Four Griz earn All-America honors

Montana junior linebacker Dante Olson has picked up his third First-Team All-America award in the past week, and three other Grizzlies have also been named All-Americans in a trio of releases on Monday and Tuesday.

Olson was named to the 2018 STATS FCS All-America Defensive First-Team, the only defensive player in the Big Sky Conference to earn First-Team honors.

Online FCS news outlet HERO Sports also named Jace Lewis and Samuel Akem to its sophomore First-Team All-America list on Tuesday, and Robby Hauck earned a place on its freshman First-Team All-America list as well.

STATS will also honor Olson in January as a top-three finalist for the Buck Buchanan Award, presented annually to the FCS Defensive Player of the Year on the eve of the National Championship game in Frisco, Texas.

In the last week, the national leader in tackles during the regular season also earned First-Team All-America honors from the Associated Press and the Walter Camp Foundation.

Akem earned second-team All-Big Sky honors after a breakout season hauling in 13 touchdown catches - the sixth-most touchdown in the nation, and the most in the league. The prolific sophomore caught at least one touchdown pass in eight games, and two TD grabs in five games.

Montana's leading receiver with a Grizzly top-20 total of 863 yards, Akem's 13 TD catches is the fifth-most in a single season in Grizzly history, tied with legends like Marc Mariani, Marvin Turk, and Mike Rice.

Lewis was named to the HERO Sports First-Team special teams list after earning All-Big Sky second-team honors in 2018. As Montana's top special teams contributor, he was a key part of UM's Big Sky-best kickoff coverage unit with 62 tackles on the season, ranking in the league's top-40.

Hauck was the national leader in tackles for a freshman and was No. 3 in the voting for the Jerry Rice Award for the top freshman in the nation. He received an All-Big Sky honorable mention as UM's second-leading tackler, finishing the year with 95 total takedowns (41 solo, 54 assisted), the fifth-most in the conference and the most of any freshman, and was the only freshman among the Big Sky's top-30 tacklers.

Hauck posted four games with double-digit tackle totals, including a career-high 17 in Montana's win at Cal Poly.

2018 STATS FCS ALL-AMERICA TEAM
*-Order of quarterbacks to be determined after the STATS FCS Awards Banquet on Jan. 4.

FIRST TEAM
OFFENSE
*QB – Chandler Burks, senior, 5-10, 190, Kennesaw State; Devlin Hodges, senior, 6-1, 205, Samford; or Easton Stick, senior, 6-2, 221
RB – Ryan Fulse, senior, 5-11, 195, Wagner
RB – A.J. Hines, junior, 5-11, 225, Duquesne
FB – Joe Protheroe, senior, 5-11, 230, Cal Poly
WR – Michael Bandy, junior, 5-11, 190, San Diego
WR – Keelan Doss, senior, 6-3, 210, UC Davis
WR – Josh Pearson, junior, 6-4, 205, Jacksonville State
TE – Donald Parham, senior, 6-8, 240, Stetson
OL – B.J. Autry, senior, 6-5, 340, Jacksonville State
OL – Drew Forbes, senior, 6-5, 305, Southeast Missouri
OL – Iosua Opeta, senior, 6-4, 305, Weber State
OL – Matt Pyke, senior, 6-2, 302, ETSU
OL – Tanner Volson, senior, 6-4, 306, North Dakota State

DEFENSE
DL – Darryl Johnson Jr., junior, 6-5, 232, North Carolina A&T
DL – Isaiah Mack, senior, 6-3, 305, Chattanooga
DL – Derick Roberson, senior, 6-4, 250, Sam Houston State
DL – Khalen Saunders, senior, 6-2, 310, Western Illinois
LB – B.J. Blunt, senior, 6-1, 220, McNeese
LB – Zach Hall, junior, 6-0, 230, Southeast Missouri
LB – Dante Olson, junior, 6-3, 237, Montana
LB – Sterling Sheffield, senior, 6-2, 240, Maine
DB – Nasir Adderley, senior, 6-0, 200, Delaware
DB – Robbie Grimsley, senior, 6-0, 194, North Dakota State
DB – Jimmy Moreland, senior, 5-11, 175, James Madison
DB – Isiah Swann, junior, 6-0, 190, Dartmouth

SPECIAL TEAMS
PK – Roldan Alcobendas, senior, 6-0, 180, Eastern Washington
P – Alex Pechin, senior, 6-0, 200, Bucknell
LS – Patrick Eby, senior, 6-3, 235, Columbia
KR – Jean Constant, junior, 5-9, 177, Bryant
PR – D'Angelo Amos, sophomore, 6-1, 180, James Madison
AP – John Lovett, senior, 6-3, 225, Princeton

SECOND TEAM
OFFENSE
*QB – Chandler Burks, senior, 5-10, 190, Kennesaw State; Devlin Hodges, senior, 6-1, 205, Samford; or Easton Stick, senior, 6-2, 221
RB – James Robinson, junior, 5-10, 220, Illinois State
RB – Marquis Terry, senior, 5-7, 180, Southeast Missouri
FB – Andre Stoddard, senior, 5-10, 240, Wofford
WR – Jazz Ferguson, junior, 6-5, 223, Northwestern State
WR – Alexander Hollins, senior, 6-1, 170, Eastern Illinois
WR – Jesper Horsted, senior, 6-4, 225, Princeton
TE – Charlie Taumoepeau, junior, 6-3, 240, Portland State
OL – J'Von Brown, junior, 6-3, 350, Central Connecticut State
OL – Tytus Howard, senior 6-6, 311, Alabama State
OL – Zack Johnson, junior, 6-6, 316, North Dakota State
OL – Matt Kaskey, senior, 6-7, 325, Dartmouth
OL – Oli Udoh, senior, 6-5, 336, Elon

DEFENSE
DL – Ahmad Gooden, senior, 6-2, 245, Samford
DL – Sully Laiche, junior, 6-2, 270, Nicholls
DL – Jay-Tee Tiuli, senior, 6-4, 315, Eastern Washington
DL – Nick Wheeler, junior, 6-2, 255, Colgate
LB – Jabril Cox, sophomore, 6-3, 231, North Dakota State
LB – Cam Gill, junior, 6-3, 230, Wagner
LB – Troy Reeder, senior, 6-3, 245, Delaware
LB – Pete Swenson, senior, 6-3, 230, Western Illinois
DB – Jordan Brown, senior, 6-1, 200, South Dakota State
DB – Abu Daramy-Swaray, junior, 5-10, 190, Colgate
DB – Manny Patterson, senior, 5-10, 180, Maine
DB – Tyree Robinson, sophomore, 5-11, 184, ETSU

SPECIAL TEAMS
PK – Austin Errthum, senior, 5-10, 180, UNI
P – Cade Coffey, sophomore, 6-1, 191, Idaho
LS – Steven Wethli, senior, 6-0, 230, Youngstown State
KR – Malik Wilson, senior, 5-11, 166, North Carolina A&T
PR – Booker Chambers, senior, 5-9, 185, Mississippi Valley State
AP – Tyrie Adams, junior, 6-2, 180, Western Carolina
AP – Shane Simpson, junior, 5-9, 200, Towson

THIRD TEAM
OFFENSE
*QB – Chandler Burks, senior, 5-10, 190, Kennesaw State; Devlin Hodges, senior, 6-1, 205, Samford; or Easton Stick, senior, 6-2, 221
RB – Ra'Quanne Dickens, senior, 5-10, 195, Incarnate Word
RB – James Holland Jr., senior, 5-9, 210, Colgate
RB – De'Shawn Waller, junior, 5-11, 210, Alcorn State
FB – Cal Daniels, senior, 6-2, 255, Stony Brook
WR – Juston Christian, senior, 6-0, 188, Marist
WR – Cade Johnson, sophomore, 5-10, 180, South Dakota State
WR – Kelvin McKnight, senior, 5-8, 186, Samford
WR – Reggie White Jr., senior, 6-3, 210, Monmouth
TE – Charles Scarff, TE, senior, 6-6, 270, Delaware
OL – Spencer Blackburn, senior, 6-2, 285, Eastern Washington
OL – Garrett Bowery, senior, 6-2, 303, Lamar
OL – C.J. Collins, senior, 6-3, 255, Kennesaw State
OL – Daniel Cooney, senior, 6-8, 315, San Diego
OL – Micah Shaw, senior, 6-1, 264, North Carolina A&T
OL – Cal Twait, senior, 6-5, 305, UNI

DEFENSE
DL – Solomon Brown, senior, 6-1, 235, Charleston Southern
DL – Miles Brown, senior, 6-2, 320, Wofford
DL – Rocco Di Leo, senior, 6-3, 285, Dartmouth
DL – Greg Menard, senior, 6-2, 240, North Dakota State
DL – Nasir Player, junior, 6-5, 271, ETSU
LB – De'Arius Christmas, senior, 5-10, 220, Grambling State
LB – Anthony Gore Jr., senior 6-0, 201, Kennesaw State
LB – Jonas Griffith, junior, 6-4, 240, Indiana State
LB – Warren Messer, senior, 5-11, 227, Elon
LB – LeGrand Toia, senior, 6-2, 225, Weber State
DB – Davon Jernigan, senior, 6-0, 208, Lamar
DB – Hakeem Kinard, senior, 5-10, 200, Saint Francis
DB – Davanta Reynolds, senior, 5-10, 200, North Carolina Central
DB – Will Warner, junior, 6-3, 201, Drake

SPECIAL TEAMS
PK – Aidan O'Neill, junior, 6-1, 199, Towson
P – Chris Faddoul, sophomore, 6-1, 182, Florida A&M
P – Garret Wegner, sophomore, 6-0, 191, North Dakota State
LS – Patrick Keefe, senior, 5-11, 195, The Citadel
KR – Jimmie Robinson, senior, 5-8, 162, Bethune-Cookman
PR – Darrius Shepherd, senior, 5-11, 188, North Dakota State
AP – Troy Anderson, sophomore, 6-3, 215, Montana State

HERO Sports Sophomore All-America Team

FIRST TEAM OFFENSE
NOTE: AP- All Purpose selection; ATH- Dual-threat QB; RS- Return specialist on special teams; ST- Special teams standout

POS     PLAYER                        SCHOOL
QB       Caylin Newton             Howard
RB       Wesley Dugger            Davidson
RB       Aaron Shampklin        Harvard
RB       Elijah Dotson               Sacramento State
FB        Clint Ratkovich            Western Illinois
WR      Bryce Nunnelly            Chattanooga
WR      Samuel Akem             Montana
TE        Owen Cosenke            Western Carolina
OL        Jack Badovinac            Colgate
OL        Drew Himmelman      Illinois State
OL        Liam Fornadel             James Madison
OL        Dillon Radunz             North Dakota State
OL        Ty Whitworth             Weber State
ATH     Troy Andersen             Montana State

FIRST TEAM DEFENSE
POS     PLAYER                        SCHOOL
DL        Romeo McKnight        Illinois State
DL        Jacob Bergstrom         San Diego
DL        Anthony Knighton       Southern Illinois
DL        Bryce Carter                Towson
LB        Jabril Cox                     North Dakota State
LB        Glenn Cunningham     Fordham
LB        Bryson Armstrong       Kennesaw State
LB        Deshawn Stevens       Maine
DB       Tyree Robinson           ETSU
DB       Hayden Bourgeois      Northwestern State
DB       Zyon McCollum           Sam Houston State
AP        Cade Johnson             South Dakota State

FIRST TEAM SPECIAL TEAMS
POS     PLAYER                        SCHOOL
PK        Trey Tuttle                  Weber State
P          Chris Faddoul             Florida A&M
RS        D'Angelo Amos           James Madison
RS        Rashid Shaheed          Weber State
ST        Jace Lewis                   Montana

HONORABLE MENTION
POS     PLAYER                        SCHOOL
AP        Dejoun Lee                  Delaware
QB       Grant Breneman         Colgate
QB       Eric Barriere                Eastern Washington
QB       Zerrick Cooper             Jacksonville State
RB       Aaron Dawson             Central Connecticut
RB       Tyray Devezin             Mercer
RB       Pete Guerriero            Monmouth
RB       Isaiah Totten               N.C. Central
RB       Kyran Jackson             Sam Houston State
RB       Emilio Martinez          San Diego
WR      Jorge Portorreal          Lehigh
WR      Dai'Jean Dixon             Nicholls
WR      Tren'Davian Dickson   Texas Southern
WR      Jabari Allen                 Towson
WR      Jared Harrell               UC Davis
WR      Kris Thornton             VMI
TE        Trae Barry                   Jacksonville State
TE        Nick Muse                   William & Mary
OL        Connor Mignone         Central Connecticut
OL        Zion Johnson               Davidson
OL        Brian Foley                  Holy Cross
OL        Liam Dobson               Maine
OL        Lewis Kidd                   Montana State
OL        Josh Burger                 Wofford
OL        Blake Jeresaty             Wofford
DL        Simeon Page               Bucknell
DL        Nick Friedel                 San Diego
DL        Malik Fisher                Villanova
LB        Andrew Lutgens          Dayton
LB        Wesley Bowers           Georgetown
LB        Charlie Patrick             Kennesaw State
LB        Ty Harris                     Western Carolina
DB       Qwynnterrio Cole       Alcorn State
DB       DJ Exilhomme             Central Connecticut
DB       Justin Terry                 Monmouth
DB       Evan Horn                   New Hampshire
DB       Mac McCain III            North Carolina A&T
DB       Xavior Williams          Northern Iowa
DB       Korby Sander             Northern Iowa
DB       Bydarrius Knighten     SEMO
DB       D.J. Freeman               SEMO
PK        Grayson Atkins            Furman
P          Cade Coffey                 Idaho
P          Garret Wegner            North Dakota State
P          D.J. Arnson                  Northern Arizona

HERO Sports Freshman All-America Team

FIRST TEAM OFFENSE
NOTE: AP - All-Purpose; ATH- Dual-threat QB; RS- Return Specialist on Special teams;

POS     PLAYER                        SCHOOL
QB       Jon Copeland               Incarnate Word
RB       Pierre Strong               South Dakota State
RB       Ulonzo Gilliam             UC Davis
WR      DeJuan Miller             Arkansas-Pine Bluff
WR      Caleb Snead                Campbell
WR      Kyndel Dean                James Madison
TE        Jordan Murray             Missouri State
OL        Jayvion Queen             Colgate
OL        Connor Wood             Montana State
OL        Kyle Nunez                  Stony Brook
OL        Haden Haas                The Citadel
OL        Jake Parks                   UC Davis
AP        Josh Davis                   Weber State

FIRST TEAM DEFENSE
POS     PLAYER                        SCHOOL
DL        Mickey Kane               Butler
DL        Mitchell Johnson         Eastern Washington
DL        Malik Hamm               Lafayette
DL        Krockett Krolikowski   South Dakota State
LB        Adrian Hope                Furman
LB        Ryan Greenhagen       Fordham
LB        Keontre Hampton       Jackson State
LB        Chris Kolarevic             Northern Iowa
DB       Dreylan Hines             Davidson
DB       Robby Hauck             Montana
DB       Christian Benford        Villanova
DB       Ronald Kent Jr.            Western Carolina
AP        Quay Holmes             ETSU

FIRST TEAM SPECIAL TEAMS
POS     PLAYER                        SCHOOL
PK        Skyler Davis                 Elon
P          Matthew Campbell     The Citadel
RS        Dakota Caton             Indiana State
RS        Isaac Foster                 Kennesaw State

HONORABLE MENTION
POS     PLAYER                        SCHOOL
QB       Jack Cook                     Dayton
QB       Ty Brock                      Sam Houston State
FB        Garnett Nicolas           Jacksonville
RB       Ramon Jefferson         Maine
RB       Juwon Farri                 Monmouth
RB       Isaiah Ifanse                Montana State
WR      Dev Holmes                Albany
WR      Andrew Boston           Eastern Washington
WR      Xavier Smith               Florida A&M
WR      Andrew Edgar             Illinois State
TE        Jakob Herres               VMI
TE        Dalton Kincaid             San Diego
TE        Miles Joiner                 Youngstown State
OL        Tremond Shorts          ETSU
OL        Connor Pettek             UC Davis
DL        Devonnsha Maxwell   Chattanooga
DL        John Singleton             Gardner-Webb
DL        Spencer Waege          North Dakota State
DL        Nelson Jordan             Samford
DL        Jordan Lewis               Southern U.
LB        Jarrett Nagy                Presbyterian
LB        Luke Giegling             Southern Illinois
LB        Brett Howell               VMI
DB       Yul Gowdy                   Jacksonville State
DB       Mohammed Diakite    Penn
DB       Chris Beverly               The Citadel
DB       Colin Loftis                  VMI
AP        David Durden             Mercer
P          Steve Dawson             Murray State
PK        Adam Lippy                 N.C. Central
AP        Deion McShane           Northern Iowa
RS        Myles Ward                Northwestern State

University of Montana Athletics

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