Preseason Honors Continue to Pour In for Ivy Football

Preseason All-America Teams:
College Sporting News | Consensus Draft Services | FCS Senior Scout Bowl | Phil Steele | The Sports Network

Ivy League Preseason Polls:
Ivy Media | College Sporting News | Lindy's | The Sports Network

Preseason All-Ivy Teams: Phil Steele

Once again Ivy League football has been in the national spotlight entering the 2010 season with eight Ivy players receiving All-America honors and preseason predictions are abound on what team will emerge to capture the 2010 Ivy title.

Harvard senior Collin Zych has been named to the three preseason All-America teams -- third team by Phil Steel’s College Football Preview, first team on its North squad by the FCS Senior Scout Bowl and honorable mention by The Sports Network. Zych is the only Ivy League player named to the All-America teams and earned his spot as one of just six safeties nation-wide to be recognized. He also been selected as the preason choice as the Ivy League Defenisive of the Year by College Sporting News, Lindy's Football Magazine and The Sports Network.

Zych was commonly referred to as Harvard's best football player by Murphy at media sessions throughout the 2009 season as he earned team MVP honor s as well as first team All-Ivy League status. Zych, who will serve as Harvard’s 137th captain in 2010, led the Ivy League in pass breakups (12) and passes defended (14) while ranking third in the league in solo tackles with 53 - more than double the next closest Harvard defender. His 73 total tackles led the Crimson and he tied for second on the team as well with six tackles for a loss. Harvard has had at least one All-American in each of the last 11 years while posting the nation’s best winning percentage this decade.

Penn senior offensive lineman Joseph D’Orazio, a first-team All-Ivy selection last season, has been named to The Sports Network and College Sporting News Preseason All-America third teams. He was the only Ivy League player selected for the honor. As a junior, D'Orazio started all 10 games at center to help guide Penn to the 2009 Ivy League title. The Bryn Mawr, Pa., native led an offensive line that allowed the fewest sacks in the Ivy League, giving up just six in the final nine games. As a sophomore, he appeared in eight games, which included three starts at center. Among those starts, he blocked for Keiffer Garton when the signal caller ran for 174 yards against Harvard - setting a Bagnoli-era record for a quarterback. D'Orazio will lead an offensive line that has four starters returning for the 2010 season - which includes three All-Ivy selections.

Princeton linebacker Steven Cody, a rising senior and 2010 co-captain, was named Consensus Draft Services FCS Preseason All-America on its defensive second team, FCS Senior Scout Bowl Preseason All-America on its North squad first team and College Sporting News Preason All-America on its third team. Cody has been Princeton's leading tackler over the last two seasons and was one of the top tacklers in all of the FCS in 2009. He averaged 11.6 tackles per game last season, the most in the Ivy League and fifth-most in the nation. Despite his league-best 104 tackles, including 10 for loss, he was voted to only the All-Ivy League second team. He was the only Ivy League player to be named to either the All-America first or second teams with Zych, Brown senior quarterback Kyle Newhall-Caballero and Dartmouth junior cornerback Shawn Abuhoff receiving recognition as honorable mention.

Penn senior defensive back Jonathan Moore, Cornell senior safety Dempsey Quinn and Dartmouth senior defensive end Charles Bay were named to the FCS Senior Scout Bowl North squad as well.

Lindy’s and College Sporting News tabbed Newhall-Caballero as the League's preseason favorite for Offensive Player of the Year with The Sports Network named Harvard quarterback Collier Winters as its preseason pick for the Offensive Player of the Year.

Penn senior placekicker Andrew Samson was named to the Fred Mitchell Award Watch List. The award is presented to the nation’s top collegiate placekicker among more than 600 FCS, Division II, Division III and NAIA football teams. Samson is one of just 40 kickers nationwide to make the list. The Andover High School product is a two-time first-team All-Ivy honoree and was a third-team All-America selection by the Associated Press and The Sports Network in 2008, in addition to being named the 2008 ECAC Kicker of the Year. The West Bloomfield, Mich., native has never missed a point after attempt (74-for-74) and holds the school record for consecutive PAT's made. Samson is also the school record holder for field goals made in a season (16 in 2008) and set the Ivy season record for field goals made in league play (13 in 2008). He has led all Ivy kickers in scoring, field goals made and PAT percentage in each of the last two seasons.

The Award is named for Fred Mitchell, the record-setting placekicker, Wittenberg University Athletic Hall of Famer, author, philanthropist and Chicago Tribune sports columnist. The recipient of the Fred Mitchell Award will be chosen based on excellence on the football field and in the community. The Award’s Watch List is released in August, top performers are recognized monthly during the college football season, and the winner is announced in mid-December. The school of the Award winner receives scholarship funds and the Fred Mitchell Award trophy will be presented in February at the National Football Foundation Chicago Metro Chapter Awards Ceremony at Halas Hall.