Seven members of the Portland State football team have earned first team All-Big Sky Conference honors, including Kapa’a’s Brennan Carvalho. The Vikings had five of the 13 players named to the offensive first team. They include: RB Joe Rubin, FB
Seven members of the Portland State football team have earned first team All-Big Sky Conference honors, including Kapa’a’s Brennan Carvalho.
The Vikings had five of the 13 players named to the offensive first team. They include: RB Joe Rubin, FB Allen Kennett, WR Shaun Bodiford, TE Scott Weaver and OL Carvalho. LB Joey King and CB Dominic Dixon were named first team on defense.
As a sophomore, Carvalho was named first team All-Big Sky as the Vikings’ left guard.
Carvalho played a major role for a line that led PSU to 195.3 rushing yards per game, and allowed a league-low 10 sacks on the season.
Carvalho has started all 17 games of his PSU career.
Two more Vikings earned second team All-Big Sky Conference honors and 10 players were named honorable mention.
Featured on the Big Sky Conference first team was running back Joe Rubin. The Viking senior led the Big Sky Conference with 1,702 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns this season.
Rubin ranks third in the nation in rushing, and had 10 100-yard rushing games to set a new PSU record. He also had a 356-yard, 5-TD effort in a win over Northern Colorado. Rubin was twice named Big Sky Player of the Week and once National Player of the Week.
Rubin shared PSU team Most Valuable Player honors with Shaun Bodiford, another Big Sky first teamer.
Bodiford, a senior, led PSU in receiving this year with 51 catches for 545 yards and five touchdowns. He added 13 carries for 77 yards and another touchdown, as well as returning 30 kickoffs for a school-record 724 yards. Bodiford averaged 122.4 all-purpose yards per game.
Fullback Allen Kennett was the primary blocker for Rubin, and earned first team honors as well. However, Kennett was also a playmaker, rushing 36 times for 218 yards and five touchdowns, and catching 26 passes for 288 yards and four touchdowns.
Tight end Scott Weaver, also a senior, had 14 receptions for 178 yards and a touchdown this season. He was a big part of the blocking game that gave PSU the Big Sky’s top rushing game for the second straight year.
Senior Joey King was the star of the PSU defense once again in 2005. King is a three-time AllBig Sky Conference selection with this year’s honor. He ranked second on the team with 72 tackles, had nine tackles for loss, three sacks, three pass breakups, two forced fumbles, intercepted a pass and forced a fumble.
King, who is also an Academic All-American, earned Big Sky Player of the Week once during the season, and also set a PSU record with a 95-yard fumble return.
Junior Dominic Dixon earned the second All-Big Sky Conference honor of his career. Dixon made 53 tackles and led the Vikings with three interceptions and seven pass breakups. Dixon added eight tackles for loss, two sacks and a fumble recovery. He was Big Sky Conference Player of the Week following the Vikings win over Sacramento State on Sept. 17.
Named to the Big Sky Conference second team were OL Peter St. John and special teams star Kenneth Mackins.
St. John, a sophomore, has started all 22 games of his career and been a part of a PSU line that has blocked for the Big Sky’s top rushing offense two years in a row. St. John played right guard, but moved to left tackle following an injury to Steve Blatchley.
Mackins, who had 10 receptions as a wide receiver, was named second team Special Teams player. He had 10 tackles and blocked two punts on special teams this year.
Making honorable mention were three players on offense and seven on defense. OL Derek Duff and C Antonio Narcisse and return specialist Brendan Ferrigno (15.2 punt return average, 1 TD, 27 catches, 410 yards 4 TDs) were included on the offensive team.
Earning honorable mention on defense were DTs Casey Tyler (16 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 3 pass breakups) and Matthis Gehring (19 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, 2 fumble recoveries), DE Ryan Friesen (51 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, 4 forced fumbles), LB George Quijano (76 tackles, 5 pass breakups), SS Steve Shinen (38 tackles, 2 interceptions), CB Odell Jackson (58 tackles, 2 interceptions) and FS Jordan Senn (66 tackles, 1 interception, 1 fumble recovery).
Big Sky Conference Coaches named QB Erik Meyer of Eastern Washington as the Offensive Player of the Year.
There was a three-way tie for Defensive Player of the Year among Sacramento State LB Matt Logue, Idaho State DE Jeff Charleston and Eastern Washington LB Joey Cwik. Charleston was also named Newcomer of the Year.
