FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 17, 2016
Kidd Headlines Three Major Award Winners for LIU Post
MANSFIELD, Mass. – LIU Post quarterback Jeff Kidd has been named the 2016 NE-10 Most Valuable Player, it was revealed on Thursday as the league office announced its football all-conference teams and major award winners.
Kidd was one of three major award winners for the NE-10 Champion Pioneers. Joining Kidd as LIU Post’s award recipients were defensive back Jared Chester and head coach Bryan Collins. Chester landed NE-10 Defensive Player of the Year honors, while Collins was selected as the league’s Coach of the Year.
For a complete list of all-conference members and award winners, as voted upon by the league's head coaches, please see below.
Kidd helped lead LIU Post to its second NE-10 title in three years, as well as the conference regular season crown and a perfect 11-0 overall record. He led the NE-10 in both passing yards per game (246.3) and completion percentage (65.3%) this season. Despite missing two games due to injury, Kidd still managed to throw for 2,217 yards and 23 touchdowns while also rushing for 356 yards and four scores on the ground.
A first team all-conference pick at quarterback for the second consecutive season, Kidd topped 300 passing yards in three separate games and recorded three or more total touchdowns on six occasions, including two five-touchdown performances. His 23 passing touchdowns rank second in the league, while his four rushing scores have him tied for 12th. Kidd was named to the NE-10 All-Championship Team after throwing for 203 yards and three touchdowns in the NE-10 title game.
Chester tied for the league lead in interceptions with six picks on the season. He led LIU Post with 64 total tackles on the year, including 34 solo stops, while also adding nine pass breakups, two tackles for loss and a fumble recovery. Chester made a big impact in the title game, coming up with an interception late in the second quarter and returning it 38 yards, ultimately setting up a field goal that give LIU Post a seven-point lead just before halftime.
Collins led the Pioneers to a perfect 9-0 record in conference play en route to the NE-10 regular season title, a major improvement from LIU Post’s 5-4 mark in NE-10 play a season ago. LIU Post defeated Assumption by 20 points in the NE-10 Championship and enters the NCAA tournament as a No. 2 seed with an impressive 11-0 overall record. Collins’ squad averaged 37.7 points per game on offense while giving up just 17.4 points per contest on defense.
Assumption wide receiver Ashton Grant was honored as the NE-10 Offensive Player of the Year after helping the Greyhounds earn their second straight NCAA tournament berth. Grant lands first team all-conference laurels after earning second team honors a season ago. The NE-10 leader in touchdown receptions, Grant hauled in 13 touchdown passes on the year. He also ranks second in the league with 91.9 receiving yards per game, catching 69 passes for 919 yards.
Stonehill’s Andrew Jamiel claimed NE-10 Rookie of the Year honors after an impressive freshman season as the Skyhawks’ go-to playmaker. Jamiel leads the country with 9.1 receptions per game, and he tied the Stonehill program record for receptions in a season with 91 catches on the year. He turned those 91 catches into 843 yards and seven touchdowns while adding 364 yards in the return game for a grand total of 1,207 all-purpose yards.
New Haven’s Zach Voytek was named the NE-10 Offensive Lineman of the Year for the third consecutive season, the first player in NE-10 history to do so. Behind Voytek, the Chargers put up 31.8 points and 388.6 yards per game this season. Voytek was one of four unanimous first team all-conference selections, earning all-conference accolades for the fourth season in a row.
American International’s Danny Omoregie was tabbed as the NE-10 Defensive Lineman of the Year after anchoring the Yellow Jackets’ defense this season. AIC allowed only 16.1 points per game on the year, which tops the NE-10. Omoregie ranks fourth in the league with 95 total tackles, including 35 solo takedowns. He is among the top 10 in the NE-10 with 10.5 tackles for loss and five sacks.
LIU Post led the way with 17 total student-athletes honored and nine first team selections. Assumption was second with 13 honorees, while AIC and New Haven each had nine. Assumption and New Haven each had five first team selections as well.
2016 NE-10 Football All-Conference
First Team Offense
QB – Jeff Kidd, LIU Post *
RB – David White, LIU Post
RB – Andre Anderson, New Haven * $
WR – Ashton Grant, Assumption ^
WR – Shane Hubbard, LIU Post * %
WR – Ty Headen, New Haven ^ %
TE – Kaleb Lutton, Stonehill ^
OL – Sully Crotty, Assumption *
OL – Eric Beckwith, Bentley ^ %
OL – Joe Lacey, LIU Post
OL – James Louison, LIU Post
OL – Zach Voytek, New Haven * % # $
PK – Danny Stock, New Haven ^
RS – Deonte Harris, Assumption *
First Team Defense
DL – Danny Omoregie, American International * % $
DL – Anthony DeNunzio, LIU Post
DL – Kevin Petit-Frere, LIU Post *
DL – Kenny Scotland, LIU Post ^
DL – Josh Hill, Merrimack ^
LB – Jerrod Shelby, American International ^
LB – Jarrod Casey, Assumption * %
LB – Bryan Hardy, Bentley ^
LB – Tyler Condit, New Haven * %
DB – Devonte Dillon, American International
DB – Daquan Holmes, American International *
DB – Andrew Benson, Assumption
DB – Jared Chester, LIU Post
P – Tyler Ford, Bentley * $
Second Team Offense
QB – Marc Monks, Assumption
RB – Dylan Oxsen, Assumption
RB – Alex Shain, Assumption ^
WR – Kyle Hill, Saint Anselm
WR – Devante Jenkins, Southern Connecticut *
WR – Andrew Jamiel, Stonehill
TE – Jonathan Badyna, New Haven
OL – DJ DeGeorge, Assumption ^
OL – Chris Coles, LIU Post
OL – Eliot Leubner, New Haven ^ %
OL – Dylan Vano, Southern Connecticut
OL – Anthony Siciliano, Stonehill ^
PK – Joey Tolgyesi, LIU Post
RS – Kyle Ward, LIU Post
Second Team Defense
DL – Anthony Appleton, American International
DL – Omari Manhertz, American International
DL – Joe Bruno, Assumption
DL – Jesse Agbotse, LIU Post
DL – Dean Tsopanides, New Haven ^
DL – Andrew Kibarian, Stonehill ^
LB – Nick Valenti, Assumption ^
LB – Nate Feliz, LIU Post
LB – Enrique McFarlane, Merrimack
LB – Ryan Doherty, Stonehill ^
DB – Bakari Blunt, Assumption %
DB – Peter Thorbahn, Bentley
DB – Jhaleel Oswald, LIU Post
DB – Richard Wright, LIU Post
DB – Joshua Flowers, LIU Post
P – Danny Stock, New Haven ^
* - First Team in 2015
^ - Second Team in 2015
% - All-Conference in 2014
# - All-Conference in 2013
$ - Unanimous Selection
All-Rookie Team
Azeem Cooper, LB, American Int’l
CJ Ibezim, LB, American International
Ju’an Williams, WR, American Int’l
Doug Santos, RB, Assumption
Peter Thorbahn, DB, Bentley
Joshua Flowers, DB, LIU Post
Erick Browne, OL Merrimack
Sebastian Lucas, WR, Merrimack
Ryan McCarthy, RB/KR, New Haven
Matt Snow, OL, Pace
Joe Buissereth, C, Southern Connecticut
Matt Weiss, DL, Southern Connecticut
Matthew Haite, K, Stonehill
Andrew Jamiel, WR, Stonehill
Most Valuable Player – Jeff Kidd, LIU Post
Offensive Player of the Year – Ashton Grant, Assumption
Defensive Player of the Year – Jared Chester, LIU Post
Rookie of the Year – Andrew Jamiel, Stonehill
Offensive Lineman of the Year – Zach Voytek, New Haven
Defensive Lineman of the Year – Danny Omoregie, American International
Coach of the Year – Bryan Collins, LIU Post
ABOUT THE NORTHEAST-10
The Northeast-10 Conference is an association of 15 NCAA Division II colleges and universities located in New England and New York that is committed to supporting balanced academic and athletic opportunities for more than 6,500 student-athletes.
Each year, 4,500 of those student-athletes compete in conference championships in 24 sports, making the NE-10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the Northeast-10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
