TAMUC – Sports

Japheth & Jeriah Cranfill sign with Lion Football on Team IMPACT Draft Day.

COMMERCE – The National Champion Texas A&M University-Commerce football team officially introduced the newest members of the program on Sunday as 14-year-old Japheth Cranfill and 12-year-old Jeriah Cranfill of Greenville joined the Lions on their Team IMPACT Draft Day.

Japheth and Jeriah came to campus on their official recruiting visit on Wednesday, visiting with the coaching staff and Leadership Council, taking photos with the National Championship trophy, getting fitted for team gear, and going through drills with team members. On Sunday, their draft day consisted of signing a National Letter of Intent (NLI) during a press conference with local media, meeting with newly installed University President Dr. Mark Rudin, taking photos with the Lion Cheer team, and joining in the annual team photo.

“I always say you’ve got to be recruiting every day,” said A&M-Commerce head football coach Colby Carthel. “We’ve got two great recruits here today. We’re tickled to death to have them join our team and they’re going to help take this program To The Top!”

As Lion athletes, these top recruits will become an official member of the Lion Football team. As team members, Japheth and Jeriah will attend Lions practices, games, team dinners, events, and more.

Team IMPACT is a national nonprofit headquartered in Boston, Mass., that connects children facing serious or chronic illnesses with college athletic teams, forming life-long bonds and life-changing outcomes. Since 2011, Team IMPACT has matched nearly 1,600 children with more than 500 colleges and universities in 48 states, reaching over 50,000 participating student-athletes. The child joins the athletic team and the student-athletes join the child’s support team. Throughout the journey, the child gains strength, camaraderie, and support while the student-athletes experience lessons of courage, resiliency, and perspective they can’t learn in a classroom.

 

Onuoha named Preseason All-American; Lions ranked No. 2 nationally by D2Football.com.

COMMERCE – Texas A&M University-Commerce defensive end Michael Onuoha has been named a First Team Preseason All-American and the Lions are ranked No. 2 nationally in the preseason poll by D2Football.com.

Onuoha (Edmond, Okla. – Santa Fe) is the fourth different Lion named as a preseason All-American in advance of the 2018 season. Tight end Vincent Hobbs (Mesquite – Horn) and kicker Kristov Martinez (Edinburg) were named preseason All-Americans by Lindy’s and linebacker Brucks Saathoff (San Antonio – Reagan) was named preseason All-American by the College Football America Yearbook.

Onuoha was named an honorable mention All-American by Don Hansen’s Football Gazette in 2017 and was a First Team All-Lone Star Conference selection as a junior. He ranked seventh in the LSC with 12 tackles for loss in 2017 and recorded 56 tackles overall. He had a tackle in every game of the season with a season-high seven tackles against Midwestern State.

The No. 2 ranking for the Lions is their fifth top 10 ranking of the preseason. A&M-Commerce is ranked No. 1 by the American Football Coaches Association, No. 5 by College Football America Yearbook, No. 6 by Street & Smith’s, and No. 7 by Lindy’s.

In the D2Football.com Poll, two Lion opponents for 2018 are in the top 25. MSU Texas is ranked No. 8 and Colorado State-Pueblo is ranked No. 13.

Season tickets are available for the Lions’ six-game home schedule, which kicks off on Thursday, August 30 against Texas A&M-Kingsville in the annual battle for the Chennault Cup and Student Appreciation Night. General admission seating is available for $60 for the season, with limited chairback season tickets available for $80. Season tickets are available online at WeAreLionsTix.com or by calling Lion Sales and Service at (903) 468-8756.

All chairback season ticket holders are encouraged to consider philanthropic support of our 424 talented student-athletes with a gift to the Lion Champions Fund. For information on the LCF, please contact Taylor Phelps at (903) 886-5554.

D2Football.com Top 25 Preseason Poll

Rk	School	2017 Rec
1	Minnesota State	13-1
2	A&M-COMMERCE	14-1
3	West Florida	11-4
4	Indiana (Pa.)	13-1
5	Northwest Missouri State	9-3
6	Central Washington	11-1
7	Ferris State	11-2
8	MSU Texas	10-1
9	Fort Hays State	11-1
10	Harding	11-4
11	West Alabama	10-3
12	Indianapolis	11-1
13	Colorado State-Pueblo	9-3
14	Grand Valley State	8-3
15	Shepherd	10-1
16	Ashland	11-2
17	Winona State	10-2
18	Sioux Falls	9-3
19	Central Missouri	9-3
20	Assumption	11-2
21	West Georgia	9-4
22	Findlay	10-3
23	Pittsburg State	8-4
24	Virginia State	10-1
25	Ouachita Baptist	9-3

2018 D2Football.com Preseason All-America Team

FIRST TEAM OFFENSE

QB	Amir Hall	Bowie State
RB	Marc Jones	Gannon
RB	Cameron Mayberry	Colorado School of Mines
WR	Weston Carr	Azusa Pacific
WR	Shane Zylstra	Minnesota State
TE	Seth Hebert	Central Missouri
OL	Devon Johnson	Ferris State
OL	Justin Gooseberry	Ouachita Baptist
OL	James Moore	Central Washington
OL	Derek Puni	Central Missouri
OL	Trey Pipkins	Sioux Falls

FIRST TEAM DEFENSE

DL	James Prater	Ashland
DL	Markus Jones	Angelo State
DL	Adonis Davis	Florida Tech
DL	Michael Onouha	A&M-COMMERCE
LB	Brandon Payer	Colorado State-Pueblo
LB	Tyler Morrissey	West Chester
LB	Kirby Hora	Augustana
DB	Darius  Williams	Colorado State-Pueblo
DB	Doyin Jibowu	Fort Hays
DB	Cua Rose	Arkansas Tech
DB	Corey Ballentine	Washburn

FIRST TEAM SPECIAL TEAMS

K	Casey Bednarski	Minnesota State
P	Zach Davidson	Central Missouri
AP	Deonte Harris	Assumption

SECOND TEAM OFFENSE

QB	Brook Bolles	Central Missouri
RB	Walter Fletcher	Edinboro
RB	Nate Gunn	Minnesota State
WR	Austin Ryan	Bentley
WR	Brody Oliver	Colorado School of Mines
TE	D.J. Cornish	Shepherd
OL	Colin McAllister	Indiana (Pa.)
OL	Brandon Anderson	West Alabama
OL	Phillip McDowell	Carson-Newman
OL	Nick Fish	Grand Valley State
OL	Evan Heim	Minnesota State

SECOND TEAM DEFENSE

DL	John Cominsky	Charleston
DL	Davondrick Lison	Southern Arkansas
DL	Derrick Tate	Bowie State
DL	Tyrell Thompson	Tarleton
LB	Terry Samuel	West Alabama
LB	Justin Jackson	Angelo State
LB	Jalen Nelson	Charleston
DB	Sterling Hammond	Virginia Union
DB	Lamont McPhatter	California (Pa.)
DB	Tyler Hasty	Central Washington
DB	Gunner Olszewski	Bemidji State

SECOND TEAM SPECIAL TEAMS

K	Aaron Ball	West Virginia State
P	Brendan Paulison	West Chester
AP	Drew Harris	Ouachita Baptist

 

School record 52 Lions earn D2ADA Academic Achievement Award.

CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Division 2 Athletics Directors Association’s Academic Achievement Award named a total of 52 student-athletes representing Texas A&M University-Commerce for their efforts in the 2017-18 academic year.

A&M-Commerce’s 52 honorees are the most for the Lions since the award was created in 2008, beating the previous school record of 51 set in 2016-17. Lion scholar-athletes have increased their record total in each of the last three academic years.

“Without success in the classroom, ‘Best in Class’ would be a very hollow intercollegiate athletics mission,” A&M-Commerce Director of Athletics Tim McMurray said. “Thanks to the commitment of our student-athletes, our Thrower Center leadership team, and our wonderful academic partners on campus, this is truly an institutional recognition that caps our 2017-18 comprehensive success perfectly.”

The 2017-18 Academic Achievement Awards recognized a total 10,116 student-athletes from 162 institutions. This year’s conference leader, the Northeast-10 Conference (NE10), with 1,122 student-athlete honorees. Following the NE10, was last year’s front-runner, the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) with 931 honorees, followed by the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) with 746 selections.

This year’s conference leader in the Northeast-10 Conference (NE10), with 1,122 student-athlete honorees. Following the NE10, was last year’s front-runner, the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) with 931 honorees, followed by the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) with 746 selections.

“As an Officer for the D2 ADA Board, it has pleased me to see the number of student-athletes recognized for their academic achievements continue to increase,” said current D2 ADA President Jim Johnson, director of athletics at Pittsburg State University. “This program is a point of pride for our current D2 ADA member institutions and a great way for their student-athletes’ achievements to be recognized nationally. On behalf of the D2 ADA, we congratulate and celebrate these academic distinctions and are proud of your accomplishments.”

In order for a student-athlete to receive an Academic Achievement Award, the athletics director of the Division II institution must be a current dues-paying member of the D2 ADA.

Also, the student-athlete must:
have a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale
have attended a minimum of two years (four semesters) of college-level work have been an active member of an intercollegiate team during his/her last academic year,

Texas A&M University-Commerce student-athletes who earned the award are:

Garrett Blubaugh	Football	Sr.
Srdan Budimir	Men’s Basketball	Sr.
Shelley Chapron	Volleyball	Jr.
Chelsea Cheek	Women’s Track & Field	Jr.
Monica Cherry	Softball	Sr.
Jessika Coronado	Soccer	Sr.
Princess Davis	Women ‘s Basketball	Grad.
Katie Dean	Softball	Sr.
Caitlin Duty	Soccer	Sr.
Chase Graham	Men’s Track & Field	Grad.
Blake Hartford	Men’s Golf	Jr.
Sophie Haywood	Women’s Soccer	Sr.
Kinsie Hebler	Softball	Jr.
Dylan Henderson	Men’s Track & Field	Jr.
Baylea Higgs	Softball	Sr.
Sarah Hogan	Women’s Track & Field	Sr.
Mariah Jameyson	Softball	Sr.
Lacie Jessup	Volleyball	Sr.
Kayla Kilcrease	Softball	Sr.
Michelle Kotlik	Soccer	Jr.
Lauren Leslie	Women’s Golf	Sr.
Preston Lienemann	Volleyball	Sr.
Layne Little	Volleyball	Sr.
Chochy Luce	Football	Sr.
Sergio Marcuello	Men’s Track & Field	Grad.
Kristov Martinez	Football	Grad.
Jenna McLaughlin	Women’s Track & Field	Grad.
Trevor Montgomery	Men’s Track & Field	Sr.
Stephanie Morado	Volleyball	Jr.
Bina Njikam	Volleyball	Sr.
Ciera Nunez	Softball	Sr.
Florian Obst	Men’s Track & Field	Grad.
Ryan Peschka	Football	Sr.
Jenna Price	Women ‘s Basketball	Sr.
Dominique Ramsey	Football	Jr.
Melanie Ransom	Women ‘s Basketball	Grad.
Selena Rima	Softball	Sr.
Jasmine Roberts	Women’s Track & Field	Sr.
Steven Sanchez III	Men’s Track & Field	So.
Alex Shillow	Football	Jr.
Maddie Shubert	Women’s Track & Field	Jr.
Bri Sims	Softball	Sr.
Chealsea Slider	Softball	Jr.
Brandi Stalder	Women’s Track & Field	Jr.
Precious Thompson	Softball	Jr.
Karli Thornton	Volleyball	Sr.
Alex VanSickle	Softball	Sr.
Jaslyn Wacker	Volleyball	Sr.
Jaryn Wacker	Volleyball	Sr.
Maggie Waites	Women’s Track & Field	Sr.
Jessie Williams	Men’s Track & Field	Sr.
Austin Yaeger	Men’s Track & Field	Grad.