Seventeen University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football players were elected to All-Southern Conference teams, as announced Tuesday by the league office.
UTC quarterback Jacob Huesman was named the conference offensive player of the year for the third consecutive season by the coaches and for the second straight time by the media. In addition, junior Corey Levin was named the Jacobs Blocking Award winner for the second straight season.
Mocs glance
› Fordham (9-2) at UTC (8-3) › Finley Stadium › Saturday, 1 p.m. › 96.1 FM
UTC quarterback Jacob Huesman evades Furman's Carl Rider at Finley Stadium on Saturday, October 10, 2015.The 6-foot-2, 220-pound Huesman has 1,745 yards passing and a career-high 1,018 yards rushing this season for the seventh-ranked Mocs (8-3), who will face 14th-ranked Fordham (9-2) in the first round of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs Saturday at 1 p.m. at Finley Stadium. The former Baylor School standout was a SoCon offensive player of the week four time, and had 1,964 yards of total offense and 11 total touchdowns in seven games against league competition.
He was the third player in league history to receive the player of the year honor three times and the first to receive the award three times by the coaches.
"It's an honor to know that the coaches think so highly of me," Huesman said. "You can look at all our other guys that got honored on the first and second teams, and you can see how blessed I am to have so much firepower around me. That really helps me out in every category. I couldn't do it without those guys."
Levin, running back Derrick Craine (1,002 yards, 12 TDs), defensive end Keionta Davis (SoCon-best 10.5 sacks and 14 tackles for loss) and linebacker Nakevion Leslie (76 tackles, 13.5 for loss, 3.5 sacks) also were consensus first-team picks by both the coaches and the media.
Davis is on the FCS STATS watchlist for national defensive player of the year.
Safety Lucas Webb (62 tackles, 2 interceptions, 1 TD) and offensive lineman Synjen Herren were both first-team picks by the media and second-team by the coaches, while safety Cedric Nettles (48 tackles, 5 passes broken up) and kicker Henrique Ribeiro (15-of-19 field goals, 36-of-36 extra points) were first-team coaches' choices.
Defensive tackle Josh Freeman was a consensus second-team selection after 34 tackles, 6.5 for loss and two sacks, while defensive end Toyvian Brand (2.5 sacks, interception returned for TD), linebacker A.J. Hampton (74 tackles), cornerback Dee Virgin (4.5 tackles for loss) and return specialist C.J. Board (11.6 yards on 12 punt returns) were second-team picks by the coaches.
Defensive tackle Isaiah Mack (three sacks, 8.5 tackles for loss), cornerback C.J. Fritz (19 tackles, 2 passes broken up) and safety Montrell Pardue (18 tackles, fumble recovery for a TD) were all-freshman selections.
"I'm proud of all our guys," UTC coach Russ Huesman said. "Any of our guys that get this recognition, I love to see it. I'm excited for Jacob - he deserved it.
"It's great to see all these guys getting this recognition. It's pretty nice."
Freeman out
Coach Huesman confirmed Tuesday that Freeman was going to be unavailable for Saturday's game against the Rams. The 6-1, 285-pound defensive tackle suffered a lower-body injury during the Nov. 14 game against The Citadel.
The coach said backup quarterback Alejandro Bennifield and receiver Xavier Borishade could play Saturday after lower-body injuries suffered against Florida State on Saturday.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.