2018 NAIA Football All-America Teams Unveiled
Dec 12, 2018
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — More accolades for Morningside (Iowa) rolled-in on Thursday as the NAIA announced the 2018 NAIA All-America teams. The Mustangs led all schools with eight selections from first, second and honorable mention teams.
It was more than an impressive season for Morningside, and with it a season that will not soon be forgotten for Solsma and his wide receiver counterpart Connor Niles. The pair set several new records, as Solsma currently sits as the all-time leader in completion percentage in a season with 72.6 percent, and crushed the touchdown passing record in a season with 68 scores.
Niles, on the other hand, may well be the most prolific receiver the NAIA has ever seen. The senior leads the record book in total receiving yards in a season with 2,475 and in touchdown receptions with 31.
Evangel’s Andreas Moeller led all defensive players in tackles for loss per game, averaging just short of three in each of his 10 games this season. The junior from Hebo, Ore., was ranked second in the nation with 27.5 tackles for a loss and fourth overall with 1.2 sacks per game.
The NAIA All-America teams differ from the AFCA list with the addition of an honorable mention team this season. In total, 106 student-athletes were honored over the three teams.
Click HERE to download graphics for winners to share on social media!
2018 NAIA All-America Team - First Team
| Offense | ||||||
| Pos. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | School | Hometown (High School) |
| QB | Trent Solsma | 6-0 | 215 | Sr. | Morningside (Iowa) | Dakota Dunes, S.D. (Bishop Heelan Catholic) |
| RB | Joe Conner | 6-0 | 215 | R-Jr. | Concordia (Mich.) | Flat Rock, Mich. (Flat Rock) |
| RB | Demarco Prewitt | 5-10 | 204 | Jr. | Kansas Wesleyan | Menifee, Calif. (Paloma Valley) |
| WR | Darrion Dillard | 6-4 | 205 | Sr. | Ottawa (Kan.) | St. Louis, Mo. (McCluer) |
| WR | Brenden Kelly | 6-2 | 205 | R-Sr. | Eastern Oregon | Kennewick, Wash. (Southridge) |
| TE | Brandon Dillon | 6-5 | 250 | Sr. | Marian (Ind.) | Bringhurst, Ind. (Carroll) |
| OL | Garrett Bader | 6-5 | 293 | Sr. | Benedictine (Kan.) | Aurora, Mo. (Aurora) |
| OL | Anthony Vereen | 6-4 | 290 | Sr. | Jamestown (N.D.) | Las Vegas, Nev. (Mojave) |
| OL | Shabari Jones | 6-2 | 300 | Sr. | Avila (Mo.) | Leesburg, Ga. (Lee County) |
| OL | Dustin Rivera | 5-11 | 250 | Jr. | Southwestern (Kan.) | Buckeye, Ariz. (Buckeye) |
| OL | Trevor Wietzema | 6-2 | 290 | Sr. | Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) | Worthington, Minn. (Worthington) |
| Defense | ||||||
| Pos. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | School | Hometown (High School) |
| DL | Curt Boeke | 6-5 | 265 | Sr. | Dakota State (S.D.) | Clear Lake, S.D. (Deuel) |
| DL | Kenneth Steele, Jr. | 6-0 | 212 | Sr. | Ottawa (Ariz.) | Tampa, Fla. (Tolleson) |
| DL | JT Graydon | 6-0 | 215 | R-So. | Reinhardt (Ga.) | Tifton, Ga. (Tift County) |
| DL | Andreas Moeller | 6-1 | 245 | Jr. | Evangel (Mo.) | Hebo, Ore. (Nestucca) |
| LB | Jason Ferris | 6-3 | 215 | R-Jr. | Montana Western | Dillon, Mont. (Beaverhead County) |
| LB | Damarcus Wimbush | 5-10 | 211 | R-So. | Bluefield (Va.) | Danville, Va. (Tunstall) |
| LB | Caleb Coe | 6-1 | 210 | Sr. | Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) | Cedarville, Ohio (Cedarville) |
| DB | Nicholas Holmes | 5-11 | 207 | So. | St. Mary (Kan.) | Lansing, Kan. (Pleasant Ridge) |
| DB | Anthony Murray | 5-8 | 170 | Sr. | Hastings (Neb.) | Aurora, Colo. (Cherokee Trail) |
| DB | Jay Liggins | 6-2 | 200 | Sr. | Dickinson St. (N.D.) | Bismarck, N.D. (Bismarck) |
| DB | Wilmer Cole | 6-1 | 194 | Sr. | Saint Francis (Ind.) | Indianapolis, Ind. (Warren Central) |
| Specialists | ||||||
| Pos. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | School | Hometown (High School) |
| P | Drake Higgins | 6-2 | 257 | Jr. | Missouri Valley | Lathrop, Mo. (Lathrop) |
| PK | Marcus Montano | 6-1 | 205 | Sr. | Southern Oregon | Manteca, Calif. (Manteca) |
| AP | J’Kobi Reddick | 5-8 | 183 | So. | Bethel (Tenn.) | Tampa, Fla. (Cambridge Christian) |
2018 NAIA All-America Team - Second Team
| Offense | ||||||
| Pos. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | School | Hometown (High School) |
| QB | Jaylen Lowe | 6-0 | 200 | Sr. | Langston (Okla.) | Collinsville, Okla. (Owasso) |
| RB | Milton Shelton | 5-10 | 190 | Jr. | Cumberlands (Ky.) | Roswell, Ga. (Blessed Trinity Catholic) |
| RB | Drevion Cooper | 5-7 | 170 | Sr. | Tabor (Kan.) | Coldspring, Texas (Oakhurst) |
| WR | Aaron Jackson | 6-2 | 187 | Sr. | Benedictine (Kan.) | Frankfort, Ky. (Frankfort) |
| WR | Connor Niles | 5-11 | 195 | Sr. | Morningside (Iowa) | Sioux City, Iowa (Bishop Heelan Catholic) |
| TE | Devante Jimenez | 6-5 | 277 | Sr. | Bethel (Tenn.) | Pulaski, Tenn. (Giles County) |
| OL | Tre Coney | 6-1 | 275 | Jr. | Reinhardt (Ga.) | Dublin, Ga. (Dublin) |
| OL | Mick Wilson | 6-5 | 285 | R-Sr. | Eastern Oregon | Council, Idaho (Council) |
| OL | Jordan Heldreth | 6-5 | 310 | Sr. | Southeastern (Fla.) | Port Orange, Fla. (Warner Christian) |
| OL | Jarin Bush | 6-4 | 295 | Sr. | Marian (Ind.) | Flora, Ind. (Carroll) |
| OL | D.J. Loving | 6-2 | 280 | Sr. | Grand View (Iowa) | St. Louis, Mo. (East St. Louis) |
| Defense | ||||||
| Pos. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | School | Hometown (High School) |
| DL | Mike Mitchell | 6-4 | 270 | Sr. | Southeastern (Fla.) | Plano, Texas (Prestonwood Christian) |
| DL | Shaq Bradford | 5-10 | 219 | Jr. | Kansas Wesleyan | San Diego, Calif. (Hoover) |
| DL | Dmitri Joe | 6-3 | 285 | Sr. | St. Xavier (Ill.) | La Grange Park, Ill. (Nazareth Academy) |
| DL | Ryder Rice | 6-6 | 220 | Jr. | Rocky Mountain (Mont.) | Savage, Mont. (Savage) |
| LB | Ben Slavens | 5-10 | 215 | Jr. | Grand View (Iowa) | Bettendorf, Iowa (Pleasant Valley) |
| LB | Trent Mueller | 6-0 | 225 | Gr. | Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | Nashville, Tenn. (Christian) |
| LB | Eric Dunten | 6-2 | 220 | Sr. | Saint Francis (Ind.) | Fort Wayne, Ind. (Carroll) |
| DB | Bryce Van Beek | 6-0 | 175 | Sr. | Northwestern (Iowa) | Rock Valley, Iowa (Rock Valley) |
| DB | Landon Jones | 6-1 | 215 | Jr. | SAGU (Texas) | Waco, Texas (Midway) |
| DB | Xavier Spann | 6-1 | 185 | Sr. | Morningside (Iowa) | Lakeland, Fla. (Lakeland) |
| DB | Cain Boschee | 6-3 | 185 | Sr. | Dickinson St. (N.D.) | Kalispell, Mont. (Glacier) |
| Specialists | ||||||
| Pos. | Name | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | School | Hometown (High School) |
| P | Austin Bohn | 6-4 | 180 | Jr. | Ottawa (Ariz.) | Erie, Colo. (Erie) |
| PK | Jared Amundson | 6-3 | 220 | Sr. | Morningside (Iowa) | Sioux City, Iowa (East) |
| AP | Nate McLaurin | 5-11 | 190 | Sr. | Baker (Kan.) | Erie, Pa. (Cathedral Prep) |
2018 NAIA All-America Team - Honorable Mention
| Name | Position | Class | Institution |
| Kendrick Murphy | WR | Sr. | Arizona Christian |
| Jaron Green | DL | Jr. | Arizona Christian |
| John Preyer | LB | Sr. | Ave Maria |
| Theo Berry | WR | Sr. | Avila (Mo.) |
| Ryon Holmes | DB | Jr. | Avila (Mo.) |
| JD Woods | RB | So. | Baker (Kan.) |
| Jared Harvey | OL | Jr. | Baker (Kan.) |
| Landon Decker | DL | Sr. | Baker (Kan.) |
| Kegan Schuman | LB | Sr. | Baker (Kan.) |
| Marquis Stewart | RB | Jr. | Benedictine (Kan.) |
| Tre Adger | All Purpose | So. | Benedictine (Kan.) |
| Keonte Chavies | DL | Sr. | Bethany (Kan.) |
| Sam Castronova | QB | Sr. | Bethel (Tenn.) |
| Jeremy Beaulieu | LB | Jr. | Bethel (Tenn.) |
| Antonio Strickland | WR | So. | Bluefield (Va.) |
| Kendon Young | All Purpose | Jr. | Campbellsville (Ky.) |
| Katavious Taylor | WR | So. | Central Methodist (Mo.) |
| Lane Napier | LB | So. | Concordia (Neb.) |
| Donovan Corlew | OL | So. | Concorida (Mich.) |
| Austin Ysidro | TE | Sr. | Cumberlands (Ky.) |
| Matthew Castner | OL | Jr. | Cumberlands (Ky.) |
| Brodie Frederiksen | RB | Jr. | Dakota State (S.D.) |
| Nathan Harden | PK | Sr. | Eastern Oregon |
| Victor Alvarez | DL | So. | Keiser (Fla.) |
| C.J. Carrillo | OL | Sr. | Langston (Okla.) |
| Johnny William | WR | So. | Marian (Ind.) |
| Chad Skaggs | DL | Sr. | Marian (Ind.) |
| Johan Williams | DL | Sr. | Midland (Neb.) |
| Jed Fike | RB | Jr. | Montana Tech |
| Garrett Temme | OL | Sr. | Morningside (Iowa) |
| Seth Maitlen | DL | Jr. | Morningside (Iowa) |
| Joel Katzer | LB | Jr. | Morningside (Iowa) |
| Spencer Wyant | P | Sr. | Morningside (Iowa) |
| Shane Solberg | WR | So. | Northwestern (Iowa) |
| Diamante Pounds | DL | Jr. | Oklahoma Panhandle |
| James Officer | OL | Jr. | Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) |
| Shamar Moreland | All Purpose | So. | Ottawa (Ariz.) |
| Jacob Garcia | DL | So. | Ottawa (Kan.) |
| Isaiah McFarland | DB | So. | Point (Ga.) |
| Tevin McCoy | DL | Sr. | Reinhardt (Ga.) |
| Jacob Bakken | QB | Sr. | Rocky Mountain (Mont.) |
| Troy Bacon | OL | Sr. | Rocky Mountain (Mont.) |
| Trevon Claybourne | DB | Jr. | Siena Heights (Mich.) |
| Sean Rogers | DL | Sr. | Southern Oregon |
| Tyson Cooper | LB | Sr. | Southern Oregon |
| Keyshawn Wyatt | All Purpose | So. | Southwestern (Kan.) |
| Grant Torgerson | LB | So. | Southwestern (Kan.) |
| Samuel Northey | WR | Sr. | Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas) |
| Brandon Ruffin | WR | Jr. | St. Francis (Ill.) |
| Harold Davis | WR | Jr. | St. Xavier (Ill.) |
| Josh Hettiger | LB | Jr. | St. Xavier (Ill.) |
| Kwame Sexton | DB | So. | Sterling (Kan.) |
| Melvin Williams | LB | Sr. | Tabor (Kan.) |
| Hilton Joseph | QB | Jr. | Waldorf (Iowa) |
| Aaron Givens | LB | Sr. | Webber International (Fla.) |
| Resean Coleman | DL | Jr. | William Penn (Iowa) |
