hillenmeyer Vanderbilt Linebacker Sr. Nashville, Tenn. 3.70 Economics/Human & Organizational Development Eric Pauly Colorado State Linebacker Jr. Conway Springs, Kan. 3.78 Bus. Admin./Computer Info. Systems Jonathan Vilma Miami (Fla.) Linebacker Jr. Coral Gables, Fla. 3.34 Finance Mark Kasmer Dayton Defensive Back Sr. Brecksville, Ohio 3.94 Computer Engineering Brian Lowder Western Kentucky Defensive Back Jr. Bowling Green, Ky. 4.00 Government/Sociology Hadley Prince McNeese State Defensive Back Sr. Sulphur, La. 3.61 Agricultural Science Justin Rosato Monmouth Defensive Back Sr. Old Bridge, N.J. 3.88 Business Finance Dan Dyke Georgia Tech Punter Sr. Winter Springs, Fla. 3.84 Electrical Engineering Second-Team Offense NAME SCHOOL POSITION YR. HOMETOWN GPA MAJOR Craig Krenzel Ohio State Quarterback Jr. Utica, Mich. 3.56 Molecular Genetics Rob Turner Central Michigan Wide Receiver Sr. Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 3.96 Business/Mgt. Info. Systems Jack Whitver Iowa State Wide Receiver Jr. Grinnell, Iowa 3.69 Exercise & Sport Science Ben Hartsock Ohio State Tight End Jr. Chillicothe, Ohio 3.73 Biology Jay Bailey Austin Peay Running Back Sr. Clarksville, Tenn. 3.22 Health & Human Performance Mike Hilliard Duquesne Running Back Jr. Homer Center, Pa. 3.59 Finance John Crowther Notre Dame Offensive Line Sr. Edina, Minn. 3.70 Finance & Computer Applications Nathan Frowsing Saint Mary¢s Offensive Line Sr. Madera, Calif. 3.96 Politics Grant Moody U.S. Naval Academy Offensive Line Sr. Eureka, Kan. 3.93 Quantitative Economics Gene Mruczkowski Purdue Offensive Line Sr. Cleveland, Ohio 3.75 Movement and Sport Sciences Chris Tuminello Toledo Offensive Line Sr. Boardman, Ohio 3.93 Civil Engineering Nate Kaeding Iowa Place-kicker Jr. Coralville, Iowa 3.54 History & Secondary Education Second-Team Defense NAME SCHOOL POSITION YR. HOMETOWN GPA MAJOR Andy Bentley Dayton Defensive Line Sr. Marion, Ohio 3.56 Secondary Education/Math Shawn Johnson Duke Defensive Line Jr. Fairport, N.Y. 3.40 Biological Anthropology & Anatomy Trent Karn Dayton Defensive Line Sr. Piqua, Ohio 3.50 Secondary Education/Social Studies Kenny King Alabama Defensive Line Sr. Daphne, Ala. 3.24 Business Marketing Brooks Bahr Utah Linebacker Sr. Bountiful, Utah 3.95• Biology/MBA Michael Dulaney Tulsa Linebacker Sr. Turpin, Okla. 3.86 Sociology Drew Wood Colorado State Linebacker Jr. Buena Vista, Colo. 3.63 Psychology Rodney Johnson Furman Defensive Back Sr. Marion, N.C. 3.54 Health and Exercise Science Nathan Jones Rutgers Defensive Back Jr. Scotch Plains, N.J. 3.73 Finance Ryan MacLean Albany Defensive Back Sr. Colden, N.Y. 3.72 Management Information Systems Joe Pavlick Duquesne Defensive Back Jr. Canton, Ohio 3.97 Information Technology Mark Gould Northern Arizona Punter Jr. Boise, Idaho 3.51 Marketing •• Verizon Academic All-America® of the Year • undergraduate GPA only 2002-2003 VERIZON ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICA® FOOTBALL TEAM (COLLEGE DIVISION) First-Team Offense NAME SCHOOL POS YR HOMETOWN GPA/MAJOR Mike Bowman ** Susquehanna QB Sr. Northumberland, PA 4.00/Mathematics Jake Barkley St. Thomas RB Sr. Plymouth, MN 3.90/Entrepreneurship Tyler Paul Emporia State Univ. RB Jr. Enterprise, KS 3.93/Business Administration Andrew Hilliard St. Thomas WR Sr. Woodbury, MN 3.97/Math, Secondary Education Flynn Cochran Rensselaer Poly Inst WR Jr. Kent, WA 3.80/Mgmt Info Technology Landon Trusty Central Arkansas TE Jr. Hot Springs, AR 4.00/Finance Mike Bestul Wisconsin-Eau Claire OL Sr. Chippewa Falls, WI 3.93/Kinesiology Ben Bristol Springfield College OL Sr. South Hadley, MA 3.83/Sociology Matt Kish Baldwin-Wallace OL Sr. Brookpart, OH 3.983/Education Mike Liberski Wilkes University OL Jr. Exeter, PA 3.94/Mechanical Engineering John Melillo Washington & Lee OL Sr. Forney, TX 4.00/English Mac Schneider North Dakota OL Gr. Fargo, ND 3.97/History Ben Tuck Univ. of the South PK Sr. Pell City, AL 3.90/Latin First-Team Defense NAME SCHOOL POS YR HOMETOWN GPA/MAJOR Trevor Alexander Capital University DL Sr. Ashland, OH 3.957/Economics, Political Science Matt Campbell Mount Union DL Sr. Massillon, OH 3.418/History Patrick Ryan Benedictine Univ. DL Sr. Chicago, IL 3.63/Accounting Justin Schneider Wisconsin-Oshkosh DL Sr. West Bend, WI 3.706/Accounting, Finance Ben Laarman Northern Michigan LB Sr. Appleton, WI 3.97/Physical Education Cliff Mason Gettysburg College LB Sr. Greenville, PA 4.00/Health and Exercise Science Tim Swan Rose-Hulman LB Sr. Farmington, MN 3.93/Mechanical Engineering Todd Baldwin Augustana College DB Sr. Aledo, IL 3.97/Finance, Economics Jesse McQuiston Rose-Hulman DB Sr. Walton, IN 3.96/Mechanical Engineering Jon Peterson Northwestern DB Sr. Wisconsin Rapids, WI 4.00/Math John Yurisinec Gannon University DB Sr. Irwin, PA 3.95/Business Administration Jarrod Edelen South Dakota P Jr. Vermillion, SD 3.70/Computer Science, Economics Second-Team Offense NAME SCHOOL POS YR HOMETOWN GPA/MAJOR Keith Heckendorf Saint Cloud State QB Jr. Mosinee, WI 3.64/Physical Education Kevin Clive Hillsdale RB Sr. Clarence, NY 3.70/Pre-Med Andy Traetow Gustavus Adolphus RB Sr. Jackson, MN 3.57/Elementary Education Luke Klinker Nebraska Wesleyan WR Sr. Omaha, NE 3.98/English, History Justin Wilder Greensboro College WR Sr. Wednell, NC 4.00/Business Admin, Economics Josh Liddel Mount Union TE Sr. Bemus Point, NY 3.692/History Joe Harbour Baldwin-Wallace OL Jr. Upper Sandusky, OH 3.93/Secondary Education David Laudner, Buena Vista Univ. OL Sr. Rockwell, IA 4.00/Political Science Bob Paulin Augustana College OL Sr. Naperville, IL 3.49/Accounting, Computer Science Daniel Schwartz Rose-Hulman OL Gr. New Palestine, IN 3.63/Electrical Eng., Biomedical Eng. Austin Lepper Truman State PK Sr. Ames, IA 3.96/Business Administration Second-Team Defense NAME SCHOOL POS YR HOMETOWN GPA/MAJOR Louis Jamison Slippery Rock DL Sr. Scottdale, PA 3.629/Health and Physical Education Curt Kimmel Missouri-Rolla DL Sr. Ringling, OK 4.00/Civil Engineering Dane Lundgren Wheaton College DL Sr. Arden Hills, MI 3.39/English Literature Caleb White Pittsburgh State DL Sr. Kingsdown, KS 3.60/Biology, Pre-Med Mike Oswald Northern Michigan LB Sr. Hillman, MI 3.91/Construction Management Ben Spilseth Gustavus Adolphus LB Sr. Willmar, MN 3.95/Biochemistry, Chemistry Tameem Yehyawi Truman State LB Jr. Keokuk, IA 3.95/Biology Adam Guy Augustana College DB Jr. Muscatine, IA 3.91/Physics Aaron Hight Pittsburgh State DB Sr. Riverton, KS 3.75/Construction Management Garrett Rettig Wartburg College DB Sr. Tripoli, IA 3.96/Biology Ty Touchstone Eastern New Mexico DB So. Lubbock, TX 4.00/Business Administration Ryan Hartschuh College of Wooster P Sr. Akron, OH 3.838/Physics, Mathematics ** Denotes Verizon Academic All-AmericaÒ Team Member of the Year – College Division