Brownell named Defensive Player of the Year; 7 Hawks earn All-Conference
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – Senior linebacker Zach Brownell was named USA South Defensive Player of the Year and a total of seven Hawks earned All-Conference honors with the release of the USA South All-Conference football teams on Wednesday.
This is the first USA South Player of the Year award for the Huntingdon football program. In two seasons in the USA South, the Hawks have had 13 All-Conference selections.
"This is an honor and it means a lot," Brownell said. "But I have to give a lot of credit to my teammates. The way those guys on the defensive line played this year, it allowed me to be in position to make some plays.
"I had as much fun playing this year as I have ever had. Part of that was having fun making plays, but the bigger part of it was because I was playing with such great teammates and coaches. This year was a blast."
Joining Brownell as first-team All-Conference selections are senior defensive back Jeremy Murphy, junior defensive back Anthony White and junior offensive lineman Chael Pridgen. Junior H-Back Darius Dawsey, senior offensive lineman Davian Barnett and junior linebacker Jacob Wright were each named second-team All-Conference. Senior Brantley Carr was named to the USA South Sportsmanship team.
This is the second straight year Pridgen and White have earned first-team honors. Dawsey was also a second-team selection last season.
"I'm happy for all of them," Huntingdon head coach Mike Turk said. "Each of them was a key part of our season and helped our team in different ways. It's good to see them recognized for their hard work."
Brownell, who missed the first two games of the season, led the USA South and was seventh in Division III with 12.4 tackles per game. He finished with a school-record 99 tackles this season.
In his first game of the season, the Prattville native set the Huntingdon single-game record for tackles with 20 against Methodist. For the season, he led the conference in solo tackles and fumble recoveries, was third in total tackles and tied for sixth in tackles for loss. The Hawks' fifth all-time leading tackler, he also set school records this season for solo tackles in a game and solo tackles in a season.
"He had a great year and I'm proud of him," Turk said. "This is a big deal for him and our program and he is very deserving of the recognition. He will be the first to tell you it was a team effort, and our defensive line did a fantastic job freeing him up to make plays. But you still have to be able to make the plays, and he did. I think that was recognized by every team he played against."
Murphy, a senior captain, led the conference in interceptions and blocked kicks and recorded 29 tackles and 10 passes broken up. His five interceptions are tied for third most in a season by a Hawk. His four blocked kicks are tied for the most in Division III this season.
White was the Hawks' fourth leading tackler this season with 62 tackles and also had an interception and seven passes broken up. In three seasons with the Hawks, he ranks eighth in Huntingdon history with 182 career tackles, sixth with 108 career solo tackles and ninth with six career interceptions.
Pridgen, a third-team All-South Region as a sophomore, graded out at 92-percent this season on 760 plays. Along with Barnett, who graded out at 89-percent on 775 plays, the two led an offensive line that helped Huntingdon gain a total of 4,766 yards of offense.
The Hawks rushed for 2,154 yards and passed for 2,612 yards. This was the fourth best rushing season in school history, the fifth most passing yards in a Huntingdon season and the third most yards of total offense in 12 seasons of football.
Dawsey averaged 16.8 yards per catch this season and a touchdown every 4.6 receptions. He finished with 23 receptions for 386 yards and five touchdowns. During the past two seasons he has 40 receptions for 718 yards and eight touchdowns.
Wright, in his first season at linebacker, was second on the team and sixth in the conference with 85 tackles. The 85 tackles are tied for the fourth most in a season by a Huntingdon player. His 58 solo tackles this season are the second most in school history behind Brownell. Wright also had 6.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, an interception and a forced fumble.
North Carolina Wesleyan running back Jacques Alston was named Offensive Player of the Year and Greensboro receiver Gregory Clifton was named Offensive Rookie of the Year. Ferrum defensive lineman Montel Lee was named Defensive Rookie of the Year and Christopher Newport's Matt Kelchner was named Coach of the Year.
The complete All-Conference awards are listed below.
USA South All-Conference Football Awards
Offensive Player of the Year: Jacques Alston, N.C. Wesleyan
Defensive Player of the Year: Zach Brownell, Huntingdon
Offensive Rookie of the Year: Gregory Clifton, Greensboro
Defensive Rookie of the Year: Montel Lee, Ferrum
Coach of the Year: Matt Kelchner, Christopher Newport
First-Team
Offense
Quarterback: Max Reber, Methodist
Running Back: Jacques Alston, N.C. Wesleyan
Running Back: Trenton Shuler, Maryville
Receiver: Malik Adams, N.C. Wesleyan
Receiver: Griffin Roelle, LaGrange
Receiver: Rudy Rudolph, Christopher Newport
Tight End/H-Back/Fullback: Jared Miller, Maryville
Offensive Line: Rance Hightower, Maryville
Offensive Line: Scott Fahey, Christopher Newport
Offensive Line: Chael Pridgen, Huntingdon
Offensive Line: Brandon Sparrow, Methodist
Offensive Line: Dalton Stephens, Maryville
Defense
Defensive Line: Jonathan Clark, Maryville
Defensive Line: Shaun Copening, Christopher Newport
Defensive Line: Zach Capehart, Maryville
Defensive Line: B.J. Minter, Methodist
Defensive Line: Montel Lee, Ferrum
Linebacker: Zach Brownell, Huntingdon
Linebacker: Bryan Bing, Methodist
Linebacker: Allen Hayes, Christopher Newport
Linebacker: Gabe Johnson, Maryville
Defensive Back: Jeremy Murphy, Huntingdon
Defensive Back: Cameron Barlow, Christopher Newport
Defensive Back: Micah Smith, Maryville
Defensive Back: Anthony White, Huntingdon
Speical Teams
Return Specialist: Jacques Alston, N.C. Wesleyan
Kicker: Mason Studer, Christopher Newport
Punter: Mason Studer, Christopher Newport
Second-Team
Offense
Quarterback: Marcus Morrast, Christopher Newport
Running Back: Daquan Davis, Christopher Newport
Running Back: John Papillion, Methodist
Receiver: Raymond Bridges, Greensboro
Receiver: Patrick Jacobs, Methodist
Receiver: Anthony Radke, Methodist
Tight End/H-Back/Fullback: Darius Dawsey, Huntingdon
Offensive Line: Davian Barnett, Huntingdon
Offensive Line: Martin Brazwell, N.C. Wesleyan
Offensive Line: Scottie Connors, LaGrange
Offensive Line: David Cooper, Methodist
Offensive Line: Bryan Smith, Ferrum
Defense
Defensive Line: James Atkinson, Methodist
Defensive Line: Rakeem Cooper, N.C. Wesleyan
Defensive Line: Hakeem Garner, Christopher Newport
Defensive Line: Ben Thompson, Christopher Newport
Defensive Line: Tyler Todd, Maryville
Linebacker: Joshua Krebs, Maryville
Linebacker: Chase Sams, Greensboro
Linebacker: James Wallace, N.C. Wesleyan
Linebacker: Jacob Wright, Huntingdon
Defensive Back: T.J. Bulock, LaGrange
Defensive Back: D. J. Payne, Methodist
Defensive Back: Tyrell Eaton, Christopher Newport
Defensive Back: Dontae Gilbert, Averett
Speical Teams
Return Specialist: Malik Adams, N.C. Wesleyan
Kicker: Cody Ausherman, Methodist
Punter: Hobie Proctor, Averett
All-Sportsmanship Team
Kirkland Brown, Averett
Jared Launder, Christopher Newport
Dominique Lesine, Ferrum
Tripp Honeycutt, Greensboro
Brantley Carr, Huntingdon
Scott Chewning, LaGrange
Tyler Todd, Maryville
Ricky Brayboy, Methodist
Dustin Midgett, N.C. Wesleyan