Julkes, Berg Are AP All-Americans
MOORHEAD, Minn. (12/20/19)---Concordia seniors Willie Julkes III and Alex Berg both earned Associated Press (AP) Division III All-American honors.
Julkes was named to the AP All-American First Team as an all-purpose player while Berg was named to the All-American Second Team as a punter.
Concordia was one of only two teams in the MIAC to have a player honored as an AP All-American.
It is the first All-American honor for Julkes and he becomes the 28th player in program history to earn All-American honors. The award comes on the heels of Julkes being named to the D3football.com All-West Region First Team.
Berg earns his second All-American honor of the season. He was named to the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) All-American Team earlier in the month. Berg is only the sixth player in Cobber football history to be named to multiple All-American teams in one season. Berg also captured D3football.com All-West Region First Team honors this year.
Julkes earns his All-American honor for his record-breaking six blocked kicks during the season. His six blocked kicks led the nation and also set a new school record.
Julkes was one of the biggest reasons Concordia upset previously unbeaten St. John's on Nov. 2. He had two blocked extra points in the 19-18 upset win, including the game-deciding extra point in overtime. Julkes also had a pair of blocked punts in the season opener at Wis.-La Crosse and came away with single blocks in the games against Augsburg and Carleton.
Berg was second in the nation in punting. He finished the year with a 45.0 average for his 45 punts. His 45.0 yards per punt average is a new school record for highest punting average in a single season.
Berg became the first punter in school history to have more than one punt of 70 or more yards in a season. He hit a 70-yard punt against Augsburg and then boomed a 75-yard punt on the last kick of his college career against Carleton. He also had at least one punt of 50 or more yards in nine of the team's 10 games and connected on a punt of at least 55 yards in five games.
2019 AP ALL-AMERICAN TEAMS
FIRST TEAM
OFFENSE
Quarterback — Broc Rutter, senior, North Central (Ill.).
Running backs — Robert Shufford, junior, Birmingham-Southern; Ethan Greenfield, sophomore, North Central (Ill.).
Linemen — Sharmore Clarke, junior, North Central (Ill.); Quinn Meinerz, junior, Wisconsin-Whitewater; Nic Vetter, senior, Wartburg; Sean Sherman, senior, Mount Union; Dan Greenheck, senior, St. John's.
Tight end — Ryan Curtiss, senior, Muhlenberg.
Receivers — Andrew Kamienski, junior, North Central (Ill.); Justin Hill, senior, Mount Union.
All-purpose player — Willie Julkes III, senior, Concordia-Moorhead.
Kicker — Anthony Avila, sophomore, Mary Hardin-Baylor.
DEFENSE
Linemen — Frankie Feaster, senior, Muhlenberg; Dallas McRae, senior, Wheaton (Ill.); Joey Longoria, senior, Mary Hardin-Baylor; Michael Nobile, sophomore, Delaware Valley.
Linebackers — Scottie Bobeck, senior, Benedictine; Dante Capozzoli, junior, Kean; Anton Clark, senior, East Texas Baptist.
Secondary — Jeff Hector, senior, Redlands; Spencer Rowland, senior, Wheaton (Ill.); Jake Beesley, junior, North Central (Ill.); Kordell Ford, junior, Mount Union.
Punter — Zach Warcola, senior, College of New Jersey.
SECOND TEAM
OFFENSE
Quarterback — Jackson Erdmann, senior, St.John's.
Running backs — Alex Minton, senior, Denison; Wesley Schools, senior, Grove City.
Linemen — Ben Bartch, senior, St. John's; Joe Krall, senior, Monmouth (Ill.); Tyler Norwood, senior, Salisbury; Ryan Malarkey, senior, Muhlenberg; Steven Sellers, junior, Mary Hardin-Baylor.
Tight end — Dan Allen, senior, Delaware Valley.
Receivers — Ruhann Peele, senior, Wesley (Del.); Ravi Alston, sophomore, St. John's; Samuel Staehling, senior, St. Norbert.
All-purpose player — Brock Martin, sophomore, Ohio Northern.
Kicker — Jaydon Haaq, sophomore, Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
DEFENSE
Linemen — Jordan McInerney, senior, Lake Forest; Danny Pietruszewski, junior, St. John's; Tim Ousley, senior, Muskingum; Mike Williams, senior, Washington & Jefferson.
Linebackers — Mason Dekker, senior, Hope; Emmet Forde, junior, Hobart; Nick Garone, senior, Ithaca.
Secondary — Peyton Haynes, senior, LaGrange; Blaze Barista, senior, Dubuque; Danial Shelton, senior, Susquehanna; Tramon Wiley, junior, Heidelberg.
Punter — Alex Berg, senior, Concordia-Moorhead.