Ten Falcons All-MAC, Minor Quibbles Revealed

The All-MAC teams are out, as well as the award winners.  BG is well represented and absent a couple of minor quibbles, I think BG was treated fairly.

First, the specialty awards:

Vern Smith Leadership Award Winner: QB Jordan Lynch, Northern Illinois
Coach of the Year: Rod Carey, Northern Illinois
Offensive Player of the Year: QB Jordan Lynch
Northern Illinois Defensive Player of the Year: LB Khalil Mack, Buffalo
Special Teams Player of the Year: K Jeremiah Detmer, Toledo
Freshman of the Year: WR Corey Davis, Western Michigan

I have no real issues here.  Lynch and Mack are obvious choices and I am glad they did not insult Lynch by giving the offensive award to someone else (since he had the Leadership Award).  Detmer and Davis were also both clear choices.

I don't even quibble with Rod Carey.  Too often Coach of the Year is a surrogate for "most improved team" and I think you can recognize that excellence is not an accident.  Having said that, I think you could have made a case for the long-term coaching jobs done by Clawson and Lembo.  Both programs have built themselves up over years, something that can only be about Coaching.  Just a note, no argument with Carey.

10 Falcons made the All-MAC teams.

First Team:

David Kekuewa, OL
Dominic Flewellyn, OL
Boo Boo Gates, S

Second Team:

Alex Huettel, OL
Travis Greene, RB
DJ Lynch, LB
Gabe Martin, LB
Ted Ouellet, DL
Ryan Burbrink, Punt Return

Third Team:

Alex Bayer, TE

A few comments.  (You can see the whole list here)

Matt Johnson deserved to be 3rd team.  No, he's not ahead of Wenning and Lynch, but he deserved 3rd team.  It went to Terrance Owens, who is a Senior and I suspect that's what's going on here (and he's a good player).  But Johnson had a better year.

It is instructive that BG had the dominant defense in the MAC and played only one defender on the first team.  Instructive in that it shows the team concept that BG plays so effectively.  Credit to the voters for including Gabe Martin despite his injury.  Thought you'd see Cam Truss somewhere, so that is certainly a quibble, and Paul Swan might have had an All-MAC year too.

Travis Greene deserved 1st team over Branden Oliver, who generated big numbers based on high numbers of carries.

Note:  Dri Archer, 3rd team.  Who'd a thunk?

Finally, all 3 of BG's senior lineman made All-MAC 1st or 2nd.  It was a program priority to rebuild the line, and Clawson got it done.  Also, going to be a challenge for next year.

Boo Boo has now been first-team All-MAC twice.  Bayer, Oullet, Martin and Flewellyn are also repeat players.