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All-Southern Conference media football teams announced
SCSMA selected all-conference first and second teams for offense, defense and special teams
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Southern Conference Sports Media Association has selected its annual all-conference teams and specialty awards for the 2023 season. Western Carolina quarterback Cole Gonzales was named the Roy M. “Legs” Hawley Offensive Player of the Year, while Chattanooga defensive lineman Jay Person was named the Defensive Player of the Year. Samford wide receiver Brendan Jenkins is the Freshman of the Year and Furman’s Clay Hendrix was named the Wallace Wade Coach of the Year.
The SCSMA selected all-conference first and second teams for offense, defense and special teams.
Click here for the SoCon coaches' all-conference picks.
2023 SCSMA All-Southern Conference Football Team
Roy M. “Legs” Hawley Offensive Player of the Year – Cole Gonzales, So., QB, Western Carolina
Defensive Player of the Year – Jay Person, Sr., DL, Chattanooga
Freshman of the Year – Brendan Jenkins, WR, Samford
Wallace Wade Coach of the Year – Clay Hendrix, Furman
First team offense
QB Cole Gonzales, So., Western Carolina
RB Jay Stanton, Sr., Samford
RB Desmond Reid, So., Western Carolina
OL Jacob Johanning, Sr., Furman
OL Pearson Toomey, Sr., Furman
OL Jabari Brooks, Sr., Samford
OL Christian Coulter, Sr., Western Carolina
OL Tyler Smith, Sr., Western Carolina
TE Aidan Twombly, Sr., VMI
WR Ty James, Sr., Mercer
WR Jamoi Mayes, Jr., Chattanooga
First team defense
DL Luke Clark, Jr., Furman
DL Solomon Zubairu, Sr., Mercer
DL Ben Brewton, Sr., Chattanooga
DL Jay Person, Sr., Chattanooga
LB Ken Standley, Sr., Mercer
LB Noah Martin, Sr., Samford
LB Eric Rankin, Jr., VMI
DB Sheldon Arnold II, Jr., ETSU
DB Lance Wise Jr., Sr., Mercer
DB Kam Brown, Sr., Chattanooga
DB Evan Eller, Sr., VMI
First team special teams
PK Richard McCollum, Sr., Western Carolina
P Jack Culbreath, Sr., VMI
LS Justin Peterson, Sr., VMI
RS Devron Harper, Sr., Mercer
Second team offense
QB Tyler Huff, Gr., Furman
RB Dominic Roberto, Gr., Furman
RB Hunter Rice, Jr., VMI
OL Luke Smith, Gr., ETSU
OL Wyatt Hughes, Sr., Furman
OL John Thomas, Gr., Mercer
OL Griffin McDowell, Sr., Chattanooga
OL Reid Williams, Jr., Chattanooga
TE Mason Pline, Gr., Furman
WR Javin Whatley, So., Chattanooga
WR Censere Lee, So., Western Carolina
Second team defense
DL Matt Sochovka, Gr., Furman
DL Marlon Taylor, Jr., Chattanooga
DL Dorien Starnes, Jr., VMI
DL Brandon Maina, Jr., Wofford
LB Stephen Scott, Sr., ETSU
LB Braden Gilby, Gr., Furman
LB David Powers, Sr., Wofford
DB Chris Hope, Jr., ETSU
DB Travis Blackshear, Gr., Furman
DB Cally Chizik, Sr., Furman
DB Hugh Ryan, Sr., Furman
Second team special teams
PK Ian Williams, Jr., Furman
P Clayton Crile, Sr., Chattanooga
LS Steele Judy, Gr., The Citadel
RS Wayne Anderson Jr., Gr., Furman
Notes:
- Three of the four individual superlatives selected by the SCSMA matched those chosen by the league’s coaches, with the media choosing a different offensive player of the year than the coaches.
- Mercer wide receiver Ty James and Western Carolina quarterback Cole Gonzales (Walter Payton Award), Mercer defensive back Lance Wise and Chattanooga defensive lineman Jay Person (Buck Buchanan Award), Samford wide receiver Brendan Jenkins (Jerry Rice Award) and Furman coach Clay Hendrix (Eddie Robinson Award) are all national finalists for FCS legacy awards. Samford quarterback Michael Hiers is also a finalist for the Payton Award.
- Western Carolina’s Gonzales was 204-for-310 for 2,803 yards and 28 touchdowns against just eight interceptions through the air. He ranks third in the FCS in passing efficiency (166.4) and passing touchdowns (28), 12th in passing yards (2,803) and 14th in passing yards per game (254.8). Gonzales also ran for 203 yards this season.
- Gonzales threw for five touchdowns on three different occasions and threw for 250-plus yards in seven games, including a pair of contests over 350 yards.
- Gonzales won SoCon Offensive Player of the Week twice this season on Sept. 25 and Nov. 13.
- Gonzales is the first Catamount to be named the Roy M. “Legs” Hawley Offensive Player of the Year by the SoCon media since the 1984 honoree Jeff Gilbert
- Chattanooga’s Person posted 53 tackles this season, with 16 of those going for lost yardage, leading the SoCon. His average of 1.45 TFLs ranks 14th in the FCS.
- Person leads the conference in sacks with 8.5 this season, ranking 20th in the FCS with 0.77 per game.
- Against Mercer on Oct. 14, Person had 4.0 TFLs, tying a career best. He also had a sack and a forced fumble in that game, leading to him being named the SoCon Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 16.
- Person’s selection marks third straight season the defensive player of the year came from Chattanooga, with Person winning for the second straight time and Devonnsha Maxwell taking home the honor in 2021.
- Samford’s Jenkins finished in the top 10 in the SoCon in receptions (41) and touchdowns (4). He is the Bulldogs’ third recipient of freshman of the year, the first since Kelvin McKnight in 2015. The other was Dustin Taliaferro in 2008.
- Jenkins, the only SoCon finalist for the Jerry Rice Award, had his best game of the season against SoCon Champion Furman on Oct. 14, finishing with seven catches for 77 yards and two touchdowns.
- Hendrix’s win marks the 10th time that a Furman coach has claimed the Wallace Wade Coach of the Year honor from the SCSMA. Seven different Paladins coaches accounted for those wins.
- Hendrix received the honor in 2017, becoming the second Furman coach to win the award multiple times, joining Dick Sheridan, who won the award in 1978, 1980 and 1982.
- Hendrix led Furman to a 9-2 record overall and a 7-1 SoCon mark. The Paladins won their first outright regular season title since 1990 this season.
- Hendrix’s squad is ranked No. 6 in the AFCA FCS Coaches’ Top 25 and No. 7 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25. Furman is the No. 7 national seed in the NCAA Division I Football Championship.
- SoCon champion Furman paced the league with 14 players earning postseason honors from the SCSMA. The Paladins put three players on the first teams and a league-best 11 on the second teams.
- Chattanooga followed with nine selections and VMI finished with seven. Mercer, VMI and Western Carolina each claimed a league-best five first-team picks.
- Mirroring the coaches’ all-conference teams, Mercer’s Devron Harper earned first-team honors at return specialist. Harper led the conference in kick return yards (453) and punt return yards (364), which ranks him first in the FCS in combined return yards (817). He is one of just three players in the FCS that have multiple punt return scores this season. Harper was named SoCon Special Teams Player of the Week on Sept. 11 and Oct. 2.
The SCSMA selected all-conference first and second teams for offense, defense and special teams.
Click here for the SoCon coaches' all-conference picks.
2023 SCSMA All-Southern Conference Football Team
Roy M. “Legs” Hawley Offensive Player of the Year – Cole Gonzales, So., QB, Western Carolina
Defensive Player of the Year – Jay Person, Sr., DL, Chattanooga
Freshman of the Year – Brendan Jenkins, WR, Samford
Wallace Wade Coach of the Year – Clay Hendrix, Furman
First team offense
QB Cole Gonzales, So., Western Carolina
RB Jay Stanton, Sr., Samford
RB Desmond Reid, So., Western Carolina
OL Jacob Johanning, Sr., Furman
OL Pearson Toomey, Sr., Furman
OL Jabari Brooks, Sr., Samford
OL Christian Coulter, Sr., Western Carolina
OL Tyler Smith, Sr., Western Carolina
TE Aidan Twombly, Sr., VMI
WR Ty James, Sr., Mercer
WR Jamoi Mayes, Jr., Chattanooga
First team defense
DL Luke Clark, Jr., Furman
DL Solomon Zubairu, Sr., Mercer
DL Ben Brewton, Sr., Chattanooga
DL Jay Person, Sr., Chattanooga
LB Ken Standley, Sr., Mercer
LB Noah Martin, Sr., Samford
LB Eric Rankin, Jr., VMI
DB Sheldon Arnold II, Jr., ETSU
DB Lance Wise Jr., Sr., Mercer
DB Kam Brown, Sr., Chattanooga
DB Evan Eller, Sr., VMI
First team special teams
PK Richard McCollum, Sr., Western Carolina
P Jack Culbreath, Sr., VMI
LS Justin Peterson, Sr., VMI
RS Devron Harper, Sr., Mercer
Second team offense
QB Tyler Huff, Gr., Furman
RB Dominic Roberto, Gr., Furman
RB Hunter Rice, Jr., VMI
OL Luke Smith, Gr., ETSU
OL Wyatt Hughes, Sr., Furman
OL John Thomas, Gr., Mercer
OL Griffin McDowell, Sr., Chattanooga
OL Reid Williams, Jr., Chattanooga
TE Mason Pline, Gr., Furman
WR Javin Whatley, So., Chattanooga
WR Censere Lee, So., Western Carolina
Second team defense
DL Matt Sochovka, Gr., Furman
DL Marlon Taylor, Jr., Chattanooga
DL Dorien Starnes, Jr., VMI
DL Brandon Maina, Jr., Wofford
LB Stephen Scott, Sr., ETSU
LB Braden Gilby, Gr., Furman
LB David Powers, Sr., Wofford
DB Chris Hope, Jr., ETSU
DB Travis Blackshear, Gr., Furman
DB Cally Chizik, Sr., Furman
DB Hugh Ryan, Sr., Furman
Second team special teams
PK Ian Williams, Jr., Furman
P Clayton Crile, Sr., Chattanooga
LS Steele Judy, Gr., The Citadel
RS Wayne Anderson Jr., Gr., Furman
Notes:
- Three of the four individual superlatives selected by the SCSMA matched those chosen by the league’s coaches, with the media choosing a different offensive player of the year than the coaches.
- Mercer wide receiver Ty James and Western Carolina quarterback Cole Gonzales (Walter Payton Award), Mercer defensive back Lance Wise and Chattanooga defensive lineman Jay Person (Buck Buchanan Award), Samford wide receiver Brendan Jenkins (Jerry Rice Award) and Furman coach Clay Hendrix (Eddie Robinson Award) are all national finalists for FCS legacy awards. Samford quarterback Michael Hiers is also a finalist for the Payton Award.
- Western Carolina’s Gonzales was 204-for-310 for 2,803 yards and 28 touchdowns against just eight interceptions through the air. He ranks third in the FCS in passing efficiency (166.4) and passing touchdowns (28), 12th in passing yards (2,803) and 14th in passing yards per game (254.8). Gonzales also ran for 203 yards this season.
- Gonzales threw for five touchdowns on three different occasions and threw for 250-plus yards in seven games, including a pair of contests over 350 yards.
- Gonzales won SoCon Offensive Player of the Week twice this season on Sept. 25 and Nov. 13.
- Gonzales is the first Catamount to be named the Roy M. “Legs” Hawley Offensive Player of the Year by the SoCon media since the 1984 honoree Jeff Gilbert
- Chattanooga’s Person posted 53 tackles this season, with 16 of those going for lost yardage, leading the SoCon. His average of 1.45 TFLs ranks 14th in the FCS.
- Person leads the conference in sacks with 8.5 this season, ranking 20th in the FCS with 0.77 per game.
- Against Mercer on Oct. 14, Person had 4.0 TFLs, tying a career best. He also had a sack and a forced fumble in that game, leading to him being named the SoCon Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 16.
- Person’s selection marks third straight season the defensive player of the year came from Chattanooga, with Person winning for the second straight time and Devonnsha Maxwell taking home the honor in 2021.
- Samford’s Jenkins finished in the top 10 in the SoCon in receptions (41) and touchdowns (4). He is the Bulldogs’ third recipient of freshman of the year, the first since Kelvin McKnight in 2015. The other was Dustin Taliaferro in 2008.
- Jenkins, the only SoCon finalist for the Jerry Rice Award, had his best game of the season against SoCon Champion Furman on Oct. 14, finishing with seven catches for 77 yards and two touchdowns.
- Hendrix’s win marks the 10th time that a Furman coach has claimed the Wallace Wade Coach of the Year honor from the SCSMA. Seven different Paladins coaches accounted for those wins.
- Hendrix received the honor in 2017, becoming the second Furman coach to win the award multiple times, joining Dick Sheridan, who won the award in 1978, 1980 and 1982.
- Hendrix led Furman to a 9-2 record overall and a 7-1 SoCon mark. The Paladins won their first outright regular season title since 1990 this season.
- Hendrix’s squad is ranked No. 6 in the AFCA FCS Coaches’ Top 25 and No. 7 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25. Furman is the No. 7 national seed in the NCAA Division I Football Championship.
- SoCon champion Furman paced the league with 14 players earning postseason honors from the SCSMA. The Paladins put three players on the first teams and a league-best 11 on the second teams.
- Chattanooga followed with nine selections and VMI finished with seven. Mercer, VMI and Western Carolina each claimed a league-best five first-team picks.
- Mirroring the coaches’ all-conference teams, Mercer’s Devron Harper earned first-team honors at return specialist. Harper led the conference in kick return yards (453) and punt return yards (364), which ranks him first in the FCS in combined return yards (817). He is one of just three players in the FCS that have multiple punt return scores this season. Harper was named SoCon Special Teams Player of the Week on Sept. 11 and Oct. 2.