A total of 13 University of St. Francis football players were recently selected to the All-Mid-States Football Association/ Midwest League honor team after a vote by league coaches.

USF's contingent of first-team honorees includes two seniors -- center Marc Novak (Marian Catholic H.S./St. John, IN) and wide receiver Jason Fiske (Belvidere H.S./Loves Park, IL) -- and a pair of freshmen - redshirt running back Connor Krisch (Joliet Catholic Academy/Plainfield, IL) and punter/placekicker Patrick Wright (Providence Catholic H.S./Lemont, IL).

Three other Saints -- senior quarterback John Goolsby (Morris H.S./Morris, IL), junior offensive lineman Nick Reicher (Downers Grove North H.S./Westmont, IL) andjunior defensive lineman Ryan Ramos (Oak Forest H.S./Midlothian, IL) -- all garnered second-team honors.

Six more Saints were named to the honorable mention list. That group consisted of junior offensive lineman Jim Jadron (Joliet Catholic Academy/Joliet, IL), junior linebacker Brenton Valentine (Morris H.S./Morris, IL), senior linebacker Dan Heimerdinger (Richards H.S./Oak Lawn, IL), sophomore defensive back C.J. Santiago (Harmony H.S./St. Cloud, FL), sophomore defensive back Wayne Johnson (York H.S./McConnells, SC) and junior offensive lineman Mike Benjamin (Aurora Central Catholic H.S./Aurora, IL).

Novak was accorded first-team honors for the second straight year after completing his fourth season as the Saints' starting center. He helped key an offensive line that enabled the Saints to finish third in the Midwest League and eighth among all 16 MSFA teams in rushing with an average of over 150 yards per game. The USF line also enabled the Saints to finish second in the Midwest League in sacks allowed with just 14 in 11 games.

Fiske earned first-team honors for the first time after being accorded second-team recognition in 2008 and honorable mention kudos in 2006. He led the entire MSFA in receptions per game with an average of 7.64 per contest and was third in receiving yards per game with a mark of 83.7. He completed his career as USF's all-time leader in pass receptions with 186 and tied the single-season mark for touchdown catches this year with 7.

Krisch became just the fourth player to rush for 1,000 yards or more in a season in USF history. The redshirt freshman did not even see significant playing time until the campaign's fourth game when he replaced injured starting tailback Javon Stewart (Bolingbrook H.S./Bolingbrook, IL) midway through the contest. He topped the 200-yard mark twice, becoming the first Saint to ever achieve that standard. He rushed for 211 yards at Iowa Wesleyan and 200 more at Waldorf (IA) and was named the Midwest League Offensive Player of the Week on both occasions.

Wright was recognized for his placekicking as a true freshman. He connected on 13-of-17 field goal attempts, with a long of 42 yards on three occasions, and finished first in the Midwest League in kick scoring with 72 points for an average of 6.5 points per game.

Goolsby rewrote most of the Saints' single-game, single-season and career passing records in 2009. He broke three single-game marks - attempts (57), completions (36) and yards (375) - in USF's narrow 24-20 loss at eventual Midwest League champion McKendree. He tied the school's single-game touchdown pass mark of 4 in a 62-20 win over Olivet Nazarene. He completed his career with school records in passes attempted (923) and touchdown passes (48). Reicher was named to the second team for the first time after being an honorable mention selection in 2008 and just completed his third season as a starter in the offensive line. Ramos was a second-team pick for the second straight year. He led the Saints with 10 tackles-for-loss and added 3 sacks.

Jadron picked up honorable mention accolades for the second straight season in as many years at USF. Valentine also is a repeat honorable mention selection. He led the USF defense with 72 tackles, including a team-best 40 solos. Heimerdinger is a first-time all-league pick and was leading the Saints in tackles with 57 when his season ended due to an injury in week eight. Santiago, also a first-time honoree, had 27 tackles, 3 pass breakups and a fumble recovery as one of the anchors in the USF secondary. First-time selection Johnson led USF in interceptions with 4 and pass breakups with 6. He also led the Saints in kickoff returns with 24 for 463 yards. Benjamin was recognized for the first time after a stellar season at one of the two offensive tackle slots in the Saints' interior line.