PAC Release

NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. -- Allegheny College football was well represented on the 2023 All-Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Teams, as nine student-athletes were recognized for their effort on the gridiron this fall.

Headlining Allegheny's group of All-PAC selections are first-team honoree Declan O'Brien (Irwin, Pa./Norwin) and the 2023 PAC Newcomer of the Year David Williams (Boca Raton, Fla./Boca Raton). Additionally, Jack Turner (Sewickley, Pa./North Allegheny) was named to the All-PAC Second Team, while Jack Johnson (Hingham, Mass./Hingham/Milford Academy), Kyrie Miller (Bolivar, Pa./Ligonier Valley), Austin Williams (Warsaw, N.Y./Warsaw Central), Malcolm Denomme (Edgewood, N.M./Moriarty), Nigel Williams (Buffalo, N.Y./Cardinal O'Hara), and Jayden Thorpe (Fayetteville, N.C./North Hardin (Ky.)) received honorable mention status.

Allegheny's nine award winners are the most since the Gators placed nine on the All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Teams in 2011.

O'Brien is the first Gator football player to collect first-team honors since offensive lineman Rafael Balanquet '20 (Pittsburgh, Pa. Fox Chapel) earned a spot on the All-NCAC First Team in 2019. The senior wide receiver has been nothing short of remarkable in 2023, as O'Brien put together one of the greatest pass-catching seasons in program history. He set single-season records for receptions (91) and yards (1,228) with a career-high 10 touchdown catches. He is only the second receiver in team history to surpass 1,000 receiving yards in a season and currently ranks third nationally in receptions per game (9.1), fifth in yards, and fifth in yards per game (122.8). O'Brien was a two-time PAC Offensive Player of the Week and was included on the D3football.com Team of the Week twice this fall.

For the second time in three years, Turner garnered second-team accolades. The senior started all 10 games on the offensive line at left guard and left tackle. He was part of the line group recognized with D3football.com Team of the Week honors after paving the way for a season-high 498 total yards of offense in the 39-36 season-opening overtime victory at Waynesburg University. With Turner blocking, the Gators finished with the third-best passing attack in the conference, with an increase of more than 40 passing yards per game from 2022.

An All-PAC Honorable Mention, David Williams is only the second Gator to win Newcomer of the Year. The first-year cornerback started eight of nine appearances in his debut season. The native Floridian is tied for 22nd in Division III with 1.4 passes defended per game. He deflected 11 passes, made two interceptions, and forced one fumble to go along with 21 total tackles. Williams had interceptions in wins over Waynesburg and Thiel College. He made a season-high five tackles at Washington and Jefferson College with three pass breakups.

Johnson orchestrated an Allegheny offense that threw for more than 240 yards per game. He completed over 60% of his attempts with 15 touchdowns with only six interceptions. The senior gunslinger surpassed 300 yards with multiple touchdown passes against Waynesburg and Bethany College. He also tied a season-high with three touchdowns in the penultimate contest against Thiel. This fall, Johnson became just the second Allegheny quarterback to surpass 6,000 career passing yards and is sixth on the leaderboard with 46 touchdowns.

Austin Williams evolved into Johnson's second-favorite target in his first season as a tight end. The converted quarterback was second on the team with 55 receptions for 464 yards and three touchdowns. He had no less than four catches in any game, led by a career-high nine receptions for 59 yards and a touchdown against Westminster College. He made six catches for a season-high 77 yards in the season opener against Waynesburg and caught a touchdown in the win over Bethany.

Miller was thrust into the starting lineup midway through the season after an injury sidelined fifth-year senior Tre Worship (East Cleveland, Ohio/Shaw). Miller had 20 carries for 151 yards and three touchdowns in his debut as the feature back. It marked the first of four consecutive games with a rushing score. By the end of the season, Miller amassed a team-high 469 yards with 4.3 yards per carry and six touchdowns. He also became involved in the passing game with 22 catches for 181 yards.

Denomme paced all Allegheny defenders with 65 tackles and nine tackles for a loss from his linebacker position. He produced double-digit tackles in three consecutive games, with 13 against Saint Vincent College, 12 against Bethany, and 10 against Carnegie Mellon University. Against the Bison, he returned a fumble recovery 64 yards for a touchdown, which led to PAC Defensive Player of the Week honors.

Another Gator who enjoyed a breakout year was Nigel Williams. The senior defensive tackle exploded for 56 tackles with five for a loss. He also had two sacks, one forced fumble, one interception, and one blocked kick. He logged nine tackles in back-to-back outings against Grove City College and Westminster. His interception and blocked field goal came against No. 24-ranked Carnegie Mellon. 

Thorpe, a first-year do-it-all student-athlete, was an All-PAC Honorable Mention selection as a return specialist. In addition to earning playing time as a wide receiver and defensive back, the Fayetteville, North Carolina, native ranked second in the PAC with 23.9 yards per return. He returned 14 kickoffs in his rookie season, and his longest was for 57 yards against Thiel.

In addition to those selected for All-PAC honors, senior linebacker Travis Dear (Webster, N.Y./Webster Schroeder) earned a spot on the PAC Sportsmanship Team. The PAC Sportsmanship Teams were established to recognize student-athletes who have distinguished themselves through demonstrated acts of sportsmanship and ethical behavior, and are an ongoing effort to recognize and encourage positive sportsmanship among all PAC teams and student-athletes. In eight games, Dear finished with 41 tackles, two fumble recoveries, and one forced fumble.

2023 All-PAC Football Award Winners
Offensive Player of the Year: Jacob Pugh, W&J
Defensive Player of the Year: Ben Bladel, Grove City
Newcomer of the Year: David Williams, Allegheny
Coach of the Year: Andrew DiDonato, Grove City
 

All-PAC First Team (Offense)
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.
OL	Sam Alligood	Carnegie Mellon	So.
OL	Jace Merritt	Case Western Reserve	Sr.
OL	Vinny LePre	Grove City	5th
OL	Brady Brungard	Grove City	Jr.
OL	Angelo Fratini	W&J	Gr.
TE/HB/FB	Zach Cernuto	W&J	Jr.
WR	Declan O'Brien	Allegheny	Sr.
WR	Scott Fraser	Grove City	Sr.
WR	John Peduzzi	W&J	So.
QB	Jacob Pugh	W&J	Jr.
RB	Nico Flati	Grove City	Jr.
A-P	Noah Coyne	Case Western Reserve	Jr.

 

All-PAC First Team (Defense)
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.
DL	Mitchell Stokey	Carnegie Mellon	Jr.
DL	Kaden Tong	Case Western Reserve	Sr.
DL	Bryce Spolnik	Grove City	Jr.
DL	Dawson Dietz	W&J	Jr.
LB	Robert Coury	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
LB	Thomas Coury	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
LB	Ben Bladel	Grove City	So.
LB	Tanner Volpatti	W&J	Sr.
DB	Adrian Williams	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
DB	Dominic Sais	Case Western Reserve	Jr.
DB	Gabe Dunlap	Grove City	Sr.
DB	Brice Butler	Westminster	Jr.

 

All-PAC First Team (Special Teams)
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.
K	Justin Caputo	Carnegie Mellon	So.
P	Joseph Rhodes V	Case Western Reserve	Jr.
RET	Hilton McClain, Jr.	Geneva	Jr.

 

All-PAC Second Team (Offense)
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.
OL	Jack Turner	Allegheny	Sr.
OL	Hunter Campbell	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
OL	Andy Mellinger	Geneva	Sr.
OL	Adam Kozera	W&J	Sr.
OL	Frank Cortazzo IV	Waynesburg	Sr.
TE/HB/FB	Robert Tamburrino	Grove City	Sr.
WR	Hilton McClain, Jr.	Geneva	Jr.
WR	Jacob Macosko	W&J	So.
WR	Jalen Royal-Eiland	Westminster	So.
QB	Logan Pfeuffer	Grove City	Jr.
RB	Tre Vasiliadis	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
A-P	Willem Bouma	Carnegie Mellon	So.

 

All-PAC Second Team (Defense)
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.
DL	Thor Truelson	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
DL	Luke Faber	Thiel	Jr.
DL	Avery Keith	W&J	Jr.
DL	Daniel Thimons	Westminster	Gr.
LB	Sean Torres	Case Western Reserve	Sr.
LB	Gabe Trexler	Geneva	Jr.
LB	Justin Johns	W&J	Sr.
LB	Dylan Sleva	Westminster	So.
DB	Aryan Hegde	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
DB	Dominic Magliocco	Grove City	Sr.
DB	Donelle Thomas	Thiel	Sr.
DB	Zachai Simmons	W&J	Jr.

 

All-PAC Second Team (Special Teams)
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.
K	Caleb Kuechly	Grove City	So.
P	Kyle Murray	Saint Vincent	So.
RET	Gabe Dunlap	Grove City	Sr.

 

All-PAC Honorable Mention (Offense)
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.
OL	Cole McCabe	Bethany	Fr.
OL	Dustin Moss	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
OL	Owen Myer	Case Western Reserve	So.
OL	Eric White	Geneva	Gr.
OL	Dalton Foore	Grove City	Jr.
OL	Nathan Brady	Grove City	Sr.
OL	Eddie Nicotra	W&J	Jr.
OL	Braden Mika	Westminster	Fr.
OL	Matthew Howard	Westminster	Jr.
TE/HB/FB	Austin Williams	Allegheny	Jr.
TE/HB/FB	Danny Moynihan	Carnegie Mellon	So.
TE/HB/FB	Jared Ozias	Geneva	Sr.
TE/HB/FB	Raymond Holmes	W&J	Jr.
TE/HB/FB	Damon Maul	Westminster	5th
WR	Michael Wojkowski	Case Western Reserve	Sr.
WR	Kaelib McElroy	Saint Vincent	Sr.
WR	Chase Lawler	Thiel	Jr.
WR	Dakota Romantino	Waynesburg	Jr.
WR	Isaac Trout	Waynesburg	So.
QB	Jack Johnson	Allegheny	Sr.
QB	Ben Mills	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
QB	Alex Fromberg	Case Western Reserve	Sr.
QB	Ty McGowan	Westminster	So.
RB	Kyrie Miller	Allegheny	Sr.
RB	Gage Duesler	Case Western Reserve	Jr.
RB	Logan Kent	Geneva	So.
RB	Josh Syster	Geneva	Jr.
RB	Clayton Parrish	Grove City	5th
RB	Andrew Plowden	Thiel	Sr.
RB	Zane Cawley	Waynesburg	So.
RB	Ryan Gomes	Westminster	5th
A-P	Anthony Rosati	W&J	Jr.
A-P	Justin Flack	Waynesburg	Gr.
A-P	Chevy Dawson	Westminster	5th

 

All-PAC Honorable Mention (Defense)
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.
DL	Nigel Williams	Allegheny	Sr.
DL	Eric Hoeffel	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
DL	AJ Dudowski	Case Western Reserve	Sr.
DL	Mike Kelly	Case Western Reserve	Gr.
DL	Kobe Bonanno	Grove City	Jr.
DL	Max Pisula	Saint Vincent	Sr.
DL	Chad Morningstar	Thiel	Jr.
DL	Chase Nicomatti	Waynesburg	Sr.
DL	Joel Zellem	Waynesburg	Sr.
DL	Carter Chinn	Westminster	Sr.
LB	Malcolm Denomme	Allegheny	Jr.
LB	Rondell Lewis	Bethany	Sr.
LB	Logan Young	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
LB	Evan Roper	Carnegie Mellon	Jr.
LB	Ryan Fleming	Grove City	Gr.
LB	Jack Jollie	Grove City	So.
LB	Wiley Purry	Saint Vincent	Jr.
LB	Nathan Sullivan	Saint Vincent	Sr.
LB	Jaquaivis Valle-Smith	Waynesburg	Sr.
DB	David Williams	Allegheny	Fr.
DB	Dadrick Vickers	Bethany	Sr.
DB	Jackson Lajoie	Carnegie Mellon	Jr.
DB	Nate Cikalo	Case Western Reserve	Jr.
DB	Dan Guzevich	Geneva	So.
DB	Ethan Facey	Saint Vincent	Jr.
DB	Brennan Boron	Waynesburg	Jr.
DB	Monroe Mohler	Waynesburg	Sr.
DB	Kevin Wright	Westminster	Jr.
DB	Corte Williams	Westminster	Sr.

 

All-PAC Honorable Mention (Special Teams)
Pos.	Name	School	Yr.
K	Ricky Hunter	W&J	Sr.
K/P	Ricco Sastoque	Waynesburg	So.
P	Kaveh Wojtowich	Carnegie Mellon	Sr.
RET	Jayden Thorpe	Allegheny	Fr.
RET	Dominic Voiland	Carnegie Mellon	Jr.