PITTSBURG, Kan. --- Four Tusculum College student-athletes have been named to the 2009 Football Gazette All-Super Region 2 Team. Jarrell NeSmith was named to the All-Region First Team, while Ryan Tallent, Gareth Rowlands and John Gregory garnered Third Team honors.

Gregory has been named to the Football Gazette All-Region team four times, NeSmith and Tallent and Gregory are making their second straight appearances, while Rowlands is making his inaugural appearance on the All-Region squad.

NeSmith, a 6-2, 225-pound tight end from Russellville, Ala., has closed out one of the most decorated football careers in Tusculum history, both on and off the field. NeSmith graduated from Tusculum last month as a Pre-Medicine major with a 3.87 cumulative grade point average. He is a member of the Tusculum President's List, Dean's List, Charles Oliver Gray List, South Atlantic Conference Commissioner's Honor Roll and the TC Athletic Director's Honor Roll.

On the field, NeSmith was a two-time All-SAC First Team selection, including this year where he led the league in receiving yards per game, averaging 67.8 yards per contest. He posted 56 catches for 678 yards (5th in TC history) and three touchdowns. His 5.6 catches per game average finished tied for the 43rd best in the nation. He was also named to the Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Super Region 2 First Team for a second straight year and was selected to the Associated Press Little All-America Team.

He earned All-America honors in 2008 from three organizations as he posted 67 receptions for 635 yards and seven touchdowns and was also an All-Conference and All-Region selection.

NeSmith was a two-time ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American®, including this year where he was a First Team selection. He becomes only the fourth Tusculum student-athlete to garner First Team recognition and also becomes only the second Pioneer to be a two-time Academic All-American®. He was named to the Academic All-America® Second Team last year.

NeSmith was named the SAC Scholar Athlete for Football as NeSmith becomes the first three-time recipient of the award in conference history. It also marked the fifth straight year that a Tusculum player has earned SAC Scholar Athlete Football honors and seventh in the last eight seasons.

NeSmith wrapped up his career with 158 receptions (3rd in TC history) for 1,670 yards (4th in TC history), both school records for a tight end.

Last month, he was named to the National Football Foundation Scholar Athlete Team and was one of only 16 national finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy, one of college football's most sought after and competitive awards, recognizing an individual as the absolute best in the country for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary community leadership. NeSmith was the only NCAA Division II player amongst the honorees that included Campbell Trophy winner Tim Tebow of Florida and fellow Heisman Trophy candidate Colt McCoy of Texas.

NeSmith was selected as the 2008-09 recipient SAC Presidents Award, becoming only the second football player in the history of the award to earn the conference's most prestigious honor. He was also a Southeast Region representative for the 2008-09 Division II Commissioner's Scholar Athlete Award and was a national semifinalist for the American Football Coaches Association's Good Works Team.

Gregory, a 6-2, 210-pound punter from Ooltewah, Tenn., becomes the first Tusculum football player to earn All-Region recognition four times in his career. The four-time Football Gazette All-Region standout was also named to the Daktronics All-Region Team on four occasions. The four-time All-SAC honoree ended his career as the greatest punter in school history, establishing TC marks in punt attempts (219), punting yards (9,120) and average career average (41.64).

The 2008 All-SAC First Team selection led the league in punting average for a third time in four years. In 2008, Gregory finished with a 41.52 average, which was the seventh best in Tusculum history.

Gregory, a 2008 All-American, pinned the opposition inside its respective 20-yard line on 15 occasions, including four times in this year's home finale win over Mars Hill College, earning him D2football.com National Special Teams Player of the Week honors.

Gregory, who graduated from Tusculum in December, has also been recognized for his accomplishments in the classroom, being named to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District team three times in his career.

Tallent, a 5-10 senior receiver from Maryville, Tenn., has wrapped up one of the finest playing careers in school history. Tallent was a three-time All-SAC First Team selection, as he led the SAC in receptions per game for a third consecutive season, averaging 5.9 per contest. During his career, the 2008 Football Gazette All-American established two school records, including all-purpose yards (3,838) and receptions (214). Tallent also finished second in TC history with 2,341 receiving yards, which are the 11th most in SAC history.

In 2008, Tallent tied school records with his 2 receptions and nine TD catches. His 989 receiving yards were the second-most ever posted by a Pioneer, while his 2,772 all-purpose yards are third in TC history. Majoring in Sport Management, Tallent was named to the 2007 ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District Second Team and is a member of the SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll and Athletic Director's Honor Roll.

Rowlands, a 6-1, 195-pound junior placekicker from Benllech, Wales, Great Britain, led the conference in field goals per game, averaging 1.2 per contest (T17th in NCAA II). Rowlands finished 2009 as his team's top scorer with 66 points, while are the third-most kicking points in school history.

The King's Academy (Tenn.) graduate connected on 12 of his 16 field goal attempts, while going 30-of-31 on extra points earning him All-SAC First Team accolades. Of his dozen field goals, eight were from 40 more yards, including a school-record 52-yarder at Elizabeth City State University. Only a junior, Rowlands is Tusculum's all-time leading kick scorer with 159 points, which are third in all-time TC scoring.

Rowlands has also been recognized for his exploits in the classroom, earning ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District honors the last two years.

- TC -

Football Gazette All-Super Region 2 Team
First Team Offense
QB - Nick Graziano, Arkansas Tech
RB - Jonas Randolph, Mars Hill
RB - Buck Wakefield, Carson-Newman
FB - Marcus Sims, North Alabama
WR - Cedric Jones, Valdosta State
WR - Landon Turner, Arkansas Tech
TE - Jarrell NeSmith, Tusculum
C - Torrence Wright, Arkansas Tech
OG - Hivera Green, UNC Pembroke
OG - Josh Sims, Mars Hill
OT - Terrence Crosby, Catawba
OT - Michael Tribue, Carson-Newman
AP - Frantz Simeon, Arkansas Tech
PK - Ian Mullin, Morehouse

First Team Defense
DE - Jermaine Blanchard, Harding
DE - Jerry McNeil, Ouachita Baptist
DG/DT - Junior Galette, Stillman
DG/DT - Cedric Thornton, Southern Arkansas
LB - Mike Johnson, North Alabama
LB - Stanley Jones, Brevard
LB - Zimier McCloud, Clark Atlanta
LB - Charlie Wilson, Morehouse
CB - Carlos Anderson, Valdosta State
CB - Justin Hannah, Tuskegee
CB - Justin Hill, Miles
S - Mario Fuller, Albany State
S - Josh Jones, Harding
P - Justin Hinson, UNC Pembroke
RS - Perry Floyd, Wingate

Second Team Offense
QB - Harrison Beck, North Alabama
QB - Alex Good, Carson-Newman
RB - Quinn Porter, Stillman
RB - K.J. Johnson, Ouachita Baptist
RB - Winston Thompson, Clark Atlanta
WR - Jywin, Ceasar, Arkansas-Monticello
WR - Jeremy Young, Ouachita Baptist
TE - Jason Hawkins, West Alabama
C - Keith Broderick, UNC Pembroke
OG - Marc Keppner, Henderson State
OG - Jonathan Weinreich, West Alabama
OT - Robert Dorsey, Tuskegee
OT - Brad Latham, Delta State
AP - Trevar Deed, Delta State
PK - Kenny Spencer, North Alabama

Second Team Defense
DE - Brandon Anderson, Tuskegee
DE - Zeke Andrews, Carson-Newman
DG/DT - Melquan Fair, Catawba
DG/DT - Tyrell Henderson, Kentucky State
LB - Tariq Ali, West Alabama
LB - Brian Brown, Carson-Newman
LB - Michael Thompson, Benedict
CB - Jason Tate, North Alabama
CB - P.J. Woods, Carson-Newman
S - Quinton Andrews, North Alabama
S - Marquez Gibson, Benedict
S - Mario Russell, Carson-Newman
P - Will Batson, North Alabama
RS - Terry Allen, West Alabama
RS - An'Thon Harris, Fort Valley State

Third Team Offense
QB - A.J. McKenna, Albany State
QB - Cory Smith, UNC Pembroke
RB - Anthony Boykins, Kentucky State
RB - Travis Daniels, UNC Pembroke
RB - Vince Jordan, Wingate
WR - T.J. Porter, North Alabama
WR - Ryan Tallent, Tusculum
TE - Rodriquez Render, Fort Valley State
C - Colin Cordell, Fort Valley State
C - Matt Holmes, Newberry
OG - Adam Baxter, Carson-Newman
OG - Derrick Smith, Arkansas Tech
OT - Ben Benshoof, Wingate
OT - Joseph Ephrem, Albany State
OT - Calvin Wilson, North Alabama
AP - Zac Ross, Harding
PK - Gareth Rowlands, Tusculum

Third Team Defense
DE - Justin Jefferson, Brevard
DE - Marcus Winston, Clark Atlanta
DG/DT - Montrell Craft, North Alabama
DG/DT - Keenan Kitchen, Harding
LB - Larry Dean, Valdosta State
LB - Lardester Hicks-Green, Delta State
LB - Carlton Johnson, Arkansas-Monticello
CB - Chad Daniel, North Alabama
CB - Dionte Dickens, Fort Valley State
S - J.D. Douglas, West Alabama
S - Michael Gist, Brevard
P - John Gregory, Tusculum
P - Ian Mullin, Morehouse
RS - Jamaree Gordon, Kentucky State
RS - Jamar Rodriguez, Morehouse