Six Hounds Earn All-Centennial Conference Honors
LANCASTER, Pa. --- The Moravian College football team placed six players on the 2014 Centennial All-Conference Teams with junior defensive back Jimmy McCarthy leading the way with a spot on the All-Conference First Team.
LANCASTER, Pa. --- The Moravian College football team placed six players on the 2014 Centennial All-Conference Teams with junior defensive back Jimmy McCarthy leading the way with a spot on the All-Conference First Team.
Junior defensive back Anthony Orlando, sophomore running back Chris Negron and freshman running back/return specialist Eli Redmond were named to the All-Conference Second Team while junior offensive lineman Daniel Smith and sophomore defensive lineman John Snyder garnered spots on the All-Conference Honorable Mention squad.
Senior offensive lineman Jacob McKee was honored on the Centennial Conference All-Sportsmanship Team for football.
McCarthy moved to defensive back this fall during preseason camp after spending two seasons at wide receiver including his freshman campaign when McCarthy was selected as the Centennial Conference Rookie of the Year. McCarthy led the Moravian defense and the Centennial Conference with five interceptions this season, and he had a total of 12 passes defended and 46 tackles with 37 solo stops.
McCarthy was a jack-of-all-trades for the Greyhounds this year, serving as the holder for extra-points including scoring on a two-point conversion, taking over as the team's punter and averaging 30.1 yards per punt on 33 kicks with eight inside the 20-yard line and three fair caught, returning eight punts for 45 yards and returning 15 kickoffs for 251 yards. In the Greyhounds game at Johns Hopkins University in September, McCarthy became the school record holder in career kickoff returns and yardage and will head into his senior campaign in 2015 with marks of 75 kickoff returns and 1,532 return yards.
"We asked a lot of Jimmy this season from the switch of positions in the preseason to taking on the punting duties midway through the year, and he did it all and had a tremendous season," commented Head Coach Jeff Pukszyn. "Jimmy is a phenomenal athlete and such a great teammate. We works hard all week to be ready for Saturdays and help his teammates anyway he can. I think it is a great honor for him to make the All-Conference First Team after making the switch to defensive back."
Orlando, who was on the 2013 All-Conference First Team in his first year with the Hounds, contributed 51 tackles (third on the squad) with 35 solo tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks, an interception and two passes defended. Orlando was limited to eight games this fall while missing a pair of contests after an injury at Johns Hopkins. In two seasons with the Greyhounds, Orlando has 154 tackles, 99 solo stops, eight tackles for loss, four sacks, one interception, three passes defended, one forced fumble and three fumble recoveries, returning two for touchdowns in 2013.
"Anthony has had a huge impact on our program since transferring in last season," Pukszyn stated. 'He was a little banged up for a couple of games this fall but is such a versatile player that we were able to use him in a nickel linebacker position at the end of the year so we could go with five defensive backs on the field. He is a high energy player and makes everyone around him better."
Negron, who made the All-Conference Second Team for a second consecutive season, led the Moravian rushing attack with 858 yards and nine touchdowns on 206 carries, and he also caught 12 passes for 116 yards and another two scores. In just 20 career games, Negron is ranked 10th in school history in both attempts with 375 and yards with 1,910, and he is tied for ninth with 16 career rushing touchdowns and 108 points.
"Chris had another tremendous year for us and actually carried the ball more this fall than he did as a freshman," Pukszyn said. "He worked extremely hard in the offseason, and it showed up on Saturdays when he could carry more of the workload and take more hits and bounce right back up. We're excited to have him in the back field for another two seasons as he closes in on 2,000 yards."
Redmond, who started the year as a wide receiver before moving to running back after the first contest, made the All-Conference squad as a return specialist after returning 14 kickoffs for 341 yards. He took the opening kickoff of the second game of the year versus McDaniel 100 yards for a touchdown to set the Moravian and Centennial record for longest kickoff return. Redmond added 727 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 112 carries, and he caught 11 passes for 45 yards. Redmond led the Greyhounds this fall with 14 plays of more than 20 yards including 10 rushing attempts and four kickoff returns.
"Eli has great explosiveness when he touches the ball, and we saw that all season," explained Pukszyn. "Due to an injury, we had to move him to running back where he hadn't played in a couple of years, and he did a great job. Eli and Chris are each other's biggest fans on the sidelines when they aren't on the field, and they give us a tremendous back field tandem for the next couple of seasons."
Smith, a three-year starter, began the season as the Hounds' starter at right guard but he also saw time at center due to injuries and started all 10 games this fall. Smith and his line mates helped the Greyhounds average 191.2 yards per game on the ground, fourth in the conference, and 361.3 total yards per game, sixth among Centennial schools. Moravian allowed just 18 sacks this fall, fifth in the conference.
"Dan has been on the starting offensive line since his freshman year and is a big reason why we've been able to run the ball very well the last two seasons," Pukszyn commented. "Dan is also versatile enough to move between guard and center when we needed him too."
Snyder earned a spot on the Centennial Honorable Mention list for a second straight year. He was limited to six games in 2014 due to an injury, and Snyder had 34 tackles, 14 solo stops, three tackles for loss, one and a half sacks, two pass break-ups, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. In 15 career contests, Snyder has 73 tackles, 32 solo stops, eight and a half tackles for loss, four sacks, five pass break-ups, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
"John might be one of the strongest players in the conference, and it is a testament to his play on the field to earn All-Conference honors for a second straight season after missing the final four games with an injury," stated Pukszyn. "John will be back from the injury by the start of next fall and we are looking forward to him anchoring the defensive line for the next two seasons."
McKee, a three-year starter at right tackle for the Greyhounds, was one of the team's tri-captains this fall, and he started 27 straight games on the offensive line after making the transition from tight end early in his sophomore season.
"Jacob has been a tremendous asset to the program during his career," Pukszyn said. "He was voted one of our team captains this fall by his teammates and shows all the aspects of sportsmanship off the field, at practice and on game day."
The Greyhounds posted a 5-5 mark this fall, and the Hounds were tied for fifth in the Centennial Conference with a 4-5 record.
