Griz land three on preseason All-America team
7/13/2026 10:15:00 AM | Football
MISSOULA - Three of Montana's top returners – two offensive players and one defender – earned spots on the Stats Perform FCS Preseason All-America team Monday.
Reigning Big Sky Offensive Player of the Year Eli Gillman earned a first-team selection at running back, while two-time all-conference linebacker Peyton Wing claimed a spot on the first-team defense.
Quarterback Keali'i Ah Yat, a Walter Payton Award finalist as a sophomore, earned a second-team selection. All three are returning All-Americans from 2025.
The Stats Perform preseason teams include 26 returning postseason All-Americans, including 10 from the first team. All 13 conferences and 53 schools in the FCS are represented on the 101-player squad.
Gillman enters his senior season on the cusp of becoming Montana's all-time leading rusher. He starts the year with 3,677 rushing yards, fourth on UM's all-time list, needing just 394 more to pass Hall of Famers Yohance Humphrey, Chase Reynolds and Lex Hilliard and claim the top spot in the Grizzly record books.
With 49 rushing TDs he starts the year third in program history behind Hilliard (50) and Reynolds (52), but with 53 total TDs he's second on that all-time list behind Reynolds' career mark of 59. With 318 total points scored Gillman is fifth among UM's all-time scorers and needs 95 more points to pass Dan Carpenter's one-time Big Sky record of 413 to top the UM points scored list.
Wing is Montana's leading returning tackler and the Big Sky's second-leading returning interception getter heading into 2026. He is expected to be one of the top linebackers in the league after earning all-conference honors for a second consecutive season in 2025. That year, Montana finished plus-14 in turnover differential, fueled by an FCS top three total of 25 takeaways that included 21 interceptions – the most for the Griz since 2009 – with Wing accounting for four.
As a junior in 2025 he recorded 78 tackles, third on the team, and 8.5 tackles for loss, second on the squad. He earned second-team All-America honors from Sports Illustrated, an All-America honorable mention from the Associated Press, a first-team All-Big Sky selection at linebacker and Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week honors after recording three sacks at Sacramento State.
Ah Yat enters his junior season already standing as one of the most prolific quarterbacks in Montana history after a breakout sophomore campaign. His 5,462 career passing yards rank 11th in program history with two seasons left to play. His career completion percentage of 66.4 (463 of 697) ranks third in program history, and his 41 career touchdown passes rank in the top 10.
Ah Yat is now 17-4 as a starter, needing 11 more wins to crack UM's top five all-time in quarterback victories. He also needs 12 more wins to match his father Brian's career total of 29, with Dave Dickenson holding the program record at 33.
New Griz football season ticket packages are on sale now at GrizTix.com or GoGriz.com/tickets. Home single-game tickets are set to go on sale to the public in the coming week.
2026 STATS PERFORM FCS PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA TEAM
FIRST TEAM
OFFENSE
QB – Beau Brungard, Youngstown State, Sr., 6-0, 215
RB – Eli Gillman, Montana, R-Sr., 6-0, 213
RB – Adam Jones, Montana State, Jr., 6-1, 200
RB – Luke Yoder, Lehigh, Sr., 5-11, 205
WR – Marquis Buchanan, Rhode Island, R-Sr., 6-4, 190
WR – Samuel Gbatu Jr., UC Davis, Sr., 5-10, 185
TE – Ryder Kurtz, Cornell, Sr., 6-5, 233
OL – Quinten Christensen, South Dakota State, Sr., 6-5, 300
OL – Titan Fleischmann, Montana State, Sr., 6-4, 300
OL – Erik Gray, Stephen F. Austin, Sr., 6-1, 256
OL – Stryker Rashid, Idaho State, R-Sr., 6-5, 295
OL – Joshua Sales Jr., Austin Peay, R-Sr., 6-5, 312
DEFENSE
DL – Andrew Huff, Lamar, Sr., 6-2, 230
DL – Lance Rucker, North Dakota, Sr., 6-3, 230
DL – Joshua Stoneking, Furman, R-Jr., 6-3, 258
DL – Michael Wells, Youngstown State, Sr., 6-3, 250
LB – Jake Dalmado, Southeastern Louisiana, Sr., 6-0, 215
LB – Mikey D'Amato, Cal Poly, Sr., 6-0, 230
LB – Tye Niekamp, Illinois State, Sr., 6-3, 240
LB – Peyton Wing, Montana, Sr., 6-0, 229
DB – Rex Connors, UC Davis, Sr., 6-1, 220
DB – Caden Dowler, Montana State, Sr., 6-0, 205
DB – Abu Kamara, Yale, Sr., 6-1, 208
DB – Christopher Jean, Central Connecticut State, R-Jr., 5-10, 180
SPECIAL TEAMS
PK – Myles Sansted, Montana State, Sr., 6-3, 188
P – Ben Shrewsbury, VMI, Sr., 6-2, 190
LS – Hayden King, UT Martin, R-Jr., 5-10, 205
KR – Ja'briel Mace, Villanova, Jr., 5-9, 175
PR – Bugs Mortimer, Stephen F. Austin, R-Sr., 5-10, 177
AP – Taco Dowler, Montana State, Sr., 5-9, 190
SECOND TEAM
OFFENSE
QB – Keali'I Ah Yat, Montana, R-Jr., 6-1, 200
QB – Justin Lamson, Montana State, Sr., 6-2, 210
RB – Victor Dawson, Illinois State, Sr., 5-11, 220
RB – Charles Pierre Jr., South Dakota, R-Sr., 5-10, 210
WR – Sam Milligan, Bucknell, Sr., 6-3, 220
WR – Lofton O'Groske, South Dakota State, Jr., 6-0, 210
WR – Eric Weatherly, Tennessee Tech, Sr., 5-8, 183
TE – Winston Williams, UC Davis, Sr., 6-4, 245
OL – Liam Becher, North Dakota, Sr., 6-7, 306
OL – Desmeal Leigh, Youngstown State, Sr., 6-7, 325
OL – Aidan Moe, Tarleton State, Sr., 6-8, 310
OL – Aidan Palmer, Lehigh, 5th Year, 6-4, 300
OL – Luke Roaten, Abilene Christian, R-Sr., 6-6, 300
DEFENSE
DL – Chris Benton, The Citadel, Sr., 6-0, 250
DL – Camden Byrd, Richmond, R-Sr., 6-3, 245
DL – Dawson Ripperda, South Dakota State, Sr., 6-4, 255
DL – Kaden Vig, North Dakota, Jr., 6-6, 253
LB – Brodie Carroll, Elon, R-Jr., 6-1, 240
LB – Rohan Davy, Rhode Island, Jr., 5-10, 205
LB – Eli Ennis, Stephen F. Austin, R-Sr., 6-2, 220
LB – Carter Glassmyer, Richmond, Grad, 6-1, 224
LB – Cullen McShane, South Dakota State, Jr., 6-2, 230
DB – Damien Henderson, Harvard, Sr., 6-0, 180
DB – Jaylon Jenkins, Eastern Washington, R-Jr., 6-1, 192
DB – Jaeden Jones, Monmouth, Jr., 6-0, 190
DB – Ken Moore Jr., Western Carolina, R-Sr., 5-10, 160
DB – Dylan Rowsey, Murray State, Sr., 6-1, 195
SPECIAL TEAMS
PK – Luke Barnes, Elon, Jr., 6-6, 220
P – Max Pelham, South Dakota State, Grad, 6-1, 195
LS – Maddox Boughton, Northern Colorado, R-So., 6-0, 225
KR – DeAndre Buchannon, Tarleton State, Sr., 5-10, 175
PR – Elijah Kennedy, North Carolina A&T, R-Sr., 5-11, 180
AP – Brayden Smith, Mercer, Jr., 5-10, 185
THIRD TEAM
OFFENSE
QB – Chris Parson, Austin Peay, R-Jr., 5-11, 224
QB – DJ Williams, Southern Illinois, Sr., 6-3, 218
RB – Dason Brooks, Idaho State, R-Sr., 5-11, 228
RB – MJ Flowers, Tennessee Tech, R-Sr., 6-1, 193
WR – Roy Alexander, UIW, Grad, 5-11, 200
WR – Chedon James, Idaho State, R-Sr., 5-9, 175
WR – Samuel Musungu, Cornell, Sr., 6-1, 192
TE – Greyton Gannon, South Dakota State, Sr., 6-4, 235
TE – Seamus Gilmartin, Harvard, Sr., 6-4, 235
OL – Tre Alexander, Rhode Island, R-Sr., 6-2, 321
OL – Quaveon Davis, Jackson State, Sr., 6-8, 330
OL – Anthony Iliano, Maine, R-Jr., 6-3, 305
OL – Cam Nolan, Holy Cross, 5th Year, 6-3, 305
OL – Thomas O'Brien, Harvard, Sr., 6-6, 310
OL – Landon Woodard, Illinois State, Sr., 6-5, 330
DEFENSE
DL – McCoy Casey, Southeast Missouri, Sr., 6-2, 244
DL – Case Mankins, Rhode Island, Sr., 6-3, 245
DL – Ike Odimegwu, Brown, Sr., 6-3, 235
DL – Isaiah Perez, Eastern Washington, R-Sr., 6-2, 290
LB – Porter Connors, UC Davis, R-Sr., 6-1, 220
LB – Anthony Ferrelli, Stony Brook, R-Sr., 6-0, 225
LB – Jordan Franklin, South Carolina State, R-Jr., 6-2, 205
LB – Gabriel Hardman, South Dakota, R-Jr., 5-10, 230
LB – Sean Line, Harvard, Sr., 6-0, 220
LB – Kenny Olson, Cal Poly, R-Sr., 6-1, 225
LB – Cole Taylor, Montana State, Jr., 6-3, 230
LB – Malachi Williams, Stephen F. Austin, Sr., 6-1, 220
LB – Steve Zayachkowsky, Charleston Southern, Sr., 5-10, 215
DB – La'Shavion Brown, Illinois State, Sr., 6-2, 215
DB – Tayden Gray, Montana State, Jr., 6-0, 185
DB – Nick Peltekian, Lehigh, 5th Year, 6-0, 215
DB – Trey Watkins, LIU, R-Sr., 6-0, 184
SPECIAL TEAMS
PK – Andrew Lastovka, Youngstown State, Sr., 5-8, 170
P – Ryan Marks, Utah Tech, R-Sr., 5-11, 235
LS – Pierson Parent, McNeese, Jr., 5-8, 180
KR – Keylijah Williams, Bryant, Sr., 6-0, 183
PR – Dkhai Joseph, Southeastern Louisiana, Sr., 5-10, 160
AP – Gavin Lochow, Dayton, Sr., 6-0, 185
Reigning Big Sky Offensive Player of the Year Eli Gillman earned a first-team selection at running back, while two-time all-conference linebacker Peyton Wing claimed a spot on the first-team defense.
Quarterback Keali'i Ah Yat, a Walter Payton Award finalist as a sophomore, earned a second-team selection. All three are returning All-Americans from 2025.
The Stats Perform preseason teams include 26 returning postseason All-Americans, including 10 from the first team. All 13 conferences and 53 schools in the FCS are represented on the 101-player squad.
Gillman enters his senior season on the cusp of becoming Montana's all-time leading rusher. He starts the year with 3,677 rushing yards, fourth on UM's all-time list, needing just 394 more to pass Hall of Famers Yohance Humphrey, Chase Reynolds and Lex Hilliard and claim the top spot in the Grizzly record books.
With 49 rushing TDs he starts the year third in program history behind Hilliard (50) and Reynolds (52), but with 53 total TDs he's second on that all-time list behind Reynolds' career mark of 59. With 318 total points scored Gillman is fifth among UM's all-time scorers and needs 95 more points to pass Dan Carpenter's one-time Big Sky record of 413 to top the UM points scored list.
Wing is Montana's leading returning tackler and the Big Sky's second-leading returning interception getter heading into 2026. He is expected to be one of the top linebackers in the league after earning all-conference honors for a second consecutive season in 2025. That year, Montana finished plus-14 in turnover differential, fueled by an FCS top three total of 25 takeaways that included 21 interceptions – the most for the Griz since 2009 – with Wing accounting for four.
As a junior in 2025 he recorded 78 tackles, third on the team, and 8.5 tackles for loss, second on the squad. He earned second-team All-America honors from Sports Illustrated, an All-America honorable mention from the Associated Press, a first-team All-Big Sky selection at linebacker and Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week honors after recording three sacks at Sacramento State.
Ah Yat enters his junior season already standing as one of the most prolific quarterbacks in Montana history after a breakout sophomore campaign. His 5,462 career passing yards rank 11th in program history with two seasons left to play. His career completion percentage of 66.4 (463 of 697) ranks third in program history, and his 41 career touchdown passes rank in the top 10.
Ah Yat is now 17-4 as a starter, needing 11 more wins to crack UM's top five all-time in quarterback victories. He also needs 12 more wins to match his father Brian's career total of 29, with Dave Dickenson holding the program record at 33.
New Griz football season ticket packages are on sale now at GrizTix.com or GoGriz.com/tickets. Home single-game tickets are set to go on sale to the public in the coming week.
2026 STATS PERFORM FCS PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA TEAM
FIRST TEAM
OFFENSE
QB – Beau Brungard, Youngstown State, Sr., 6-0, 215
RB – Eli Gillman, Montana, R-Sr., 6-0, 213
RB – Adam Jones, Montana State, Jr., 6-1, 200
RB – Luke Yoder, Lehigh, Sr., 5-11, 205
WR – Marquis Buchanan, Rhode Island, R-Sr., 6-4, 190
WR – Samuel Gbatu Jr., UC Davis, Sr., 5-10, 185
TE – Ryder Kurtz, Cornell, Sr., 6-5, 233
OL – Quinten Christensen, South Dakota State, Sr., 6-5, 300
OL – Titan Fleischmann, Montana State, Sr., 6-4, 300
OL – Erik Gray, Stephen F. Austin, Sr., 6-1, 256
OL – Stryker Rashid, Idaho State, R-Sr., 6-5, 295
OL – Joshua Sales Jr., Austin Peay, R-Sr., 6-5, 312
DEFENSE
DL – Andrew Huff, Lamar, Sr., 6-2, 230
DL – Lance Rucker, North Dakota, Sr., 6-3, 230
DL – Joshua Stoneking, Furman, R-Jr., 6-3, 258
DL – Michael Wells, Youngstown State, Sr., 6-3, 250
LB – Jake Dalmado, Southeastern Louisiana, Sr., 6-0, 215
LB – Mikey D'Amato, Cal Poly, Sr., 6-0, 230
LB – Tye Niekamp, Illinois State, Sr., 6-3, 240
LB – Peyton Wing, Montana, Sr., 6-0, 229
DB – Rex Connors, UC Davis, Sr., 6-1, 220
DB – Caden Dowler, Montana State, Sr., 6-0, 205
DB – Abu Kamara, Yale, Sr., 6-1, 208
DB – Christopher Jean, Central Connecticut State, R-Jr., 5-10, 180
SPECIAL TEAMS
PK – Myles Sansted, Montana State, Sr., 6-3, 188
P – Ben Shrewsbury, VMI, Sr., 6-2, 190
LS – Hayden King, UT Martin, R-Jr., 5-10, 205
KR – Ja'briel Mace, Villanova, Jr., 5-9, 175
PR – Bugs Mortimer, Stephen F. Austin, R-Sr., 5-10, 177
AP – Taco Dowler, Montana State, Sr., 5-9, 190
SECOND TEAM
OFFENSE
QB – Keali'I Ah Yat, Montana, R-Jr., 6-1, 200
QB – Justin Lamson, Montana State, Sr., 6-2, 210
RB – Victor Dawson, Illinois State, Sr., 5-11, 220
RB – Charles Pierre Jr., South Dakota, R-Sr., 5-10, 210
WR – Sam Milligan, Bucknell, Sr., 6-3, 220
WR – Lofton O'Groske, South Dakota State, Jr., 6-0, 210
WR – Eric Weatherly, Tennessee Tech, Sr., 5-8, 183
TE – Winston Williams, UC Davis, Sr., 6-4, 245
OL – Liam Becher, North Dakota, Sr., 6-7, 306
OL – Desmeal Leigh, Youngstown State, Sr., 6-7, 325
OL – Aidan Moe, Tarleton State, Sr., 6-8, 310
OL – Aidan Palmer, Lehigh, 5th Year, 6-4, 300
OL – Luke Roaten, Abilene Christian, R-Sr., 6-6, 300
DEFENSE
DL – Chris Benton, The Citadel, Sr., 6-0, 250
DL – Camden Byrd, Richmond, R-Sr., 6-3, 245
DL – Dawson Ripperda, South Dakota State, Sr., 6-4, 255
DL – Kaden Vig, North Dakota, Jr., 6-6, 253
LB – Brodie Carroll, Elon, R-Jr., 6-1, 240
LB – Rohan Davy, Rhode Island, Jr., 5-10, 205
LB – Eli Ennis, Stephen F. Austin, R-Sr., 6-2, 220
LB – Carter Glassmyer, Richmond, Grad, 6-1, 224
LB – Cullen McShane, South Dakota State, Jr., 6-2, 230
DB – Damien Henderson, Harvard, Sr., 6-0, 180
DB – Jaylon Jenkins, Eastern Washington, R-Jr., 6-1, 192
DB – Jaeden Jones, Monmouth, Jr., 6-0, 190
DB – Ken Moore Jr., Western Carolina, R-Sr., 5-10, 160
DB – Dylan Rowsey, Murray State, Sr., 6-1, 195
SPECIAL TEAMS
PK – Luke Barnes, Elon, Jr., 6-6, 220
P – Max Pelham, South Dakota State, Grad, 6-1, 195
LS – Maddox Boughton, Northern Colorado, R-So., 6-0, 225
KR – DeAndre Buchannon, Tarleton State, Sr., 5-10, 175
PR – Elijah Kennedy, North Carolina A&T, R-Sr., 5-11, 180
AP – Brayden Smith, Mercer, Jr., 5-10, 185
THIRD TEAM
OFFENSE
QB – Chris Parson, Austin Peay, R-Jr., 5-11, 224
QB – DJ Williams, Southern Illinois, Sr., 6-3, 218
RB – Dason Brooks, Idaho State, R-Sr., 5-11, 228
RB – MJ Flowers, Tennessee Tech, R-Sr., 6-1, 193
WR – Roy Alexander, UIW, Grad, 5-11, 200
WR – Chedon James, Idaho State, R-Sr., 5-9, 175
WR – Samuel Musungu, Cornell, Sr., 6-1, 192
TE – Greyton Gannon, South Dakota State, Sr., 6-4, 235
TE – Seamus Gilmartin, Harvard, Sr., 6-4, 235
OL – Tre Alexander, Rhode Island, R-Sr., 6-2, 321
OL – Quaveon Davis, Jackson State, Sr., 6-8, 330
OL – Anthony Iliano, Maine, R-Jr., 6-3, 305
OL – Cam Nolan, Holy Cross, 5th Year, 6-3, 305
OL – Thomas O'Brien, Harvard, Sr., 6-6, 310
OL – Landon Woodard, Illinois State, Sr., 6-5, 330
DEFENSE
DL – McCoy Casey, Southeast Missouri, Sr., 6-2, 244
DL – Case Mankins, Rhode Island, Sr., 6-3, 245
DL – Ike Odimegwu, Brown, Sr., 6-3, 235
DL – Isaiah Perez, Eastern Washington, R-Sr., 6-2, 290
LB – Porter Connors, UC Davis, R-Sr., 6-1, 220
LB – Anthony Ferrelli, Stony Brook, R-Sr., 6-0, 225
LB – Jordan Franklin, South Carolina State, R-Jr., 6-2, 205
LB – Gabriel Hardman, South Dakota, R-Jr., 5-10, 230
LB – Sean Line, Harvard, Sr., 6-0, 220
LB – Kenny Olson, Cal Poly, R-Sr., 6-1, 225
LB – Cole Taylor, Montana State, Jr., 6-3, 230
LB – Malachi Williams, Stephen F. Austin, Sr., 6-1, 220
LB – Steve Zayachkowsky, Charleston Southern, Sr., 5-10, 215
DB – La'Shavion Brown, Illinois State, Sr., 6-2, 215
DB – Tayden Gray, Montana State, Jr., 6-0, 185
DB – Nick Peltekian, Lehigh, 5th Year, 6-0, 215
DB – Trey Watkins, LIU, R-Sr., 6-0, 184
SPECIAL TEAMS
PK – Andrew Lastovka, Youngstown State, Sr., 5-8, 170
P – Ryan Marks, Utah Tech, R-Sr., 5-11, 235
LS – Pierson Parent, McNeese, Jr., 5-8, 180
KR – Keylijah Williams, Bryant, Sr., 6-0, 183
PR – Dkhai Joseph, Southeastern Louisiana, Sr., 5-10, 160
AP – Gavin Lochow, Dayton, Sr., 6-0, 185
Players Mentioned
Thursday, June 11
Thursday, June 04
Friday, May 01
Monday, March 30
