D2CCA All-America Team

SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – The Slippery Rock University football team placed four players on the Division II Conference Commissioner's Association (D2CCA) Division II All-America team that was announced Thursday with Eddie Faulkner IV being named to the first team and Kyle Sheets, Yuriy Hruckowian and Josh Stokes named to the second team.

The D2CCA All-America teams are nominated for and voted on by the athletic communication directors at Division II institutions.
 
Slippery Rock tied with Central Missouri, Grand Valley State and Pittsburg State for the second most total selections on the D2CCA All-America team, trailing the nation-leading eight for Colorado School of Mines. The Rock led all teams in Super Region One and had four of the six total selections from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.  
 
Sheets, a senior from Springboro, Pennsylvania, earns his third All-America honor of the week after also being named to first team All-America honors by both the American Football Coaches Association and the Associated Press. Hryckowian, a senior from Chalfont, Pennsylvania, and Stokes, a junior from Huntingtown, Maryland, both pick up their second All-America awards of the week after being named to the AP team yesterday. Faulkner, a junior from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, picks up his first career All-America award.
 
The foursome helped Slippery Rock to a 12-2 overall record in 2023 to tie for the second most wins in a single-season in program history. The Rock won a fifth straight PSAC West title, qualified for the NCAA Division II Playoffs for the fifth straight season and reached the national quarterfinals for the third time in the last five seasons. The five straight appearances in the national playoffs are tied with Colorado School of Mines for the second longest active streak in the country.
 
A brief look at the accomplishments of The Rock's four All-Americans can be found below.
 
The D2CCA All-America team is the third of the five credible All-America teams to be released this year. The D2football.com and Don Hansen Football Gazette teams are expected to be released at a later date.
 

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EDDIE FAULKNER IV – 1st team Safety
Faulkner is one of the two safeties in the country to be named to first team All-America honors by the D2CCA. The All-America honor comes after a breakout junior season in which Faulkner was The Rock's nominee for the PSAC Defensive Athlete of the Year. He ranked fourth on the SRU roster with 63 total tackles and led SRU with 4.5 sacks from the safety position. He also ranked second on the team with four interceptions and finished first on the team with three forced fumbles. Faulkner also recorded one fumble recovery and five QB hurries on his way to first team All-PSAC and All-Region honors.
 
KYLE SHEETS – 2nd team WR
Sheets was named to first team All-America honors by both the Associated Press and the American Football Coaches Association. He missed all but three snaps in the season opener before returning in the second week of the season and putting together a career-year over the next 13 games. He caught a team-high 76 passes for 1,186 yards with 17 touchdowns. He also completed a 48-yard pass and pulled down an interception on the one defensive snap he played this season. His 17 touchdowns rank third in Division II this season and No. 2 all-time in single-season history at Slippery Rock, trailing only the 21 that were caught by his former Conneaut Area high school teammate Henry Litwin during the 2019 season. Perhaps more impressive when looking at Sheets' numbers was that he also shared the ball with Cohen Russell, who caught 73 passes for 1,114 yards this season. They were the only two teammates in the country to top 1,100 yards and both rank in the top eight in Division II in receiving yards with Sheets ranking sixth and Russell ranking eighth. Sheets finished his SRU career with 2,440 receiving yards to rank No. 4 all-time in program history. He also grabbed 29 career touchdown passes to rank No. 3 all-time at SRU.
 
YURIY HRYCKOWIAN – 2nd team OL
Hryckowian was also named to first team All-America honors by the Associated Press. He finished third in the national voting for the 2023 Gene Upshaw Division II Lineman of the Year and was the second-highest vote getter among the four offensive linemen that were national finalists for the award. A two-time All-Region honoree, Hryckowian started 34 career games at left tackle including all 14 this season. He was the highest graded offensive lineman on the team that featured five All-PSAC offensive linemen. Hryckowian did not allow a sack this season while helping to block for Harlon Hill finalist QB Brayden Long and one of the top offensive units in the nation. Slippery Rock's offensive line ranked in the top 10 nationally in fewest sacks and tackles for loss allowed and SRU ranked in the top 10 nationally in first downs, third down conversions, total offense, scoring offense and passing offense.
 
JOSH STOKES – 2nd team CB
Stokes was also named to second team All-America honors by the Associated Press. After being left off the All-PSAC team this year, Stokes has piled on the postseason awards with a first team All-Region selection and now a pair of second team All-America honor following his first season as a starter. He ranked first in the PSAC and second in Super Region One in interceptions with five and ranked first in the PSAC with 16 passes defended after tallying 11 pass breakups. Stokes did not allow any TD passes in single coverage and finished the season ranked first on the SRU roster in solo tackles (52) and third in total tackles (83). He also blocked one kick and recovered one fumble.
 
 


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