MOUNT VERNON – Cornell placed four players on the 2013 All-Midwest Conference Football First Team and landed the MWC Coach of the Year in Vince Brautigam.
Junior offensive lineman Sam Cluck, junior return specialist Myron Seabrook and sophomore wide receiver Ben Knake were named to the first team offense. Senior safety Nick Brautigam gained first team honors on defense.
The Rams tied St. Norbert with a league-best 13 total selections, which included four second teamers and five on honorable mention. Click here for a complete list of the 2013 All-MWC Football Teams.
The Rams had three picks on the second team defense in senior linebackers Geoffrey Miller and Jeremy Demlow, and defensive back Seabrook. Junior wide receiver Brit Connor was a second team choice on offense.
Seniors Juan Flores (QB), Shane McNally (DL), juniors Troy Bedard (OL), TJ Gray (DL) and freshman Kaleb Whiting (K) were named honorable mention.
The Rams fielded four repeat all-conference performers in Seabrook (2nd team, 2011), Cluck (2nd team, 2012), Miller (2nd team, 2012) and Brautigam (honorable mention, 2012).
Vince Brautigam was voted the league's top coach after directing the Rams to a 7-3 overall finish, marking the program's first winning season since 2001. Cornell tied for second place in the conference standings at 7-2, after the Rams were projected seventh in the MWC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
Brautigam guided the Rams to four wins in their final five games, highlighted by a 35-29 overtime triumph Nov. 9 over then-unbeaten and 22nd-ranked Illinois College. Brautigam is the first Ram football coach to earn Coach of the Year since 2001, when Steve Miller was honored in the Iowa Conference.
Seabrook, of Oceanside, Calif., was the only player recognized on one of the MWC's top two teams for both offense and defense. As a first team return man, Seabrook fielded 22 punts for 208 yards with a long of 39. On defense, the cornerback led the Rams with four interceptions – one for a touchdown – and recorded 29 tackles.
Knake led Cornell's receiving corps with 54 catches for 656 yards and five touchdowns. The Lisbon High School graduate tied for the MWC lead at 6.0 receptions per game and was second in receiving yards (72.9 ypg) and ninth in all-purpose yards (98.4 ypg). Connor had a breakout junior season with 30 receptions for 374 yards and three scores. He averaged 12.5 yards per catch.
Nick Brautigam was the quarterback of a Ram defense that ranked in the top 20 nationally in seven statistical categories, including sixth in turnovers gained with 31. Brautigam, of Dubuque, led all Cornell defensive backs with 74 tackles – 51 solo stops – and nine pass breakups. He also had three interceptions and three forced fumbles.
Linemen Cluck (left tackle) and Bedard (center) paved the way for a Ram offense that ranked second in the MWC in scoring (33.3 ppg) and total offense (435.7 ypg). The team rushed for 26 touchdowns and averaged 5.1 yards per carry. The Rams yielded only 14 sacks – third fewest in the league – and had an individual top the 100-yard rushing mark nine times.
The Ram defense sported two of the league's top tacklers in Miller (10.4 tpg, third) and Demlow (8.0 tpg, ninth). Miller collected a team-best 104 tackles (64 solo) to go with 10.0 tackles for loss, five pass breakups, 3.0 sacks and two interceptions. He set the program mark for solo tackles in a career (234) and ranks fourth all-time with 394 total tackles.
Demlow stood third in the MWC with 14.5 tackles for loss and finished with 80 total tackles. He added four pass breakups, 2.0 sacks and a pair of interceptions.
McNally and Gray led an improved defensive line, which limited Grinnell to eight yards rushing in the finale. McNally finished with 37 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss and 5.0 sacks. Gray contributed 25 tackles, including 7.0 stops for losses. Gray returned an interception for a touchdown against Grinnell.
Flores completed a school-record 66.2 percent of his passes (186-of-281). He finished with 2,070 yards and 13 touchdowns through the air. Flores also ran for 695 yards – including 207 in the season finale – and 11 touchdowns. He closed a tremendous career holding all-time Rams records for passing yards (7,346), pass completions (636), pass attempts (1,016), completion percentage (62.6), total offense (9,109) and touchdowns responsible for (68).
Whiting established a school record for points by a kicker with 63 – most in the MWC – and tied the program mark with eight made field goals. He converted 39-of-44 PAT kicks and 8-of-15 field goals, with a long of 49 yards. Six of his field goal makes were beyond 30 yards.
