Ace Hunt
GoSycamores.com
ST. LOUIS -- Indiana State junior linebacker Connor Underwood highlights a list of eight Sycamores who earned All-Missouri Valley Football Conference honors today (Dec. 1) as announced by the league office. The All-MVFC teams were selected by a postseason vote of league head coaches, sports information directors, beat writers and a media panel.
Underwood was a First Team All-MVFC selection and finished second in the league's Defensive Player Of The Year voting. Mike Perish was fifth in the MVFC Offensive Player Of The Year balloting and Mike Sanford finished a close second in the MVFC Coach of the Year voting.
Also honored on the All-MVFC Second Team was senior quarterback Mike Perish, senior offensive lineman Aaron Jelovic, junior defensive back Mark Sewall and junior defensive back Travis Starks. Junior wide receiver Gary Owens, junior linebacker Kendall Walker and sophomore deep snapper Josh Appel were honorable mention selections.
Underwood is a repeat selection on the All-MVFC First Team after earning MVFC All-Newcomer and All-MVFC Honorable Mention status in 2012. He ranks 20th in the league in tackles with 6.8 per game, second in quarterback sacks with 13.5 and second in tackles for a loss with 24. He also leads the league in fumbles forced with four. Underwood owns the Indiana State single-season record for tackles for a loss and quarterback sacks as well as ISU career record in QB sacks with 28.5 and is just three shy of the tackles for a loss record with 51.5. He was selected the MVFC Defensive Player Of The Week and a College Sporting News All-Star following the Victory Bell win over Ball State with 12 total tackles, 2.5 for a loss and 1.5 quarterback sacks, including the final tackle of the game to stop the Cardinal's last drive as time expired.
Perish is a All-MVFC Second Team pick after putting together a record breaking season in 2014. Perish is 312-of-501 passing for 3,364 yards and 20 touchdowns. He owns the school records for completions, attempts and total yards and is tied for the school record in touchdowns thrown. He also has 3,184 yards of total offense, which is a new school record. He has a school record seven games of over 300 yards passing this season and leads the league with a 280.3 passing yards per game average. For his career, Perish owns the school record with 6,545 passing yards and 44 touchdowns thrown as well as 608 pass completions and 1,024 pass attempts. He was a four-time MVFC Offensive Player Of The Week and a three-time national player of the week this year.
Aaron Jelovic picked up his first All-MVFC honor with a second team placement on the offensive line in 2014. Jelovic was the center for all of Mike Perish's snaps during his record breaking season and a key blocker for Buck Logan's 776 rushing yards and all 16 rushing touchdowns during the season. Jelovic consistently graded out as one of the top two offensive lineman during the season.
Mark Sewall earned All-MVFC Second Team honors after being an honorable mention selection last year and a member of the MVFC All-Newcomer Team in 2012. Sewall was named the MVFC and National Defensive Player Of The Week following his 12 tackle performance in the overtime victory at Youngstown State. He also tipped a pass and made the interception on the Penguins' first play of overtime to help seal the victory. Sewall's 99 total tackles are 12th best in the MVFC and his 17 passes defended are second in the league. His four interceptions are tied for second in the league and tied for the team lead. He had a 48-yard interception return for a touchdown in the FCS Playoff victory on November 29 at Eastern Kentucky.
Travis Starks makes his first career All-MVFC squad by placing on the second team. Starks has 68 total tackles on the year, and leads the league 20 passes defended. His four interceptions leads the team and is tied for second-best in Valley Football. He also has one tackle for a loss and a quarterback sacks in 2014.
Gary Owens was named to the All-MVFC Honorable Mention list after leading the team with 66 receptions for 805 yards and five touchdowns. He had a 79-yard reception against Tennessee Tech as well as a 38-yard touchdown pass for the win against nationally-ranked Northern Iowa and another 38-yard score in the playoffs at Eastern Kentucky. Owens ranks fourth in the MVFC for receptions per game with a 5.1 average and eighth in receiving yards with a 61.9 yards per game average.
Kendall Walker was an honorable mention selection after leading the team with 117 total tackles, including 5.5 tackles for a loss and one quarterback sack. He added two pass breakups, one QB hurry and three forced fumbles. Walker's 9.0 tackles per game leads the MVFC and is tied for third in the league in fumbles forced.
Also an honorable mention selection was deep snapper Josh Appel. Appel was the snapper on all of Eric Heidorn's 35 PAT's during the year and did not have any bad snaps on special teams. He recovered a fumbled punt return to turn the momentum in the Victory Bell win at Ball State and downed the ball inside the five-yard line twice in the playoff victory at Eastern Kentucky. He added two total tackles on the year on special teams.
Indiana State carries its 8-5 record into the second round of the NCAA FCS Playoffs when they travel to No. 8 Chattanooga on Saturday, December 6. The first-ever December game in the history of the program is scheduled for a 1:04 p.m. (ET) kickoff in Chattanooga and will be televised nationally on ESPN3. The winner of the Indiana State/Chattanooga game will face the winner of Fordham and No. 1 New Hamphsire on either December 12 or 13.
