Two from Southeast earn AP honors

Lang Campbell played like an All-American even against major college competition.

The William & Mary quarterback started the season with two touchdown passes and two TD runs against North Carolina, nearly leading his I-AA team to an upset of the Tar Heels from the Atlantic Coast Conference. Campbell went on to throw for 3,998 yards and 30 touchdowns, and earned a spot The Associated Press I-AA All-America team announced Wednesday.

Southeast Missouri State had two players chosen to the second team: senior tight end Ray Goodson and sophomore punter David Simonhoff. Those two players also were honored Monday as second-team selections on The Sports Network I-AA All-American team.

Goodson, a Jackson High School graduate, led Southeast with 58 receptions for 593 yards this season. A first-team all-Ohio Valley Conference pick, Goodson ranked third in the OVC in receptions per game and sixth in receiving yards per game.

Simonhoff led the OVC and ranked second nationally with an average of 46 yards per punt, which set both school and OVC records. The first-team all-OVC selection had five punts of over 70 yards, with a long of 82.

William &Mary, led by Campbell, shared the Atlantic 10 Conference crown and set a school record for victories during an 11-3 season.

Four Atlantic 10 players selected first-team All-American: Campbell, offensive lineman Matt Magerko of James Madison, defensive back Shannon James of Massachusetts and linebacker Liam Ezekiel of Northeastern.

Ezekiel, the A-10 defensive player of the year, was one of five players to repeat as a first-team All-American.

The others were Tennessee State tailback Charles Anthony, the nation's leading rusher (158.1 yards per game), offensive linemen Buster Ashley of Western Kentucky and Eric Deutsch of Wofford, and linebacker Boomer Grigsby of Illinois State.

Wofford and Cal Poly were the only schools with multiple players on the first team, each getting two.

Deutsch was joined by defensive lineman Lee Basinger while Cal Poly was represented by defensive back Kenny Chicoine and defensive lineman Chris Gocong.

The All-American receivers were two of the best players in I-AA.

Appalachian State's Davon Fowlkes led the nation in catches (103), yards receiving (1,618) and all-purpose yards (2,313).

Northern Colorado's Vincent Jackson is considered a possible first-round NFL draft choice. He caught 80 passes for 1,382 yards.

Dustin Long of Sam Houston State, a transfer from Texas A&M, was the second-team quarterback.

Campbell, Fowlkes and Long were the finalists for the Walter Payton Award, which is given to the best player in I-AA and will be handed out Thursday night in Chattanooga, Tenn.

James Madison and Montana, who will play in the Division I-AA championship game on Saturday in Chattanooga, Tenn., each had two players on the three AP All-America teams.

Besides Magerko, James Madison had freshman defensive back Tony LeZotte on the second team.

LeZotte and Drake running back Scott Phaydavong, a third-teamer, were the only freshmen on the teams.

Montana was represented by offensive lineman Cory Procter and defensive lineman Mike Murphy on the second team.

Harvard running back Clifton Dawson, Lehigh tight end Adam Bergen and offensive linemen Ben Bainbridge of Furman and Elmer McDaniel of Southern Illinois completed the first-team offense.

Jerome Mathis of Hampton, who returned an NCAA record five kickoffs for touchdowns was picked as an all-purpose player. Jon Scifres of Southwest Missouri State is the All-American kicker and Paul Ernster of Northern Arizona is the punter.

Tad Kornegay of Fordham and Southern's Ahmad Treaudo, who leads the nation with nine interceptions, round out the first-team secondary. Linemen Brady Forsmark of Weber State and Harold Wells of Gardner-Webb complete the first-team defense.