The complete All-Big Sky Conference team
Portland State Quarterback Alex Kuresa highlighted the Vikings' All-Conference selections today for leading the Viking team to its best Division I season in history. Kuresa, a junior college transfer, was selected as the Big Sky's Newcomer of the Year, while senior safety Patrick Onwuasor was named first team All-Big Sky Conference.
PORTLAND STATE'S BIG SKY CONFERENCE HONOREES Newcomer of the Year: Alex Kuresa 1st team All-Big Sky Conference
Patrick Onwuasor, S 2nd team All-Big Sky Conference
Kyle Smith, OT
David Jones, RB
Sadat Sulleyman, DT
Davond Dade, DE
Xavier Coleman, CB 3rd team All-Big Sky Conference
Mike Davis, OT
Cam Keizur, OG
Jonathan Gonzales, K
Daniel Fusi, DT
Aaron Sibley, CB Honorable Mention All-Big Sky Conference
Darnell Adams, WR
Randin Crecelius, OG
Alex Kuresa, QB
Kahlil Dawson, RS
Michael Doman, DE
Jeremy Lutali, LB
Walter Santiago, S |
The Vikings just wrapped up a 9-2 regular season and were ranked fifth in the nation at the season's end. PSU earned a number-six seed in the NCAA Playoffs and will host a second-round game on Dec. 5 at Providence Park against either Northern Iowa or Eastern Illinois.
Kuresa, from Millville, UT and Snow JC, took over at quarterback this season and led the Viking resurgence. He completed 115-204 passes for 1,870 yards, 16 touchdowns and only five interceptions. Kuresa also ranked second on the team in rushing with 144 carries for 707 yards and seven touchdowns. He is the third Viking in history to be named Big Sky Newcomer of the Year (Charles Dunn, 1997; Ryan Fuqua, 2001).
Onwuasor, a native of Inglewood, CA was the only Viking named first team All-Big Sky, and he earned it as well. Onwuasor leads the nation in interceptions this season with nine. He also has 75 tackles and two tackles for loss. Onwuasor tied a school record with three interceptions in one game and earned Big Sky Conference Player of the Week on Oct. 31.
Named second team All-Big Sky Conference for the Vikings were: running back David Jones, offensive tackle Kyle Smith, defensive tackle Sadat Sulleyman, defensive end Davond Dade and cornerback Xavier Coleman.
Jones, a converted wide receiver from Kent, WA, led the Vikings in rushing this season with 169 carries for 1,080 yards and eight touchdowns. The senior ranks fourth in the Big Sky in rushing yards and averages 6.4 yards per carry. Jones was the Big Sky Player of the Week on Oct. 17 after a 285-yard rushing game against Montana State. He has recorded the 19th 1,000-yard season in PSU history.
Smith, a junior from Elmira, OR, has started all 35 games of his career at left tackle. His efforts have led the Viking offense to 35.8 points and 431.8 yards of offense per game.
Sulleyman, a senior from Spanaway, WA, is a talent at both tackle and defensive end. He led the Vikings with 12.5 tackles for loss this season, making 38 total tackles and five sacks. Sulleyman ranks among the top 10 all-time sack leaders in Portland State history.
Dade, a sophomore from Los Angeles, has come on in the latter half of the season to be a starter. He leads the Vikings in sacks with six. Dade also has three pass breakups, a forced fumble and 25 tackles.
Coleman, a junior from Portland's Jesuit High School, leads the Big Sky Conference and the nation in passes defended this season with 18. Coleman has made five interceptions and 13 pass breakups. He has 50 total tackles on the season and was the Big Sky Player of the Week on Nov. 14.
The Vikings had five players named third team All-Big Sky Conference: offensive tackle Mike Davis, offensive guard Cam Keizur, kicker Jonathan Gonzales, defensive tackle Daniel Fusi and cornerback Aaron Sibley.
Davis, a senior from Chico, CA, and Keizur, a junior from West Linn, joined Kyle Smith in anchoring the Viking offensive line. Both have been full-time starters the past two seasons.
Gonzales, a junior from Apple Valley, CA, is an All-Conference performer for the second year in a row. He made 12-15 field goals and 48-49 extra points this season. Gonzales established a new record for consecutive extra points (77) and was also named Big Sky Player of the Week on Oct. 24 after kicking a game-winning field goal at Cal Poly.
Fusi, a senior from Santa Ana, CA, has been a key run stopper in the middle of the defensive line this season. Despite missing two games with injury, he made 15 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and forced a fumble.
Sibley, a senior from Decatur, GA, also battled injuries this season but performed well when available. In nine games, he had 32 tackles, seven pass breakups, a blocked field goal and an interception. His blocked field goal and an interception in the final minute led to Portland State's epic 24-17 win at Washington State to open the season.
Seven Vikings also earned Honorable Mention All-Big Sky: JR WR Darnell Adams (19-444-6), SO OG Randin Crecelius, JR QB Alex Kuresa, SO return specialist Kahlil Dawson (30-754-1), JR DE Michael Doman (39T, 8 TFL, 4.5 SK, 3 PBU, 1 FR, 1 FF), SR LB Jeremy Lutali (86T, 3TFL, 1 SK, 1 INT, 3 PBU, 2 FF) and SR S Walter Santiago (33 T, 1 TFL, 8 PBU, 1 INT).
