Carnegie Mellon Football Places 22 on All-PAC Team
(TRAFFORD, Pa.) – The Carnegie Mellon University football team had 22 players receive All-Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) distinction, announced by the conference office following voting by the league coaches. The Tartans placed six on the first team, eight on the second team and seven were named honorable mention and one was honored to the sportsmanship team.
Four of the first team honorees are on the defensive side of the ball with one on offense and special teams. Graduate student linebacker Robert Coury, graduate student linebacker Thomas Coury, senior defensive lineman Mitchell Stokey and senior defensive back Adrian Williams all repeat as first team honorees from a year ago on defense. The lone offensive and special team players on the first team were graduate student offensive lineman Hunter Campbell and junior placekicker Justin Caputo. Campbell was a second team honoree last season while Caputo repeats as a first team selection.
Two additional Tartan defenders were honored on the second team in senior defensive back Nolan Pitsenberger and graduate student linebacker Logan Young. Joining them on the second team were four offensive players: senior tight end Matt Evert, junior offensive lineman Charlie Katarincic, graduate student quarterback Ben Mills and graduate student running back Tre Vasiliadis. Mills was also selected to the second team as a punter and was joined on the special teams squad by sophomore returner DJ Johnson.
The Tartans led the PAC in total defense and were ranked second nationally, allowing 203.4 yards per game of total offense. The Cardinal and Gray also led the league averaging 9.1 tackles for loss per game which ranked third in the nation. The defense held nine opponents under 100 yards on the ground and broke a school record when holding Allegheny to -26 yards rushing earlier this season. Their rushing defense was ranked second in the PAC and seventh nationally allowing 53.2 yards per game while ranking fourth in the conference and 13th in the nation in pass defense allowing 150.2 yards per contest.
Robert Coury led the defense for the fifth straight season in tackles (66) and fourth straight season in tackles for loss (15.5) while also leading the squad with 4.0 sacks. He ranks third in the league in tackles for loss, 11th in sacks and 14th in total tackles. The senior has also forced four fumbles, recovered a fumble and had one blocked punt this season. His four forced fumbles are the top in the PAC in fourth nationally.
Thomas Coury ranks second on the team in tackles with 59. He ended the regular season with 10.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, forced a fumble and blocked a punt. He also returned his own block punt for a touchdown against Sain Vincent.
Stokey ended the regular season with 2.0 sacks and tabbed 9.0 tackles for a loss of 20 yards, 36 total tackles, recovered two fumbles, forced a fumble and had a pass breakup. Williams recorded 26 solo tackles and had 38 total stops while posting four pass breakups. He also had a fumble recovery.
Pitsenberger totaled 22 tackles, 14 solo, tied for the team lead with three interceptions and had two pass breakups. Young tied Pitsenberger for the team lead with three picks while also leading the Tartans with seven pass breakups. His 10 passes defended ranked third in the PAC. Young was fourth on the Cardinal and Gray with 48 tackles. He also record a block kick and returned one of his interceptions for a touchdown.
Campbell and Katarincic were the anchors of the Tartans offensive line. Campbell played in nine games his season with seven starts at left tackle while Katarincic started in nine games at right tackle. The two paved the way for Vasiliadis and Bouma, who was named to the honorable mention team.
Vasiliadis rushed for 931 yards and four touchdowns while averaging 6.3 yards per carry. He ended the regular season as the third leading rusher in the PAC. He recorded four 100-yard rushing games this season and has 15 for his career.
Mills threw for 1,992 yards and 24 touchdowns. His 24 touchdowns ranked second in the PAC. The signal caller broke the program career marks for yards (7,256), touchdowns thrown (68), attempts (1,064) and completions (602). Evert also played a huge part in the blocking for Vasiliadis, but the senior also added 14 receptions for 118 yards and two touchdowns.
Caputo led the PAC in scoring for kickers with 76 points for the second straight, while also leading the conference with nine field goals and 49 converted point-after-attempts. He recorded a career-long 43-yard field goal against Grove City. Mills ranked second in the PAC in punting averaging 39.7 yards per punt while recording a career long of 60 yards and had five punts of over 50 yards. Johnson ended the regular season averaging 26.9 yards per kick retune. He also record a punt return for a touchdown.
The Tartans Honorable Mention Honorees:
Offense:
Junior running back Willem Bouma
Senior offensive lineman Garrett Doherty
Senior offensive lineman Michael Fath
Sophomore wide receiver Reece Kolke
Sophomore wide receiver Brendan McCullough
Defense:
Senior defensive back Jackson Lajoie
Senior linebacker Evan Roper
The Tartans Sportsmanship Honoree:
Senior wide receiver Dominic Voiland
The PAC Sportsmanship Teams were established to recognize student-athletes who have distinguished themselves through demonstrated acts of sportsmanship and ethical behavior and are an ongoing effort to recognize and encourage positive sportsmanship among all PAC teams.