Football | 12/4/2024 9:22:37 AM
Quarterback Zac Boyes and defensive lineman Nick Lardaro of SUNY Cortland and SUNY Morrisville tight end Quamel Jarvis University were named to the 2024 American Football Coaches' Association (AFCA) Division III Coaches' All-America team on Tuesday, December 3. Boyes earned first team accolades, while Jarvis and Lardaro were second team selections.
Boyes, previously named the 2024 Empire 8 Offensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive season, is enjoying another tremendous season for Empire 8 Champion Cortland, having completed 185-of-269 passes this season, a 68.8 percent completion percentage, 2,632 yards, 26 passing touchdowns and just one interception in 11 games. In addition, he has rushed 93 times for 542 yards and six rushing touchdowns. Boyes has three 300-yard passing games and has had seven games with at least three touchdowns (passing or rushing) this season. Boyes is 11th nationally with a 182.31 passing efficiency rating and tenth in completion percentage.
Boyes is one passing touchdown shy of 100 for his career and is closing in on 10,000 yards passing (297 shy). He has 99 passing touchdowns to just 17 interceptions with the Red Dragons and has added 1,818 career yards on the ground with 18 rushing touchdowns.
Last season, Boyes, a native of Buffalo, NY, led Cortland to the Stagg Bowl Championship, was Stagg Bowl 50 MVP and earned 2023 Associated Press First Team All-American honors. He is a three-time All-Empire 8 first team selection.
Jarvis, a senior tight end from Rochester, NY, started in all 11 games for the Mustangs and served a critical role in guiding Morrisville to the 2024 ECAC Robert M. "Scotty" Whitelaw Bowl title. He caught 43 passes for 622 yards in 2024, adding five touchdown scores, averaging 56.55 yards per game and 14.47 yards per catch.
Jarvis pulled in a long 74-yard scoring touchdown in the season opening win over Kean, before going on to earn D3football.com Team of the Week accolades twice on the season for his receiving performances on the field, twice for receiving yards that were over 100+ yards in the game.
Jarvis is a three-time All-Conference selection, earning first team accolades in 2024 after leading all at the tight end position in the Empire 8 in receiving yards per game and receiving yards on the season. Throughout his career, Jarvis has caught 109 total passes for 1,489 yards and 10 touchdowns, averaging 13.66 yards per reception.
Lardaro was named the Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year last month. He leads a stout Cortland defense that has allowed just 12.1 points per game this season and 2.8 yards per carry. Previously the 2021 Empire 8 Rookie of the Year. Lardaro is now a four-time All-E8 first team selection. A native of St. James, NY, he has 39 tackles from his defensive line position, including 19 solo tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. He recorded six tackles, including a sack, and a pass breakup in the E8 Championship clinching win at Brockport on Nov. 9 and had six tackles, with a sack, along with a key forced fumble in a win at nationally ranked Susquehanna in September.
In four seasons with the Red Dragons, Lardaro has 137 career tackles, including 47.5 for a loss and 24 sacks.
Cortland has now had 11 players earn AFCA All-America honors since the organization first started choosing a college-division level team in the mid 1960s.
The No. 2 Red Dragons (11-0) return to the gridiron at noon on Saturday, Dec. 7, as they host No. 20 Springfield College from Grady Field in NCAA Tournament third round action. Cortland puts its 23-game winning streak on the line.
The AFCA's Division III All-America Selection Committee is made up of head coaches representing each conference from each of the AFCA's seven districts, one of whom serves as a district chairman, along with another head coach who serves as the chairman of the selection committee. The coaches in each district are responsible for ranking the top players in their respective districts prior to a conference call between the district chairmen and the committee chairman on which the team is chosen. The AFCA All-American Team is the only post season accolade that is selected by the coaches, marking this award as truly significant, as it is selected by the people who know the players the best.
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