SOMERSET, N.J. - The Northeast Conference (NEC) announced its 2018 all-conference teams and major award winners on Wednesday afternoon, with nine Duquesne Dukes collecting All-NEC accolades.
Defensive lineman Kam Carter (Germantown, Md. / Gaithersburg / Pittsburgh) and defensive back Reid Harrison-Ducros (Colleyville, Texas / Colleyville Heritage / Boise State) earned First Team All-NEC recognition while running backs A.J. Hines (Wilson, N.C. / Fike) and Mark Allen (Hyattsville, Md. / DeMatha Catholic / Penn State), offensive linemen Gabe Spurlock (Mars, Pa. / Mars) and Sterling Jenkins (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Baldwin / Penn State), wide receiver Kellon Taylor (Landover, Md. / DeMatha Catholic), defensive lineman Chris Favoroso (Port St. Lucie, Fla. / Jensen Beach / Montana) as well as linebacker Brendan Thompson (Germantown, Md. / Northwest / Millersville) earned Second Team All-NEC honors.
Central Connecticut State's Aaron Winchester was named the Offensive Player of the Year, Wagner's Cameron Gill the Defensive Player of the Year, Sacred Heart's Tyrese Chambers the Offensive Rookie of the Year, Saint Francis U's Terrell Smith the Defensive Rookie of the Year in addition to Central Connecticut's Ryan McCarthy and Robert Morris' Bernard Clark being named the NEC Co-Coaches of the Year.
This marks Carter's second straight first team nod, as the 6-4, 295-pound defensive tackle has provided a big physical presence on the defensive front for the Dukes for the past two seasons. He recorded 29 tackles (17 solo), three tackles for loss and a pair of sacks. Carter added a trio of pass breakups and five quarterback hurries during his senior campaign. He finished with a season-high seven tackles in the finale against 18th-ranked Central Connecticut.
Harrison-Ducros earned his first all-conference award after ranking second in the NEC with four interceptions on the season. The Boise State transfer finished with 36 tackles on the year with 29 solo stops, good for fourth on the team to go with a tackle for loss. A big reason why the Dukes closed the year ranked seventh at the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) in pass defense, Harrison-Ducros registered nine passes defended on the season. He had a pair of interceptions in Duquesne's win at Sacred Heart and was named NEC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance.
Hines is the fourth Duquesne player to earn All-NEC laurels all four years of his career, joining Ben Huss and Nathan Stone. The 2016 Jerry Rice Award winner caps his career as the program's all-time leading rusher with 4,629 rushing yards. He is also the program's leader in rushing touchdowns (44) as well as career 100-yard rushing games (25). Hines rushed for 780 yards in nine games for the Dukes in 2019, 640 of those coming in NEC play, good for second in the conference. He ran for at least 100 yards in five games to go with six rushing touchdowns on the year.
Allen collects his first all-conference honor in his first season on The Bluff. The Penn State graduate transfer ranked second in the NEC and 32nd in the FCS averaging 119.4 all-purpose yards per game. He tallied 689 rushing yards with four rushing touchdowns, 15 receptions for 129 yards, 17 punt returns for 185 yards and a touchdown as well as eight kick returns for 191 yards. Allen registered a career-high 168 rushing yards on 30 carries with a pair of touchdowns to lead the Dukes to a big road win at Dayton this season, a performance which secured him NEC Offensive Player of the Week honors. In Duquesne's win over Wagner, Allen returned a punt 65 yards to pay dirt and was named NEC Special Teams Player of the Week.
A big reason the Dukes had success running the ball and protecting quarterbacks were offensive linemen Gabe Spurlock and Sterling Jenkins. Duquesne ranked 26th in the country with the fewest sacks allowed at 1.55 per game. In addition, Spurlock - who started 30 straight games for the Dukes – and Jenkins – a graduate transfer from Penn State – blocked for seven 100-yard individual rushing performances in 2019. The pair helped limit opponents to a sack-or-fewer in six contests this season.
Taylor collects his first all-conference nod after pacing the Dukes with 53 receptions for 558 yards and five touchdowns. The 6-5, 220-pound receiver posted back-to-back 100-yard receiving performances against Saint Francis and at Robert Morris, hauling in eight catches for 101 yards and a touchdown in the win over the Red Flash followed by a six-catch, career-best 113-yard showing with a touchdown on the road against the Colonials. Taylor finished fourth in the NEC with 4.8 receptions per game.
Favoroso garners his first All-NEC honor after serving as a two-year starter on the defensive line for the Dukes. Wreaking havoc in opponents' backfields all season, Favoroso finished with a team-high 7.5 sacks while matching a team high with nine tackles for loss. The Florida native added 43 tackles (24 solo) and led Duquesne with 12 quarterback hurries on the year. He tallied a season-high 10 tackles on the road at Youngstown State.
After pacing the Duquesne defense with 75 tackles on the year, Thompson earns his first all-conference accolade as a senior. Stepping into a starting role for the first time in his career, Thompson responded in a big way, recording 46 solo stops while tying for the team lead with nine tackles for loss to go with 2.5 sacks. In addition, he ranked second in the NEC with a trio of forced fumbles on the season while recovering two fumbles for the Dukes. Thompson had a season-high 11 tackles in Duquesne's road NEC win at Sacred Heart while adding nine tackles with a pair of tackles for loss at Robert Morris and eight at New Hampshire. Thompson started the season with an eight-tackle performance in the win over Walsh with two tackles for loss, a sack, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
DUQUESNE'S ALL-NEC SELECTIONS
First Team
Kam Carter - DL / Sr. / 6-4 / 295 - (Germantown, Md. / Gaithersburg / Pittsburgh)
Reid Harrison-Ducros - DB / Sr. / 5-10 / 185 (Colleyville, Texas / Colleyville Heritage / Boise State)
Second Team
A.J. Hines - RB / Sr. / 5-11 / 225 - (Wilson, N.C. / Fike)
Mark Allen - RB / Sr. / 5-7 / 185 - (Hyattsville, Md. / DeMatha Catholic / Penn State)
Kellon Taylor - WR / Sr. 6-5 / 220 - (Landover, Md. / DeMatha Catholic)
Sterling Jenkins - OL / Sr. / 6-8 / 310 - (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Baldwin / Penn State)
Gabe Spurlock - OL / Sr. / 6-4 / 290 - (Mars, Pa. / Mars)
Chris Favoroso - DL / Sr. / 6-3 / 240 - (Port St. Lucie, Fla. / Jensen Beach / Montana)
Brendan Thompson - LB / Sr. / 5-10 / 220 - (Germantown, Md. / Northwest / Millersville)
