2015 CoSIDA Academic All-America® Football Teams release dates:
College Division Team: release/teams
NCAA Division III Team: release/teams
NCAA Division II Team: below
NCAA Division I Team: Thr., Dec. 3
Academic All-America Program Overview & Links
• Academic All-America® Football Teams - Division II
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AUSTIN, Texas – Ferris State University senior quarterback
Jason Vander Laan headlines the 2015 CoSIDA Academic All-America® Division II football team as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
Vander Laan has been named the 2015 Academic All-America® of the Year for NCAA Division II football.
The Division II Academic All-America® program is being financially supported by the NCAA Division II national governance structure to assist CoSIDA with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 2015-16 Division II Academic All-America® teams program.
An applied math and actuarial science major with a 3.76 G.P.A., Vander Laan led the Bulldogs to a second straight undefeated regular season and Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship this year. The Frankfort, Illinois, native became college football’s greatest rushing quarterback of all-time this season. His 2,625 passing yards and 1,542 rushing yards this year enabled him to become the first signal caller in NCAA history to both rush and pass for 1,000-plus yards four consecutive years.
The 2014 Harlon Hill Trophy winner, Vander Laan is one of 12 national finalists from all NCAA levels for the Campbell Trophy (also known as the Academic Heisman). Statistically, Vander Laan completed 65.6 percent of his passes this season, throwing for 27 touchdowns and rushing for 24 scores. As a senior, he became the GLIAC’s all-time career total offense leader by averaging 347.3 yards per game. Vander Laan helped the Bulldogs post an 11-1 overall record as Ferris State pushed its regular season win streak to 25 games.
The CoSIDA Academic All-America® NCAA Division II football team features 13 returning Academic All-America® selections with 10 finding a place on the first team. Vander Laan’s Ferris State teammate and senior defensive lineman
Justin Zimmer and Mercyhurst University senior tight end
John Matarazzo receive Academic All-America® laurels for the third time in their respective careers. Both Zimmer and Matarazzo made the second team in 2013 and the first team in 2014.
Zimmer is a three-time All-GLIAC first team selection for the Bulldogs. He is a nominee for the Gene Upshaw NCAA Division II Lineman of the Year Award and the Cliff Harris National Small College Defensive Player of the Year Award. Statistically, Zimmer leads Ferris State in tackles (81), quarterback sacks (13), tackles for loss (26) and forced fumbles (four). In the classroom, the Greenville, Michigan, native sports a 3.88 G.P.A. with a business management and marketing technology double major.
Matarazzo holds a perfect 4.00 G.P.A. with his biology major. A resident of New Castle, Pennsylvania, Matarazzo is a first team All- Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West selection. He caught 15 passes for 165 yards and five touchdowns for the Lakers this season. Matarazzo was fifth on the team in scoring with only three Mercyhurst players posting more touchdowns.
In addition to Matarazzo, five student-athletes found a spot on the 2015 CoSIDA Academic All-America® football first team offense after receiving either first or second team honors in 2014. Minnesota State University Mankato senior running Connor Thomas is a two-time first team performer. In 2015, the Chicago, Illinois. product rushed 113 times for 619 yards and seven touchdowns. In a victory over Northern State University Sept. 12, Thomas carried the ball 30 times for 173 yards and two scores. The first team All- Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference South performer possesses a 3.79 G.P.A. with his exercise science major.
Two wide receivers and two linemen round out the first team offensive returnees. University of North Alabama senior wide receiver
Lee Mayhall is also a two-time first team CoSIDA Academic All-America® pick. The Jackson, Tennessee, native is a three-year starter for the Lions. As a senior, Mayhall had 48 catches for 527 yards and three touchdowns. The first team All-Gulf South Conference selection had 131 career catches for 1,580 yards and 10 scores. Academically, Mayhall has a 3.97 G.P.A. as an industrial hygiene major.
East Stroudsburg University senior wide receiver
Jon Schnaars moves up to the first team after earning a spot on the second team last season. Schnaars leads the NCAA Division II in receiving touchdowns, receiving yards, receiving yards per game and receptions per game. The Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, product had 114 receptions for 1,610 yards and 22 touchdowns this season, gaining a spot on the first team All-PSAC East squad. Schnaars has a 3.52 G.P.A. with his business management major.
Concordia (Minn.) University, St. Paul senior offensive lineman
Cole Parker repeats as a first team CoSIDA Academic All-America® choice in 2015. He has a 3.95 G.P.A. with a psychology and criminal justice double major. The Brookfield, Wisconsin, resident is a four-year starter on Concordia’s offensive line, moving from right tackle to left tackle for his senior season. Parker is an honorable mention All-NSIC selection who graded at 90 percent or better for assignment in 10 of 11 games this season.
Colorado School of Mines junior offensive lineman
Richie Rice is the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Academic Player of the Year with a 3.86 G.P.A. as a petroleum engineering major. Rice is a first team CoSIDA Academic All-America® selection after receiving second team laurels in 2014. An honorable mention All-RMAC center, Rice helped the Orediggers average 542.2 total offense yards per game, second in the NCAA Division II. The Colorado Mines offensive line allowed only 14 sacks this season.
Zimmer is one of four 2014 Academic All-America® defensive team members who were voted to the 2015 first team. Gannon University junior defensive lineman
Matthew Gawlik, Wingate University senior linebacker
Eric Mapoles and Minnesota State Mankato senior defensive back
Justin Otto were second team choices in 2014.
Gawlik possesses a 3.93 G.P.A. with his entrepreneurship major. On the field, Gawlik led Gannon with four sacks this season. His statistical ledger includes 40 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, three pass break-ups, one fumble recovery and one blocked kick. A Strongsville, Ohio, product, Gawlik has earned PSAC Scholar-Athlete honors each season during his career.
Mapoles was the top tackler on the Wingate defense (and third in the South Atlantic Conference) with his 89 total stops this year. A first team All-SAC performer, Mapoles recorded six tackles for loss, one quarterback sack, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, one quarterback hurry and one pass break-up. The Snellville, Georgia, native was the only NCAA Division II football student-athlete to achieve the following triple crown in 2014: CoSIDA Academic All-America®, Good Works Team® and all-conference player. Mapoles has a 3.77 G.P.A. with a management major.
Otto joins teammate and classmate
Connor Thomas as a first team CoSIDA Academic All-America® selection. An All-NSIC South second team pick, Otto posted 31 tackles this season with three tackles for loss. He had one interception and six passes defended. Against Southwest Minnesota State, Otto recovered a blocked punt in the end zone for a touchdown. The Kenosha, Wisconsin, resident has a 3.86 G.P.A. with his biomedical science major.
Gannon senior quarterback
Liam Nadler leads three 2014 CoSIDA Academic All-America® second team members who repeated on the 2015 second team. Nadler is one of 22 student-athletes across all NCAA levels to be named to the 2015 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® for his charitable activities and community service. Academically, Nadler has a 3.88 G.P.A. with a political science major.
A native of Leipsic, Ohio, Nadler completed 186-of-337 passes for 2,641 yards and 24 touchdowns this season. He is Gannon’s all-time leader in completions, passing yards, pass completion percentage, passing touchdowns, total offensive yards and total touchdowns. Nadler is one of two Golden Knights to receive CoSIDA Academic All-America® honors from CoSIDA this year.
Western State Colorado University junior running back
Austin Ekeler is second in the NCAA Division II in all-purpose yards (203.90) and third in total rushing yards (1,637) and rushing yards per game (163.7). The Eaton, Colorado, product is listed in the NCAA top 10 in rushing touchdowns (19) and yards per carry (7.21). A first team All-RMAC selection in 2015, Ekeler earned RMAC Academic Player of the Year laurels in 2014. He is a business administration major with a 3.39 G.P.A.
Mercyhurst junior offensive lineman
Ryan Michaels rounds out the returning members of the 2015 CoSIDA Academic All-America® second team. Michaels owns a 3.91 G.P.A. as a sports medicine major. His efforts helped senior running back Brandon Brown-Dukes earn a spot on the All-PSAC West first team. The Mercyhurst O-Line blocked for Brown-Dukes as he became the school’s all-time leading rusher.
The 24 CoSIDA Academic All-America® NCAA Division II football first team members hold a composite 3.81 G.P.A. Mercyhurst’s Matarazzo is one of five first team honorees with a perfect 4.00 cumulative G.P.A. Thirty-one schools had at least one CoSIDA Academic All-America® NCAA Division II football team member. Colorado Mines and Ferris State lead the way with four honorees each.
The remaining members of the CoSIDA Academic All-America® first team offense include running back
Davontay Stevens of Southwest Minnesota State University; offensive linemen
Devon Ackerman of East Stroudsburg,
Cody Dingeldey of Ferris State and
Corbin Feenstra of Colorado State University-Pueblo; and place kicker
Brent Wahle of Ohio Dominican University.
The other student-athletes on the CoSIDA Academic All-America® first team defense include defensive linemen
Matt Koerper of Clarion University and
Paul Norris of Bentley University; linebackers
Morgan Loyd of Tiffin University and
Austin Miller of the University of Central Missouri; defensive backs
Shawn Kobylinski of Colorado Mines,
Carl Mattox of Mars Hill University and
Donovan Woods of Southwest Minnesota State University; and punter
Ryan Van Goethem of Michigan Technological University.
The remaining members of the CoSIDA Academic All-America® second team offense include running back
Chris Temple of Indiana (Pa.) University; wide receivers
Jameson Parsons of St. Cloud State University and
Brady Rose of University of Sioux Falls; tight end
Adam Shaheen of Ashland University; offensive linemen
Kyle Henderson of Slippery Rock University,
Jake Ludwig of Colorado State-Pueblo,
John Miller of Southern Arkansas University and
Hasan Shaar of Colorado Mines; and place kicker
Carter McCauley of Winona State University.
The student-athletes on the CoSIDA Academic All-America® second team defense include defensive linemen
Kimes Gilbert of Oklahoma Baptist University,
Tommy Hoskins of Colorado Mines,
Marcus Martin of Slippery Rock and
Jeffrey Raymond of Minnesota State Mankato; linebackers
Jason Ashley of Tuskegee University,
Nick Huckabay of Ferris State,
Cade Rogers of Concord University and
Joe Rosenbrock of Colorado State-Pueblo; defensive backs
Brett Gervais of Michigan Tech,
Anthony Masucci of Stonehill College,
Chris Shaffer of Lenoir-Rhyne University and
John Tidwell of Sioux Falls; and punter
Christopher Birozes of Wingate.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Michael MacEachern, Young Harris College (
mfmaceachern@yhc.edu) (706) 379-5106
Academic All-America ® Vice Co-Chair for Publicity/Communications
David Sherwood, Wingate University (
dsherwod@wingate.edu) (704) 233-8186
Academic All-America® Coordinator of Publicity