UMHB had 23 players named to the All-American Southwest Conference Team, and five of the seven individual awards went to Crusaders. The All-ASC Team was voted on by the league’s nine head coaches and released Thursday.
Senior linebacker Jerrell Freeman was named Defensive Player of the Year, the third consecutive season a Crusader has won it.
Senior tackle Caleb Woodall was named Offensive Lineman of the Year, senior end William Dewease was Defensive Lineman of the Year and senior kicker-punter Joel Munoz was Special Teams Player of the Year.
Pete Fredenburg was named Coach of the Year after guiding the Crusaders to their second straight 8-0 conference record en route to the conference title. Fifth-ranked UMHB (9-1) will host No. 13 Trinity (9-1) in an NCAA Division III first-round playoff game at noon Saturday at Tiger Field.
The Crusaders had 13 first-team selections - seven offensive and six defensive.
Tailbacks Jarvis Thrasher, a senior out of Temple, and sophomore Belton product Quincy Daniels earned spots on the first-team offense.
Woodall was joined on the first-team line by senior guard Jordan Hataway (Gatesville), junior guard Josh Littlejohn, senior center Tyler Hykel and senior tight end Peter Medlock.
Joining Freeman and Dewease on the first-team defense were junior Temple product Derrick Williams at free safety, senior strong safety Elliot Barcak, junior linebacker Eric Henri and senior end Chad Hilton.
Freeman, a playmaking All-American and preseason defensive MVP, has a team-high 80 tackles, 14˝ for loss. He also has four sacks and a punt block, which he returned for a touchdown.
Dewease has 37 tackles, including 10˝ for loss and 3˝ sacks. Woodall - along with Hataway, Littlejohn, Hykel and Medlock - has helped pave the way for a Crusaders offense that ranks first nationally in rushing (367.4 yards per game), third overall (530.6 yards) and first in scoring (55.7 points). Medlock also has seven catches for 147 yards.
Munoz averages 41.6 yards per punt, is 8-for-9 on field goals and 67-of-69 on extra points, and has 10 touchbacks on kickoffs.
Thrasher leads the ASC and ranks seventh nationally with 1,445 yards rushing. He averages 9.6 yards per carry and has run for 20 touchdowns. Daniels has rushed for 1,070 yards and 15 TDs and has one score each by kickoff return and reception.
Williams is tied for the team lead with four interceptions to go with 52 tackles, and Barcak has 26 stops and two picks.
Hilton has posted 34 tackles, including 10 for loss and five sacks. Henri is second on the team with 60 stops, 12 for loss. He also has a team-high 5˝ sacks for a Crusaders defense that ranks second nationally against the run (44.4 yards per game), first in tackles for loss (11.2) and first in turnovers gained (41).
UMHB had four second-team selections in Munoz (punter and kicker), junior offensive tackle Luke Long, junior defensive tackle James Jenkins and senior cornerback Calvin Fleming (Killeen).
Receiving offensive honorable mention were senior receivers Patrick Oliver and Cole Smith, senior running back/receiver Chris Owen and senior quarterback Josh Welch (Copperas Cove).
Defensive honorable mention recipients were sophomore tackle Mark Balderas and sophomore linebacker/back Bryson Tucker.
edrennan@temple-telegram.com
