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ABILENE - ACU junior middle linebacker Sam Denmark has been named to the STATS FCS pre-season all-America team as a third team selection, joining six other Southland Conference athletes named to the squad.
Denmark - who led FCS football in solo tackles in 2015 with 90 and was fourth in total tackles with 138 - was the Southland Conference Football Student-Athlete of the Year in 2015, and he was also a first team all-conference pick. He's already been named a first team selection on the league's pre-season all-conference team.
The other six Southland players named to the STATS pre-season all-America team are Lamar running back Kade Harrington and Sam Houston State defensive end P.J. Hall (first team selections), as well as Central Arkansas defensive back Tremon Smith (second team), Sam Houston State running back Corey Avery, Lamar offensive lineman Bret Treadway, and McNeese defensive lineman Isaiah Golden (third team).
In 2015, Denmark posted one of the greatest seasons by an ACU defender in recent program history, leading the Southland Conference in tackles and solo tackles. His 138 total tackles and 12.5 tackles per game - good enough to lead the Southland Conference in both categories - were both fourth in FCS football.
He started all 11 games at middle linebacker and had double-digit tackle totals in
nine of those games. In ACU's 35-32 home win over Stephen F. Austin on Sept. 26, he had 18 tackles and one pass breakup on his way to earning league Defensive Player of the Week honors. The next week at Central Arkansas, he followed it up with a career-high 21 tackles.
His 138 tackles is the third-best single-season mark in ACU history, and after two seasons, he already has 215 career tackles, putting him on pace to finish his career as the program's all-time leading tackler (Ryan Boozer, 388 tackles from 1998-2001).
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Denmark - who led FCS football in solo tackles in 2015 with 90 and was fourth in total tackles with 138 - was the Southland Conference Football Student-Athlete of the Year in 2015, and he was also a first team all-conference pick. He's already been named a first team selection on the league's pre-season all-conference team.
The other six Southland players named to the STATS pre-season all-America team are Lamar running back Kade Harrington and Sam Houston State defensive end P.J. Hall (first team selections), as well as Central Arkansas defensive back Tremon Smith (second team), Sam Houston State running back Corey Avery, Lamar offensive lineman Bret Treadway, and McNeese defensive lineman Isaiah Golden (third team).
In 2015, Denmark posted one of the greatest seasons by an ACU defender in recent program history, leading the Southland Conference in tackles and solo tackles. His 138 total tackles and 12.5 tackles per game - good enough to lead the Southland Conference in both categories - were both fourth in FCS football.
He started all 11 games at middle linebacker and had double-digit tackle totals in
nine of those games. In ACU's 35-32 home win over Stephen F. Austin on Sept. 26, he had 18 tackles and one pass breakup on his way to earning league Defensive Player of the Week honors. The next week at Central Arkansas, he followed it up with a career-high 21 tackles.
His 138 tackles is the third-best single-season mark in ACU history, and after two seasons, he already has 215 career tackles, putting him on pace to finish his career as the program's all-time leading tackler (Ryan Boozer, 388 tackles from 1998-2001).
More...