Eleven Brown Gridders Earn All-Ivy Accolades
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
The 2012 All-Ivy Football Team was announced today with 11 Brown players earning All-Ivy honors, including senior defensive back AJ Cruz (Lake Forest, CA), a unanimous First Team selection, who is the 10th Brown player to be named a three-time First Team honoree. Joining Cruz on the First Team is senior offensive guard Nathan Bernstein (Charlotte, NC), senior offensive tackle Cole Hooper (Oklahoma City, OK) and senior linebacker Stephen Zambetti (Germantown, TN). The head coaches of the eight Ancient Eight schools select the All-Ivy team.
Brown’s Second Team honorees include senior wide receiver Tellef Lundevall (Highland Park, IL), senior defensive tackle Ross Walthall (Carmel, IN), junior defensive end Michael Yules (South Dartmouth, MA), junior defensive back Emory Polley (University Heights, OH), junior kicker Alex Norocea (Hermosa Beach, CA) and Cruz as a return specialist. Junior offensive guard Dan Austin (Franklin, TN) and junior linebacker Adewole Oyalowo (Bowie, MD) earned Honorable Mention All-Ivy accolades.
Cruz joins back Paul Choquette ’60, kicker Jose Violante ’76, wide receiver Sean Morey ’99, quarterback James Perry ’00, wide receiver Steve Campbell ’01, running back Nick Hartigan ’06, Zak DeOssie ’07, Steve Morgan ’08 and Buddy Farnham ’10 as Brown’s three-time All-Ivy selections. Only 41 players in Ivy League football history have been selected First Team All-Ivy three times.
A co-captain, Cruz ranked second on the team with 71 total tackles, and intercepted four passes, second best in the Ivy League. He had 10 tackles against both Harvard and Dartmouth, and nine tackles vs. both Penn and Princeton. Cruz intercepted two passes in Brown’s shutout win over Yale and had one each against Holy Cross and Cornell. His 12 career interceptions ranks fourth in the Brown record book. An exceptional return specialist, Cruz also returned punts and kickoffs, and earned Second Team All-Ivy honors as a return specialist. He ranks sixth all-time at Brown with 929 career kickoff return yards.
Hooper, Bernstein and Austin were key cogs in the Brown offensive line that yielded just 2.8 sacks per game, 18th best in the nation. With injuries to the offensive line and tailback position, the trio helped the offensive line to four straight games without a sack to end the season, and did not allow a sack in 7-of-10 games. In addition, Brown’s 4.4 yards per rush ranked second in the Ivy League.
Zambetti led the Bears and ranked third in the Ivy League in tackles with 8.9 per game. He led a Brown defensive unit that ranked 11th nationally in rushing defense (113.1 yards per game), and seventh nationally in scoring defense (16.6 ppg). He registered a career high 14 tackles against Princeton and had 12 tackles against both Holy Cross and Columbia. Zambetti had seven tackles for a loss, including two against both Princeton and Columbia.
Lundevall completed a terrific season for the Bears, making 72 catches for 718 yards. His 72 receptions rank 10th best in Brown football history, while he also moved into fifth place in Brown career receptions with 155 catches. Lundevall’s 7.2 catches per game ranked 14th nationally. He turned in a record-setting performance against Penn with 17 catches for 170 yards and a touchdown. His 17 receptions rank sixth best in Brown football history.
Walthall, a co-captain, was among the Ivy League leaders with 12 tackles for a loss and three quarterback sacks. He ranked seventh on the Brown team and first among defensive linemen with 35 total tackles, including 22 solo hits. Walthall had six tackles against Princeton and Rhode Island, including three tackles for a loss in each game.
Polley led the Ivy League in passes defended, knocking down 11 passes. He intercepted four passes, second most in the Ivy League, and made 32 tackles for the season, including 22 solo stops. He had a season high six tackles against Harvard and Penn. The versatile Polley also returned kickoffs late in the season and averaged a team high 24.7 yards per return.
Yules had a breakout year for the Bears and ranked 13th nationally with 13 tackles for a loss of 59 yards. He had 32 tackles overall, and ranked fourth in the Ivy League with 6.5 quarterback sacks. Yules was named the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week after he led the Brown defense that held Georgetown to one yard of total offense in the second half and zero first downs after halftime. He had two quarterback sacks for a loss of 13 yards and added another tackle for a loss against the Hoyas.
Norocea was the Ivy League’s second ranked kick-scorer with 5.3 points per game. He connected on 9-of-11 field goals and 26-of-26 extra points in 2012, and converted 31-of-45 career field goals. He booted 46-yard field goals vs. Penn and Yale, the longest in the Ivy League this season, and 12th longest all-time at Brown.
Oyalowo emerged as one of the outstanding linebackers in the Ivy League and one of the top graded players on the Brown squad. His 65 total tackles ranked third on the Brown team and included 40 solo stops. He has a nose for the ball, intercepting two passes and making six tackles for a loss of 12 yards. Oyalowo turned in a strong performance against Dartmouth with 11 tackles against the Big Green. He had a season high six solo tackles against both Holy Cross and Princeton.
2012 All-Ivy Football Team
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Dalyn Williams, Dartmouth (Fr., QB - Corinth, Texas)
FIRST TEAM ALL-IVY
Offense
Nathan Bernstein, Brown (Sr., OL - Charlotte, N.C.)
Cole Hooper, Brown (Sr., OL - Oklahoma City)
*J.C. Tretter, Cornell (Sr., OL - Akron, N.Y.)
Rob Bathe, Dartmouth (Sr., OL - Plymouth, Minn.)
John Collins, Harvard (Sr., OL - Hull, Mass.)
Jack Holuba, Harvard (Sr., OL - Ho-Ho-Kus, N.J.)
Joe Bonadies, Penn (Sr., OL - Leonia, N.J.)
Colton Chapple, Harvard (Sr., QB - Alpharetta, Ga.)
Marcorus Garrett, Columbia (Jr., RB - Marietta, Ga.)
*Kyle Juszczyk, Harvard (Sr., H-Back - Medina, Ohio)
Treavor Scales, Harvard (Sr., RB - Stone Mountain, Ga.)
Tyler Varga, Yale (So., RB - Kitchener, Ontario, Canada)
*Luke Tasker, Cornell (Sr., WR - East Aurora, N.Y.)
Michael Reilly, Dartmouth (Sr., WR - Denver)
*Cameron Brate, Harvard (Jr., TE - Naperville, Ill.)
Defense
Josh Martin, Columbia (Sr., DL - Aurora, Colo.)
Zach Hodges, Harvard (So., DL - Atlanta)
Brandon Copeland, Penn (Sr., DL - Sykesville, Md.)
*Mike Catapano, Princeton (Sr., DL - Bayville, N.Y.)
*Caraun Reid, Princeton (Sr., DL - Bronx, N.Y.)
Stephen Zambetti, Brown (Sr., LB - Germantown, Tenn.)
Michael Runger, Dartmouth (Jr., LB - Lisle, Ill.)
*Joshua Boyd, Harvard (Sr., LB - Hyde Park, Mass.)
Daniel Davis, Penn (So., LB - Norman, Okla.)
*A.J. Cruz, Brown (Sr., DB - Lake Forest, Calif.)
Garrett Waggoner, Dartmouth (Sr., DB - Sarasota, Fla.)
Sebastian Jaskowski, Penn (Jr., DB - Moorestown, N.J.)
Anthony Gaffney, Princeton (Fr., DB - Columbus, N.J.)
Special Teams
David Mothander, Harvard (Jr., PK - San Juan Capistrano, Calif.)
Jacob Dombrowski, Harvard (Sr., P - Gaylord, Mich.)
Scott Lopano, Penn (Sr., P - Southlake, Texas)
Anthony Gaffney, Princeton (Fr., RS - Columbus, N.J.)
SECOND TEAM ALL-IVY
Offense
Anthony Fabiano, Harvard (So., OL - Wakefield, Mass.)
Christopher Bush, Penn (Sr., OL - Westwood, N.J.)
Michael Piniciotti, Penn (Sr., OL - West Chester, Pa.)
Spenser Huston, Princeton (So., OL - Summit, N.J.)
Roy Collins, Yale (Sr., OT - Carbondale, Ill.)
Jeff Mathews, Cornell (Jr., QB - Camarillo, Calif.)
Dominick Pierre, Dartmouth (Jr., RB - Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
Lyle Marsh, Penn (Sr., RB - Bethel Park, Pa.)
Tellef Lundevall, Brown (Sr., WR - Highland Park, Ill.)
Grant Gellatly, Cornell (Jr., WR - Iaaaquah, Wash.)
Conner Scott, Penn (Jr., WR - Kenilworth, Ill.)
Roman Wilson, Princeton (Jr., WR - Broken Arrow, Okla.)
Mark Hayes, Princeton (Sr., TE - Tulsa, Okla.)
Defense
Ross Walthall, Brown (Sr., DL - Carmel, Ind.)
Michael Yules, Brown (Sr., DL - South Dartmouth, Mass.)
Teddy Reed, Dartmouth (Sr., DL - Boxford, Mass.)
John Lyon, Harvard (Sr., DL - Durham, N.C.)
Nnamdi Obukwelu, Harvard (Jr., DL - Brockton, Mass.)
Zach Olinger, Columbia (Jr., LB - Hoover, Ala.)
Bronson Green, Dartmouth (Jr., LB - Los Angeles)
Alexander Norman, Harvard (Sr., LB - Lewisville, Texas)
Andrew Starks, Princeton (Sr., LB - Plainfield, Ill.)
Emory Polley, Brown (Jr., DB - University Heights, Ohio)
Norman Hayes, Harvard (So., DB - Tucker, Ga.)
Chris Splinter, Harvard (Jr., DB - Middleton, Mass.)
Dave Twamley, Penn (Sr., DB - Princeton Junction, Mass.)
Dan Wilk, Penn (Jr., DB - Bethlehem, Pa.)
Special Teams
Alexander Norocea, Brown (Jr., PK - Hermosa Beach, Calif.)
Joe Cloud, Princeton (Sr., P - Edwards, Ill.)
A.J. Cruz, Brown (Sr., RS - Lake Forest, Calif.)
Tyler Varga, Yale (So., RS - Kitchener, Ontario, Canada)
HONORABLE MENTION ALL-IVY
Daniel Austin, Brown (Jr., OL - Franklin, Tenn.)
Patrick Lahey, Dartmouth (Sr., OL - North Andover, Mass.)
Wes Gavin, Yale (Jr., OL - San Diego)
John Oppenheimer, Yale (Jr., C - Menlo Park, Calif.)
Billy Ragone, Penn (Sr., QB - Chesire, Conn.)
Mordecai Cargill, Yale (Sr., RB - Cleveland)
Ryan McManus, Dartmouth (So., WR - Mendota Heights, Minn.)
Grant Sickle, Harvard (Sr., DL - Jupiter, Fla.)
Adewole Oyalowo, Brown (Jr., LB - Bowie, Md.)
Mike Waller, Columbia (Sr., LB - Wayne, N.J.)
Brett Buehler, Cornell (Jr., LB - Dublin, Ohio)
Bobby Schneider, Harvard (Sr., LB - Grapevine, Texas)
Tim Kingsbury, Princeton (Sr., LB - Palos Park, Ill.)
D.J. Monroe, Harvard (Jr., DB - Columbia, S.C.)
Phillip Bhaya, Princeton (Jr., DB - Haddonfield, N.J.)
Collin Bibb, Yale (Sr., DB - San Antonio, Texas)
Connor Loftus, Penn (So., PK - Villa Park, Calif.)
* Unanimous Selectionelection
