NEWTON, Mass. – Nine members of the 2016 Mount Ida College football teams were selected as members of the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference (ECFC) All-Conference teams, including three players who earned First Team nods, as the selections were announced on Thursday by the conference office.
Senior Matt Greenman (Portsmouth, R.I.) earned his fourth All-Conference selection and his third straight first team nod, and for the second consecutive year, Greenman was named both at the Wide Receiver and Return Specialists positions.
On the defensive side of the ball, lineman James Comer (Mansfield, Mass.) and linebacker Sean Chinova (Watertown, Conn.) were selected to the First Team.
Offensive linemen Amir Young (Pleasantville, N.J.) and James Wolff (Yorktown, N.Y.) were both tabbed as Second Team members, as was the back they block for, junior Travis O'Brien (Portsmouth, R.I.).
Mount Ida's honorable mention selections included sophomore defensive back DeSean Hart (Mays Landing, N.J.), senior placekicker Tyler Rogers (Bridgewater, Mass.), and senior linebacker Josh David (Sandown, N.H.).
Greenman was second in the conference in receiving yards, yards per game, touchdowns (8) and receptions. He led the Mustangs with 40 receptions for 583 yards on the season, averaging 14.6 yards per catch and was consistently a deep threat, with longs of 75, 65 and 81 yards. As a returner, Greenman racked up 419 yards on 19 returns, and averaged 8.3 yards per punt return, capping of the year with an 85-yard touchdown kickoff return against Husson.
Ending his career among the all-time leading tacklers in Mount Ida football history, Chinova earns his third straight ECFC First Team nod. He racked up 96 tackles this year and led the team with 17 tackles for loss, fourth in the conference. Chinova had two interceptions, three blocked kicks and two pass breakups, and he scooped up a fumble and returned it 83 yards for a touchdown in the season finale.
Comer, the leader of the defensive line this season, earns his first ECFC All-Conference nod this year thanks to a season in which he posted 36 tackles, 4.5 of them for a loss, recovered a fumble and had 1.5 sacks.
Tied for third in the conference with six rushing touchdowns, O'Brien broke out in his junior year by averaging 82.4 yards per game. He had three games of 100+ rushing yards, including a 156 yard, two touchdown performance in a conference win over Anna Maria, and 102 yards and two touchdowns against Plymouth State.
His front wall on the offensive line, Wolff gets a long overdue All-Conference nod in his final season, while Amir Young moves up from an Honorable Mention position a year ago.
The team leader in tackles, David had 98 stops this year, including 15.5 tackles for loss, good for fifth in the conference. A transfer to the linebacker position this year after earning Second Team nods as a fullback last season, David broke up five passes, had an interception, a forced fumble and two fumble recoveries, along with one sack, and he had 26 47 tackles over his last three games.
Rogers returns to the All-Conference team for the second time, earning an Honorable Mention spot in 2014. He made four field goals and 19 extra points this year, and broke the school record with a 48 yard boot against Gallaudet.
Hart is an All-Conference rookie after a sophomore season with two interceptions, four pass breakups and a forced fumble.
The Mustangs finished their 2016 season with a 4-3 conference record and a 4-6 overall mark. They won four out of five games between October 1st and October 29th to thrust themselves into the ECFC title race, and this year posted their seventh winning conference record in the last eight years.