Seventeen Morehead State football players have been named to the 2015 All-Pioneer Football League teams, including six on the first or second teams.
Junior quarterback Austin Gahafer, senior slot receiver Justin Cornwall, senior cornerback Justin Grier and senior long snapper Jakey Dunagan were tabbed First-Team All-PFL. Senior linebacker Luke Keller and junior linebacker Ryan Bennett were tabbed to the second team. Gahafer was named the Offensive Player of the Year on Monday.
Honorable Mention selections included sophomore kicker Shavi Bash, sophomore defensive lineman Colt Briggs, junior punter Pat DiSalvio, senior offensive lineman Todd DeWoody, senior offensive lineman Alex Hey, senior defensive lineman Rob Lewis, sophomore offensive lineman Liam Maloney, senior wide receiver Tanner Napier, junior offensive lineman C.J. Phillips, junior slot receiver Jake Raymond and senior corner back Trey Watkins.
Morehead State concluded the 2015 season 7-4 overall and 6-2 in the league, good enough for second place. It marked the highest win total since 2007.
Gahafer (Louisville, Ky.) finished 2015 with 3,244 yards and 24 scores through the air. He also rushed for three touchdowns and caught two scoring tosses, accounting for 291.5 total offensive yards per game. Gahafer ranks second in the nation in passing yards and completions per game (26.4). A finalist for the STATS, LLC National Offensive Player of the Year, Gahafer recorded six 300-yard games, including a season-high 447 yards and four touchdowns at VMI early in the year. That effort earned him the STATS National Offensive Player of the Week accolade.
Cornwall (Cincinnati, Ohio) led the PFL in receiving yards (919), touchdowns (11) and catches per game (7.0). He led the team with 77 receptions and produced four 100-yard performances. His top game came in a 154-yard, two-touchdown effort at VMI. He also tied the MSU single-game record with three touchdowns versus Jacksonville and Drake. He earned PFL Offensive Player of the Week once.
Grier (Saks, Ala.), one of only two unanimous first-team selections, led the PFL and the entire Football Championship Subdivision with a school single-season record nine interceptions. He totaled 55 tackles and led the league with 18 passes defended. Grier also blocked a field goal versus Drake.
Dunagan (Monticello, Ga.), the first-ever PFL long snapper to be on the first-team as the award was added this season, graded out at 100 percent on snaps for the season. He helped the punt coverage unit allow just 6.1 yards per return.
Keller (Lucasville, Ohio) returned from a potential career-ending medical condition to rank fourth on the team with 56 tackles in just six games. He ranked third on the team with nine tackles for loss (minus-36 yards) and had three sacks. He recovered a fumble on the final play of the 2015 season at Marist to preserve a 20-17 win and a 7-4 season. Keller was named PFL defensive Player of the Week once.
Bennett (Alpharetta, Ga.) paced the defensive unit and ranked seventh in the league with 96 total stops. Bennett, who had five double-digit tackle efforts, also had 4.5 tackles for loss. He recorded a career-best 14 stops against Dayton.
DeWoody (Lawrenceburg, Ky.), Hey (Bryan, Ohio), Maloney (Liberty Township, Ohio) and Phillips (Louisville) blocked for an offensive unit that led the conference in passing yards (314.8) and ranked second in total offense (416.6). The line also led the PFL for the second straight year in fewest sacks allowed.
In his first year as the primary placekicker, Bash (Roswell, Ga.) nailed 13 field goals and was 34-of-37 on extra point attempts. Bash drilled a pair of game-winning field goals, splitting the uprights in triple overtime versus Drake and converting a 37-yarder with 16 seconds left for a three-point win at Marist in the season finale.
Briggs (Wilmington, Ohio) led the Eagles with 10.5 tackles for loss and finished with 46 total stops. He had a career-best 3.5 tackles behind the line of scrimmage and 10 total tackles in a shutout against Davidson.
DiSalvio (Cincinnati) averaged 39.9 yards on 69 punts and landed 21 inside the 20-yard line. He booted a long of 55 yards and had five punts of 50 or more yards.
Lewis (Somerset, Ky.) had 33 total tackles, including 8.5 in the backfield. He also ranked second on the team with 4.5 sacks.
Napier (Lexington, Ky.) was the third in a trio of players with 700 or more receiving yards (no other PFL team accomplished that feat), hauling in 56 catches for 760 yards and five touchdowns. Napier had a pair of 100-ayrd games, recording 137 against Dayton and 149 versus Marist while finding the end zone versus both those PFL foes. He was tabbed PFL Offensive Player of the Week following the Marist game.
Raymond (Pickerington, Ohio) ranked second in the conference with 6.5 catches per game, grabbing 72 aerials for 722 yards and six scores. He opened the year with a 130-yard effort at James Madison and followed with 106 yards at VMI.
Watkins (Cincinnati) recorded four interceptions and had 31 total tackles. He ranked second on the team with nine passes defended.
