SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Southern Conference placed 13 student-athletes on the Sports Network's preseason FCS All-America Team. Six student-athletes earned first team honors while four garnered second-team accolades. Three players were named to the third team.
Elon wide receiver Aaron Mellette, Wofford fullback Eric Breitenstein and Furman tight end Colin Anderson were named to the first team offense. Appalachian State's Jeremy Kimbrough (LB) and Demetrius McCray (CB) were named to the first team defense along with Georgia Southern defensive tackle Brent Russell.
The Citadel's Mike Sellers (Center) and Samford's Fabian Truss were chosen for the second team offense, while Wofford's Alvin Scioneaux and Chattanooga's Wes Dothard were tabbed to the second team defense at linebacker.
UTC defensive end Joshua Williams earned third-team recognition along with a pair of league specialists. Samford place-kicker Cameron Yaw and Appalachian State punter Sam Martin were also named to the third team.
Mellette was a first-team All-Southern Conference selection by both the Southern Conference's coaches and media members and finished fifth in the voting for the Walter Payton Award in 2011. The Sanford, N.C., native ended the regular season as the FCS leader in both receptions per game (10.27) and receiving yards per game (149.0). His 1,639 receiving yards established a new Elon and SoCon record, surpassing the mark of 1,633 yards set by former Phoenix standout Terrell Hudgins in 2009.
Breitenstein, a senior from Valle Crucis, North Carolina, led the Southern Conference in rushing last year as he earned SoCon Offensive Player of the Year honors. Last season he ran for 1,474 yards and was fifth in the nation in scoring at 9.50 points per game. He was named All-American by the Associated Press, Sports Network and Phil Steele while finishing 14th in the voting for the Walter Payton Award. Currently he is third in school history in career rushing and second in career rushing touchdowns along with being the NCAA FCS active career leader in rushing and rushing touchdowns.
In 2011 Anderson earned both Sports Network and Walter Camp Foundation All-America honors after catching 40 passes for an FCS-best 696 yards and seven touchdowns, including a career high nine receptions for 110 yards and a touchdown versus Samford and six passes for another career best 132 yards and a score against Elon. The Dallas, Texas, product, who came to Furman as a walk-on quarterback, capped his junior campaign with 47-yard touchdown pass against Florida in the season finale.
Kimbrough is the anchor of Appalachian's defense at middle linebacker, where he earned first-team all-American accolades from College Sports Journal, second-team recognition from The Sports Network and Phil Steele Publications and was an honorable-mention selection by College Sporting News as a junior last season. The 5-11, 240-pounder led the Apps and ranked fifth in the Southern Conference with 105 tackles last season and was one of only two SoCon players to rank among the league's top 11 in tackles, tackles for loss (12) and sacks (4) in 2011.
McCray was a fourth-team all-America selection by Phil Steele Publications last season after leading the SoCon and tying for eight nationally with five interceptions as a junior. He also tied for 12th nationally with 14 passes defended and ranked fifth on the team with 48 tackles in his first season as a full-time starter at right cornerback.
Russell, a first team selection by the website after the 2011 season, was again chosen to the preseason first team after posting a team-best 16.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks last season. The senior defensive tackle also finished fourth on the team with 67 tackles, two pass breakups and a blocked kick.
Sellers appeared in 11 games on the offensive line as a sophomore for The Citadel in 2011. Sellers was named first team all-conference by the coaches at the end of last year, and garnered second-team plaudits from the league's media. He helped anchor an offensive line which paved the way for the Bulldogs' option offense which averaged 286 yards on the ground, the third-best mark in the SoCon. The Citadel's offensive line gave up just six sacks all the season, the lowest mark in the league.
Truss was named to the second team as a kick returner. As a sophomore in 2011, he ranked second in the Southern Conference in kick return average with an average of 29.3 yards per return. Truss had a long return of 82 yards for a touchdown against Western Carolina. Overall, Truss led the SoCon and ranked fourth in the nation in all-purpose yards, averaging 177.4 per game.
Scioneaux, a junior from Garyville, Louisiana, led Wofford last season with 85 total tackles. He was second in the SoCon in tackles for loss and sacks to earn first team All-Southern Conference honors from the coaches. Scioneaux also was named a third team All-American by Phil Steele and the Sports Network.
Dothard (6-1, 235), a native of Carrollton, Ga., is coming off a stellar sophomore campaign that included 98 tackles, five forced fumbles and two defensive scores. He was a First Team All-Southern Conference pick and was the league's Player of the Month in September.
Williams (6-3, 235) is the Mocs' all-time leader in sacks with 21.5 in his three-year career. The Griffin, Ga., native led the SoCon in sacks last season (9.5) and earned first team honors from the league. He has started 31 of 33 games in his career.
In 2011 as a junior, Yaw made 23-of-28 field goal attempts and 32-of-33 extra-point attempts. He also handled kickoffs for the Bulldogs, averaging 62.7 yards per kick on 64 kickoffs. Yaw led the Southern Conference in field goals made, and he ranked second in the league in field goal percentage and scoring.
Martin ranked 27th nationally a year ago with a 40.9-yard punting average despite battling nagging injuries throughout the campaign. In addition to boasting a strong leg, hang time and accuracy are the forte of the fifth-year senior, who has had 38 percent of his punts fair caught, 33 percent downed inside the 20 yard line and only 19 percent returned over the course of his career.