ROCK HILL, S.C. --- Nine Tusculum University student-athletes earned All-South Atlantic Conference honors with the release of the 2023 SAC Football Awards.
Tusculum's Dajavon White and Ryan Dolce garnered spots on the All-Conference Defensive team, while seven Pioneers were recognized to the All-SAC Mountain Division Team including: Tyler Burke, Ben Shellenback, Will Shellenback, Josh Curray, Wesley Scott, Ty'Korian Brown and Jermaine Witherspoon.
The All-Conference Awards are selected by a vote of the league's head football coaches.
White, a 5-10, 295-pound junior defensive lineman garners All-SAC honors for a second straight season. He led the Pioneers with his 14 tackles for loss including a TU-best seven sacks (T7th in TU history). The Cocoa, Florida native finished the season with 45 tackles while also recording a four quarterback hurries and a forced fumble. He recorded a safety in Tusculum's 23-21 league win at Wingate and earned SAC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
White has accounted for 103 tackles in his 32-game career which includes 37 hits behind the line of scrimmage (T8th in TU history) and 18 sacks (T5th in TU history).
Dolce, a 6-0, 200-pound defensive back, earns All-Conference honors for a second straight year, following All-SAC Mountain Division second team laurels a season ago. He finished second in the league during the regular season with 13 passes defended, which are the seventh-most in a TU single-season and are currently 29th-best in the country (NCAA II). He finished third on the roster with 63 total tackles including four for loss with a sack. He forced a fumble, recovered another, tallied two QB hurries and notched an interception. In 2023, he posted a season-high 11 tackles against Barton and posted nine stops at Wingate.
In his two seasons with the Pioneers, Dolce accounted for 118 tackles including 10 for loss and two sacks. In his 22 games at Tusculum, he posted 20 passes defended with four interceptions and 16 break-ups.
Burke, a junior receiver from Delray Beach, Florida, becomes a two-time All-SAC Mountain Division selection. He led the Pioneers with 686 receiving yards (5th in SAC) on 52 receptions (4th in SAC / 48th in NCAA II), including four touchdowns. He made at least three catches in all 11 games and posted back-to-back 100-yard performances in wins over Carson-Newman and UVA Wise. Burke has made 110 receptions (13th in TU history) for 1,469 receiving yards (13th in TU history) and 12 touchdown catches.
Offensive tackle Ben Shellenback earns All-SAC Mountain Division plaudits in consecutive campaigns. The 6-5, 300-pound graduate student from Melbourne, Florida, played in 36 games during his career including 31 starts in the offensive trenches.
Will Shellenback, a 6-6, 250-pound tight end from Melbourne, Florida, earns his first All-SAC Mountain Division recognition. The graduate student started in all 11 games where he made 10 catches for 113 yards and touchdown. He also recorded a two-point conversion in Tusculum's 29-27 double-overtime win over 25th-ranked Mars Hill. In his 32-game career, he finished with 32 receptions for 356 yards and five touchdowns.
Curray, a senior from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, returns as the All-SAC Mountain Division long-snapper. He did not have a long snap blocked this season while he also made a pair of tackles on special teams. He has played in 32 games during this TU career where he has been credited with six tackles.
Scott, a 6-0, 210-pound senior linebacker from Hobe Sound, Florida, earns a spot on the SAC All-Mountain Division team for a second straight year. He led TU with 89 tackles including 11 for loss and six sacks. He also broke up two passes, forced a fumble, recovered another and tallied a pair of QB hurries. In his collegiate finale, he posted a season-high 14 tackles in the SAC Championship game against No. 15 Lenoir-Rhyne. He posted 13 tackles and two sacks in a home win over Catawba to earn SAC Defensive Player of the Week honors for the second time in his career. He preceded that with 11 hits and a sack at Wingate.
For his collegiate career, including his first two seasons at Keiser University, Scott totaled 304 tackles with 32 for loss and nine sacks. This marks his third All-Conference accolade as a gridiron collegian.
Brown led the league with his five interceptions which are 14th in the nation and tied for the second-most in a season by a Pioneer. The 6-1, 170-pound senior defensive back finished the year with 12 passes defended (4th in SAC / 39th in NCAA II) including seven break-ups. He tallied 27 tackles with three for loss, one sack and two QB hurries.
For his 39-game career, Brown finished with nine interceptions to go along with his 24 pass break-ups. His 33 total passes defended are the fourth-most in TU history. He also posted 114 career tackles including 76 solo hits.
Witherspoon, a senior defensive back from Miami, Florida, becomes a two-time All-SAC Mountain Division choice in the TU secondary. He finished second on the team and third in the league with his four interceptions (43rd in NCAA II). He also finished fourth on the squad in tackles for a second straight year as he posted 49 stoles including two for loss. He earned SAC and TSWA Defensive Player of the Week honors for his performance against Mars Hill as he was part of three forced turnovers including his 23-yard fumble return for a touchdown. He also posted an interception and forced a fumble to go along with his seven tackles as TU defeated the Lions 29-27 in double-overtime to win the Mountain Division title and punch its ticket for the SAC Championship Game.
Witherspoon has accounted for 175 tackles in his 33-game career while also posting 10 career interceptions which are third in Tusculum history. His 24 career passes defended are 10th-most in school history.
Tusculum finished the season with a 6-5 record for back-to-back winning seasons and its third winning campaign in the last four years. The Pioneers also claimed its second SAC Mountain Division crown.
2023 All-South Atlantic Conference Team
Offense
QB – Dustin Noller, Limestone
RB – Jordan Terrell, Barton
RB – Tre Stewart, Limestone
RB – Dwayne McGee, Lenoir-Rhyne
WR – Jelani Baker, Limestone
WR – Bo Pryor, Catawba
WR – Kameron Johnson, Barton
OL – Leondre Andreas, Mars Hill
OL – Alex Buschow, Barton
OL – Shane Wells, Lenoir-Rhyne
OL – JJ Martin, Limestone
OL – Porfirio Acosta, Wingate
TE – Beau DeBerry, Mars Hill
PK – Caleb Bonesteel, Wingate
LS – Blake Arnoult, Newberry
RS – DeAree Rogers, Lenoir-Rhyne
Defense
DL – Marquise Fleming, Wingate
DL – Andre Jefferson, Lenoir-Rhyne
DL – Dajavon White, Tusculum
DL – Damipi Lamboni, Mars Hill
LB – Landon Honeycutt, Mars Hill
LB – Jon Ross Maye, Lenoir-Rhyne
LB – Shane Perry, Barton
LB – Chandler Matthews, Limestone
DB – Tre Morrison, Wingate
DB – Monroe Sanderson, Mars Hill
DB – Major Williams, Carson-Newman
DB – Ryan Dolce, Tusculum
P – Ethan Muncy, Emory & Henry
All-SAC Mountain Division Team
Offense
QB – JR Martin, Mars Hill
RB – Jon Gullette, Mars Hill
RB – Jaevon Gillespie, Virginia-Wise
RB – J'Quan Anderson, Emory & Henry
WR – Malik Laurent, Mars Hill
WR – Tyler Burke, Tusculum
WR – Cam Peoples, Emory & Henry
OL – Justin Bullock, Mars Hill
OL – Ben Shellenback, Tusculum
OL – Noah Sage, Emory & Henry
OL – Christian Jones, Carson-Newman
OL – Ethan Blank, Virginia-Wise
TE – Will Shellenback, Tusculum
PK – Trace Butcher, Emory & Henry
LS – Josh Curray, Tusculum
RS – Cam Peoples, Emory & Henry
Defense
DL – Boris Lewis, Mars Hill
DL – Jacorey Long, Carson-Newman
DL – Andre Crawley, Jr., Emory & Henry
DL – Ean Rhea, Emory & Henry
LB – Kaleb Lundy, Emory & Henry
LB – Wesley Scott, Tusculum
LB – Dexter Fitzpatrick, Mars Hill
LB – Mekhi Brown, Carson-Newman
DB – Addison Knicely, Emory & Henry
DB – Tristan Rankin, Mars Hill
DB – Ty'Korian Brown, Tusculum
DB – Jermaine Witherspoon, Tusculum
P - Dylan Beauford, Erskine
SAC Offensive Player of the Year: Dustin Noller, Limestone
SAC Defensive Player of the Year: Marquise Fleming, Wingate
SAC Offensive Freshman of the Year: Brooks Bentley, Wingate
SAC Defensive Freshman of the Year: Mekhi Brown, Carson-Newman
Jacobs Blocking Trophy: Leondre Andreas, Mars Hill
SAC Coach of the Year: Mike Jacobs, Lenoir-Rhyne
