Fifteen GLIAC players earn Don Hansen DII All-America honors

Fifteen GLIAC players earn Don Hansen DII All-America honors

BROOKFIELD, Ill. - Ferris State junior quarterback Jayru Campbell was named the 2018 Don Hansen DII All-America Team's offensive player of the year and was one of 15 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference players to receive all-America recognition.

Campbell led Ferris State into its first NCAA Division II Championship game. The Harlong Hill Trophy winner led all NCAA Division II quarterbacks in rushing with 1,460 yards while throwing for 2,931 with 27 touchdowns. Also the GLIAC Player of the Year, he accounted for a national-best 49 touchdowns for the 15-1 Bulldogs.

FSU senior offensive guard Nic Sawyer and Saginaw Valley State junior defensive tackle Heath Williams were also Hansen All-America First-Team selections.

The second team included offensive tackles Devon Johnson, a senior from Ferris State, and Ben Walling, a senior from Grand Valley State, Ashland senior defensive end James Prater Jr., SVSU senior linebacker Michael Alexander, FSU sophomore linebacker Sam Heyboer and Davenport senior safety Brian Williams.

Michigan Tech junior wide receiver Jake Wenzlick and Ferris State junior safety Delon Stephenson were named to the third team, while Northern Michigan runningback Jake Mayon, SVSU wide receiver Chad Gailliard and Wayne State offensive guard Tommy Richardson received honorable mention.

The Don Hansen team carries out the legacy of long-time small college football advocate Don Hansen, who passed away at age 75 on Aug. 29, 2010. Hansen, from Brookfield, Ill., started and published Don Hansen’s National Weekly Football Gazette for three decades, selecting NCAA Division II All-America teams for the first time in 1988. Don Hansen’s Football Gazette began selecting Division II All-Region squads in 2003.

2018 Hansen All-America Team