Overlooked yet deserving: Picking some Group of Five All-Americans
What about the Group of Five guys? CBS Sports looks to honor some of the best players in that nation that do not get the accolades they deserve with a unique All-America team.
By
Matthew Coca
•
2 min read
Fans often look to All-America teams -- at the end of a college football season -- to see whether their favorite team's best players get recognized among the nation's top student-athletes. They get excited to see the names scattered across numerous teams, but there's one problem: A huge disparity of those honored belong to teams in Power Five conferences.
Where are all the Group of Five guys?
Everyone is familiar with Navy quarterback Keenan Reynolds and Temple linebacker Tyler Matakevich, but what about the likes of Florida Atlantic defensive lineman Trey Hendrickson or Western Kentucky wide receiver Taywan Taylor? These athletes put up the same, or even sometimes better, numbers than their Power Five counterparts. They also deserve their time in the spotlight, which should not be taken away just because they don't play for a "big enough" school.
As such, CBS Sports host (and Central Florida alumnus) Ryan Bass helped me put together a unique Group of Five All-America team.
And just as it did all season on the field, the American Athletic Conference led the pack with nine first-team selections.
| CBS Sports All-America First Team | |||
| Offense | |||
| Pos | Player | Class | School |
| QB | Keenan Reynolds | Senior | Navy |
| RB | Matt Breida | Sophomore | Georgia Southern |
| RB | Jahad Thomas | Junior | Temple |
| WR | Roger Lewis | Sophomore | Bowling Green |
| WR | Keyarris Garrett | Senior | Tulsa |
| TE | Tyler Higbee | Senior | Western Kentucky |
| OL | Taylor Fallin | Senior | Memphis |
| OL | E.K. Binns | Senior | Navy |
| OL | Sevrin Remmo | Senior | Air Force |
| OL | Parker Ehinger | Senior | Cincinnati |
| OL | Andrew Ness | Senior | Northern Illinois |
| Defense | |||
| Pos | Player | Class | School |
| DL | Trey Hendrickson | Senior | Florida Atlantic |
| DL | Ronald Blair | Senior | Appalachian State |
| DL | Alex Hansen | Senior | Air Force |
| DL | Ian Seau | Senior | Nevada |
| LB | Tyler Matakevich | Junior | Temple |
| LB | Elandon Roberts | Senior | Houston |
| LB | Jatavis Brown | Senior | Akron |
| CB | William Jackson III | Senior | Houston |
| CB | Damontae Kazee | Junior | San Diego State |
| S | Darian Thompson | Senior | Boise State |
| S | Nate Holley | Junior | Kent State |
| Special Teams | |||
| Pos | Player | Class | School |
| K | Jake Elliott | Junior | Memphis |
| P | Dalton Schomp | Senior | Florida Atlantic |
| RS | Argerous Turner | Junior | Northern Illinois |
| AP | Tyler Ervin | Senior | San Jose State |
Honorable mentions: QB Greg Ward Jr. (Houston), QB Matt Johnson (Bowling Green), RB Donnel Pumphrey (San Diego State), RB Larry Rose III (New Mexico State), WR Taywan Taylor (Western Kentucky), WR Tajae Sharpe (UMass), WR DanieL Braverman (Western Michigan), WR Thomas Sperbeck (Boise State), TE Gerald Everett (South Alabama), OL Nick Beamish (Central Michigan), LB Nick Vigil (Utah State), DB Jamar Summers (UConn), DB Shawun Lurry (Northern Illinois), S Trevon Stewart (Houston), S Weston Steelhammer (Air Force), K Tyler Rausa (Boise State), P Rigoberto Sanchez (Hawaii), RS Rashaad Penny (San Diego State), AP Jeremy McNichols (Boise State)
