Honors and awards continue to roll in for MIAC football players and coaches

http://miac-online.org/news/2011/12/7/FOOTBALL_1207114209.aspx

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The 2011 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football season concluded in mid-November, but numerous honors and All-Star game selections continue to roll in for league players and coaches. This week, several MIAC players were named major award finalists, selected to the All-West Region team, and will represent the conference this weekend in the Division III Senior Bowl.

UST's Waldvogel a Gagliardi Trophy finalist
St. Thomas senior wide receiver/returner Fritz Waldvogel was announced Tuesday as one of four national finalists for the Gagliardi Trophy, awarded by Jostens and the J-Club of Saint John's University. The award salutes the Most Outstanding all-around football student-athlete in NCAA Division III. Waldvogel was invited to Salem, Va., for the Dec. 14 announcement, joining fellow finalists Monmouth QB Alex Tanney, Dubuque WR Michael Zweifel and UW-Whitewater QB Matt Blanchard.

Waldvogel recently was honored as the MIAC MVP for the second time in his career, and he was an All-MIAC First-Team selection for the third-straight season. In addition, this week Waldvogel was announced as a second-teamer on the Capital One D-III Academic All-America team, and a first-teamer on the D3football.com 2011 All-West Region Team as both a receiver and a return specialist. Click here for the full announcement of the four finalists, and click here for the Gagliardi Trophy's home page.

St. Thomas' Caruso, Bethel's Johnson named Coach-of-the-Year finalists

St. Thomas coach Glenn Caruso and Bethel coach Steve Johnson are among five national finalists on the Division III football ballot for the 2011 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year program. Fans can vote through Dec. 22 at www.coachoftheyear.com. Past winners include Caruso, who won the honor last season, and John Gagliardi of St. John's in Division III, and current Gophers coach Jerry Kill when he worked at Southern Illinois. Caruso was named the MIAC Coach-of-the-Year recently for the second-straight season and his Tommies are 13-0 and still alive in the Division III Playoffs. Johnson led the Royals to an 8-2 record and a tie for second place in the MIAC standings. His Bethel team was ranked in the Top 25 throughout the season, with significant time in the Top 10.

Four MIAC student-athletes earn Academic All-American honors
Tuesday, the 2011 Capital One Academic All-American Division III Football Team was released by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) and four MIAC student-athletes were honored for their performance in the classroom and on the field. St. Thomas offensive lineman Dan Chapman was a repeat selection on the First Team, while Gustavus defensive back Brad Kruckeburg was also named to the First Team. Chapman is a senior Political Science and Economics major with a 3.88 cumulative GPA. Kruckeberg is a senior Biology major at Gustavus with an identical GPA to Chapman at 3.88.

The MIAC also has two selections on the Second Team: St. Thomas's Fritz Waldvogel at wide receiver and Bethel defensive back David Vavra. Waldvogel has a 3.60 GPA as a senior Finance major, and Vavra is a senior Nursing major with a GPAC of 3.85.

The 25 members of the First Team had an average GPA of 3.83. To be eligible for the honor, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative GPAC of 3.30 on a 4.00 scale, have reached sophomore academic standings and his current institution and be nominated by his sports information director. Click here for the complete press release.

MIAC has 20 selections on All-West Region teams
The D3football.com 2011 All-West Region teams were also announced this week, and the MIAC had a total of 20 selections across the three teams, including one of the major individual honors. St. Thomas linebacker Tony Danna was a First Team defensive pick, as well as the West Region's Defensive Player-of-the-Year.

Danna was joined by several Tommie teammates on the First Team. Fritz Waldvogel earned a pair of First-Team selections as both a wide receiver and as a return specialist. UST offensive linemen Curtis James and Dan Chapman were also named to the First Team Offense and the Tommies' Tim Albright was picked as the First Team kicker. St. Olaf defensive end Brian Albrecht was the MIAC's other First Team selection on the defensive side of the ball.

The Tommies had three more selections on the second team: running back Colin Tobin, defensive tackle Danny Kane and punter Garrett Maloney. Joining them on the Second Team offense are Augsburg tight end Adam Carl, Bethel offensive linemen Mitch Elliot and Kyle Boersma and Carleton return specialist Jordan Soteros. Saint John's defensive back Bobby Fischer was also named to the Second Team Defense.

The Third Team Offense had two MIAC selections: Bethel offensive lineman Jared Penz and Saint John's kicker Jimmie Mattson. There were three players selected to the Third Team Defense: Augsburg defensive tackle Edmond Smith, Bethel linebacker Billy Morgan and St. Thomas cornerback Chinni Oji. In all, the MIAC had seven First-Team selections, eight on the Second Team and five on the Third Team.

The players were nominated and selected by sports information directors in each Region. For the complete D3Football.com press release, including all four All-Region teams and individual awards, click here.

MIAC players, coaches participate in All-Star games
Friday, some of the best senior players throughout all of Division III will meet for one final collegiate contest when the 2011 D-III Senior Classic kicks off in Salem, Va., and three of the players on the North roster will be representing both their institutions and the MIAC. Bethel guard Mitch Elliott, Carleton linebacker Mark Skoglund and Gustavus defensive back Brad Kruckeberg have been selected to play for the North team, and will take the field Friday at 7 p.m. against the all-star team from the South. The game will be broadcast live on the Internet by Knoxivi Sports at this link. Complete details and rosters for the game can be found here.

Meanwhile, last weekend Augsburg coach Frank Haege and Auggie senior defensive back Tyler Phillips both participated in the Aztec Bowl, an All-Star game pitting Division II and III players against a Mexican All-Star team at Olympic Stadium at the Autonomous University of Chihuahua in Chihuahua, Mexico. Haege was chosen to be the team's head coach on offense, and Phillips was one of seven defensive backs named to the team. The All-American Eagles defeated the Mexican team, 28-14. For more details, click here.

Courtesy of MIAC