2018 GLVC FOOTBALL ALL-CONFERENCE RELEASE

(LEBANON, Ill., Nov. 15)—The McKendree University football team had a record 19 players earn post-season honors from the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The GLVC announced its 2018 All-Conference selections Thursday afternoon.
 
Four Bearcats brought home first-team All-GLVC accolades on Thursday. Headlining the list is a trio of seniors: running back Preston Thompson (Hazel Crest, IL/Tinley Park), wide receiver Jalyn Williams (Carbondale, IL/Carbondale) and offensive lineman Cole Foster (Columbia, IL/Columbia). They were joined by sophomore kicker Josh Lazaro (Bradley, IL/Bradley-Bourbonnais) on the first-team All-GLVC list for 2018.
 
Eight from McKendree grabbed second-team All-GLVC mention. The list includes: senior quarterback Reece Metcalf (Mount Carmel, IL/Mount Carmel), senior wide receiver Josh Revay (Livermore, CA/Granada), senior tight end Zach Bobos (Lowell, IN/Lowell), junior linebacker Ricco Gipson, Jr. (Godfrey, IL/Alton), junior defensive back Blake Benoist (O'Fallon, MO/Fort Zumwalt West), junior punter Monte Wolke (Sigel, IL/Cumberland), sophomore offensive lineman Austin Huls (St. Charles, MO/Pattonville) and sophomore long snapper Caleb Shipley (Centralia, IL/Centralia).
 
Seven more Bearcats were named as honorable mention All-GLVC selections this season. Among the group are: senior offensive lineman Jake King (Rochester, IL/Rochester), junior return specialist Matt Cole (Chicago, IL/Curie), sophomore running back Jace Franklin (Sprinfield, IL/Williamsville), sophomore tight end Steven Leadlove (Belleville, IL/Belleville West), sophomore defensive lineman Brandon Purnell (Chicago, IL/Simeon), sophomore defensive lineman Isaiah Ward (Peoria, IL/Peoria Notre Dame) and junior defensive lineman Mike Smith.
 
Thompson had a productive senior season at McKendree as he led the Bearcats with 1,073 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on the ground in 2018. He topped the 100-yard mark in a game five times. Thompson's 1,073 rushing yards marks the second-highest season total in program history. He closed his career with 1,779 yards, which is good for eighth on McKendree's all-time list. In addition to his production in the Bearcats' backfield, Thompson caught 12 passes for 153 yards with a pair of touchdowns.
 
Williams – who was a second-team All-GLVC choice in 2017 – was second on the McKendree squad with 40 pass receptions and led the Bearcats with 615 receiving yards. Williams set a program mark with eight touchdown grabs this fall, including a career-long 74-yard TD catch against William Jewell College. He became just the fourth player in McKendree history to record at least 100 reception, finishing his four years with 102 catches. Williams' 1,370 receiving yards are third all-time for the Bearcats, and his 13 TD grabs rank second overall.
 
A three-year starter at right tackle for McKendree, Foster earned his second straight first-team All-GLVC nod. He anchored a Bearcats' offensive line that helped produce the most points in program history with 393. McKendree also piled up a school-record 4,890 total offensive yards in 2018. Foster started 32 games during his career with the Bearcats.
 
Lazaro broke a McKendree kick-scoring record this season with 83 points. He converted 48 extra-point tries and connected on 13 field goal attempts, which is the third-highest in program history. Lazaro led the GLVC in kick scoring at 7.5 PPG and also paced all league kickers by hitting 81.2 percent of his field goal attempts, going 13-of-16. Lazaro drilled a career-long 47-yard field goal at the University of Indianapolis back on Oct. 20.
 
Metcalf threw a school-record 27 touchdown passes this fall despite missing nearly two games due to injury. He completed nearly 66 percent of his passes for 2,622 yards with just four interceptions in 284 attempts. Metcalf established a new Bearcat record by throwing for 391 yards on Homecoming against William Jewell on Oct. 27. He also tied the McKendree mark for touchdown passes in a game by throwing six at home versus Bowie State University on Sept. 15. For his career, Metcalf became just the second Bearcat to top 5,000 passing yards, ending his four seasons with 5,154 yards. He also ranks second all-time in total offense (5,425 yards), and passing TDs (44).
 
Revay led McKendree with 45 receptions and was second on the squad in both receiving yards (496) and touchdowns (6). He closed out his two seasons with the Bearcats seventh all-time in catches with 77 and ninth in receiving yards with 945. Revay also registered 10 touchdown grabs at McKendree, which is tied for fourth in program history. He was an honorable mention All-GLVC honoree in 2017.
 
Bobos was the Bearcats' fourth-leading receiver in 2018 with 21 catches. He also recorded 292 receiving yards with a pair of touchdowns at McKendree. In his two seasons with the Bearcats, Bobos posted 38 receptions for 414 yards with five TDs.
 
From his middle linebacker position, Gipson became just the fourth McKendree player to register at least 100 tackles in a season. He led McKendree with 106 stops in 2018, including a career-high 15 on Senior Day against Missouri S&T on Nov. 3. Among Gipson's 106 tackles this fall were four for loss. He also had a pair of pass break-ups along with a forced fumble. He was an honorable mention All-GLVC pick in 2017.
 
A three-year starter at safety for McKendree, Benoist finished second on the McKendree squad with 70 tackles this season. Benoist had two tackles for loss along with an interception, two pass break-ups and a fumble recovery. He notched a career-high 11 tackles twice in 2018, once in the season opener against Northern Michigan on Sept. 1 and also versus Truman State on Oct. 6. This is the third time Benoist has received All-GLVC accolades, picking up second-team honors a year ago while earning honorable mention status in 2016.
 
Wolke led the GLVC in punting, setting a school record in the process by averaging 42 yards per kick. He was also second in the league in net punting with a 38.4 yard average in the category. Wolke had 15 of his punts land inside the opponents' 20-yard line. He had seven kicks of at least 50 yards, including a season-long 68-yard effort at Indianapolis. Wolke, who was an honorable mention All-GLVC selection last year, ranks second on the Bearcats' career list with 6,801 punting yards.
 
In his first year as a starter along the McKendree offensive line, Huls was solid at the left tackle slot for the Bearcats. He helped form a unit that blocked for the most prolific offensive squad in program history. The Bearcats amassed 4,890 yards and 393 points in 2018. McKendree allowed just six quarterback sacks all season long.
 
Shipley finished up his second season as the Bearcats' primary long snapper in 2018. He saw action in 10 games and combined with kicker Josh Lazaro (Bradley, IL/Bradley-Bourbonnais) and punter Monte Wolke (Sigel, IL/Cumberland) to form one of the most dynamic kicking games in the GLVC. In addition, Shipley had six special teams tackles, forced a fumble and had one fumble recovery at Indianapolis.
 
King appeared in all but one game at left tackle for McKendree this season. In fact, the three-year starter played in all but one game during his four seasons along the Bearcats' offensive line. He helped pave the way for the Bearcats' last two 1,000-yard rushers – Shayeen Edwards (East St. Louis, IL/Cahokia) in 2017 and Preston Thompson (Hazel Crest, IL/Tinley Park) this fall. This marks King's third GLVC post-season honor to go along with second-team mention in 2017 and honorable mention accolades as a sophomore in 2016.
 
Cole was a dual threat for McKendree not only on special teams, but at wide receiver as well. Cole took over as the Bearcats' primary kick return specialist midway through the season and managed to post record-setting numbers. He set the Bearcats' single-season mark with 708 kick return yards in 2018. Cole became just the second player in program history with multiple kick returns for touchdowns in the same season, posting scores in back-to-back weeks to end the season against Missouri S&T and Lincoln University. He averaged 35.4 kick return yards. Along with his special teams accomplishments, Cole was third on the team with 22 pass receptions for 354 yards with three touchdowns.
 
Franklin joined the McKendree program this season and finished second in rushing with 661 yards on 137 carries. He also scored twice on the ground while adding 12 receptions out of the backfield for 95 yards. Franklin teamed with Thompson to become the first pair of running backs at McKendree to gain at least 600 yards in a season since 2010.
 
Leadlove earned All-GLVC honors in a utility role as he played both at fullback and tight end for McKendree. He registered eight catches this season for 144 yards with two touchdowns while also serving as a blocking back for Preston Thompson (Hazel Crest, IL/Tinley Park) and Jace Franklin (Sprinfield, IL/Williamsville) in key situations.
 
In his first season as a starter along the defensive line, Purnell was fourth on the McKendree team in tackles this year with 57. He led the Bearcats with nine tackles for loss and added two quarterback sacks. In addition, Purnell posted two pass break-up along with a forced fumble and fumble recovery.
 
Like Purnell, Ward jumped into the Bearcats' starting lineup along the front four and closed the year with 20 tackles. Ward had 5 ½ tackles for loss as well as one sack. Ward was second on the team with three quarterback pressures in 2018.
 
Smith also moved into a starting role at defensive end for McKendree and registered 50 tackles. He notched 6 ½ tackles for loss along with two quarterback sacks, both of which came against Lincoln in the season finale. Smith also excelled on special teams with a pair of blocked kicks, one versus Bowie State and the other coming against Truman State.
 
The McKendree football team finished the 2018 season with an overall record of 6-5. The Bearcats were 4-3 in GLVC play this season.