The Empire 8 Athletic Conference has announced the 2017 Football All-Conference teams as voted on by the conference coaches. In addition, the Offensive Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Special Teams Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year and Coaching Staff of the Year have been selected.
Offensive Player of the Year: Joe Germinerio, The College at Brockport
Joe Germinerio, the 2016 Rookie of the Year, continues to prove he is a threat in the conference. He made nine starts at quarterback in the regular season and posted a 173.86 efficiency rating with 20 touchdown passes. Germinerio has thrown seven interceptions in 241 passing attempts and a completion percentage of 69.71% (168-of-241) to rank fourth in Division III.
He has totaled 2369 yards, throwing more than 200 yards per game, and has thrown three or more touchdowns in four games. Germinerio has also contributed to the running game, rushing for 429 yards, including two games with more than 90 yards. He is the second Offensive Player of the Year from Brockport since the Golden Eagles joined the league in 2014.
Defensive Player of the Year: A.J. LiCata, Alfred University
A.J. LiCata repeats as the Defensive Player of the Year, marking the second time in league history there has been a two-time honoree. Former Saxon Nick Clark was the defensive player of the year in 2010 and 2011. He is spearheading a Saxon defense that allows just 17.10 points per game, 288.6 total yards per contest, and 94.3 rushing yards per game.
The linebacker has racked up 105 total tackles with 53 solo stops. Seven of his tackles were for a loss that set the opposition back 17 yards. LiCata’s totaled 10 or more tackles in six different regular season games, including a season high of 18 stops against RPI.
Co-Special Teams Player of the Year: Trevor Monk, Alfred University
Trevor Monk averaged 35.43 yards per punt, placing nine of his 35 punts inside the 20-yard line. He booted two 50-yard plus punts in the regular season including a season-high long of 52 yards against Utica. Monk made four of his six field goals attempted and was 36-of-37 on extra point attempts. On the kickoff, Monk totaled 2,770 yards on 52 kicks to average 53.3 yards. Monk is the first Saxon to be honored as Special Teams Player of the Year.
Co-Special Teams Player of the Year: Brett Renzi, The College of Brockport
Brett Renzi was an impact player for Brockport accounting for 76 points made with his foot. Renzi was a perfect 49-of-49 on extra point attempts, including a 7-for-7 effort against Cortland. He also made nine of 12 field goals attempted. His season long field goal of 39 yards came in the season opening win against then nationally ranked No. 14 Hobart. Renzi is the first Golden Eagle to be honored as Special Teams Player of the Year.
Rookie of the Year: Tyree Brown, The College at Brockport
Tyree Brown adjusted quickly to the college game and played in all ten regular season contests. Brown is an All Purpose player for the Golden Eagles, playing a variety of roles on the field. As a running back he carried the ball 15 times for 138 yards to average 9.2 yards per carry, which ranked fourth among conference players. As a wide-receiver he caught 35 passes for 661 yards and four touchdowns. His 66.1 receiving yards per game ranked ninth in the conference. Brown also returned the ball for Brockport totaling 193 yards on eight kick returns and 100 yards on eight punt returns. He is the second E8 Rookie of the Year from Brockport, as Germinerio received the honor in 2016.
Coaching Staff of the Year: The College at Brockport
Head Coach Jason Mangone and the Brockport coaching staff guided the Golden Eagles to a perfect 10-0 regular season record, to be one of only 12 Division III teams to have an undefeated regular season. The Golden Eagles won the Empire 8 title for the first time in program history with a 7-0 league record and earned the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2003. Brockport led the conference on both sides of the ball as they averaged 37.2 points per game, while limiting opponents to 11.80 points per game. The offensive output ranked 38th in Division III and the scoring defense ranked 14th.
Sportsmanship Team
One member of each team was named that institution’s representative on the 2017 Football Sportsman of the Year Team. Empire 8 emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete’s experience in conjunction with an institution’s educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportsmen.
Empire 8 2017 Football All-Conference Teams