This week marked the announcement of the of the 89th annual Associated Press All-America team. Eight players from teams represented in inaugural College Football Playoff made the first team.
Florida State also had the most players on the three All-America teams with six. Receiver Rashad Greene and safety Jalen Ramsey made the second team and defensive tackle Eddie Goldman was named a third-team selection.
The Seminoles were represented on the first team by tight end Nick O’Leary, guard Tre’ Jackson and kicker Roberto Aguayo. Aguayo is the first kicker to be a two-time All-American since Ohio State’s Mike Nugent, although Nugent failed to make the team in consecutive years like Aguayo.
The Washington Huskies joined Florida State as the only other team with three players on the first team. Washington was represented by dynamic all-purpose player Shaq Thompson, defensive tackle Danny Shelton and linebacker Hau’oli Kikaha, who led the nation in sacks during the regular season with 18.
Thompson played both offense and defense this year and was highly effective on both ends. He scored six touchdowns on the year — three by fumble return, two rushing and one interception return. He rushed for 456 yards, had 71 tackles, four fumble recoveries and three forced fumbles.
Other notable teammates selected together for the first team included Oregon Ducks quarterback Marcus Mariota and cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, and Alabama Crimson Tide players Amari Cooper at receiver and Landon Collins at safety. Cooper finished third in this year’s Heisman voting.
Heisman winner Marcus Mariota is the first Ducks quarterback to be named an All-American.
The Pac-12 had the most players on the first team with seven. The Atlantic Coast Conference was not far behind with six.
Both the Southeastern Conference and Big Ten each had four players chosen to the first team. The Big 12 had three. The only player from outside of the Power-Five conferences to make the first team was Colorado State receiver Rashard Higgins, who finished the year with 89 receptions, 1,640 yards, and 17 touchdowns.
AP ALL-AMERICAN FIRST TEAM
OFFENSE
Quarterback — Marcus Mariota, junior, 6-foot-4, 219 pounds, Oregon
Running backs — Melvin Gordon, junior, 6-1, 213, Wisconsin; Tevin Coleman, junior, 6-1, 210, Indiana.
Tackles — Brandon Scherff, senior, 6-5, 320, Iowa; Spencer Drango, junior, 6-6, 310, Baylor.
Guards — Tre Jackson, senior, 6-4, 330, Florida State; Laken Tomlinson, senior, 6-3, 320, Duke.
Center — Reese Dismukes, senior, 6-3, 296, Auburn.
Tight End — Nick O’Leary, senior, 6-3, 247, Florida State.
Wide receivers — Amari Cooper, junior, 6-1, 210, Alabama; Rashard Higgins, sophomore, 6-2, 188, Colorado State.
Kicker — Roberto Aguayo, sophomore, 6-1, 203, Florida State.
All-purpose player — Shaq Thompson, junior, 6-1, 228, Washington.
DEFENSE
Ends — Joey Bosa, sophomore, 6-5, 278, Ohio State; Vic Beasley, senior, 6-3, 235, Clemson.
Tackles — Malcom Brown, junior, 6-2, 320, Texas; Danny Shelton, junior, 6-2, 339, Washington.
Linebackers — Scooby Wright III, sophomore, 6-1, 246, Arizona; Hau’oli Kikaha, senior, 6-3, 246, Washington; Paul Dawson, senior, 6-2, 230, TCU.
Cornerbacks — Senquez Golson, senior, 5-9, 176, Mississippi; Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, senior, 5-10, 195, Oregon.
Safeties — Landon Collins, junior, 6-0, 222, Alabama; Gerod Holliman, sophomore, 6-2, 213, Louisville.
Punter — Tom Hackett, junior, 5-11, 187, Utah.
AP ALL-AMERICAN SECOND TEAM
OFFENSE
Quarterback — Trevone Boykin, junior, TCU
Running backs — James Conner, sophomore, Pittsburgh; Ameer Abdullah, senior, Nebraska.
Tackles — La’el Collins, senior, LSU; Andrus Peat, junior, Stanford.
Guards — Arie Kouandjio, senior, Alabama; A.J. Cann, senior, South Carolina.
Center — Hroniss Grasu, senior, Oregon.
Tight End — Maxx Williams, sophomore, Minnesota.
Wide receivers — Kevin White, senior, West Virginia; Rashad Greene, senior, Florida State.
Kicker — Brad Craddock, junior, Maryland.
All-purpose player — Tyler Lockett, senior, Kansas State.
DEFENSE
Ends — Shane Ray, junior, Missouri; Nate Orchard, senior, Utah.
Tackles — Leonard Williams, junior, Southern California; Robert Nkemdiche, sophomore, Mississippi.
Linebackers — Eric Kendricks, senior, UCLA; Benardrick McKinney, junior, Mississippi State; Jaylon Smith, sophomore, Notre Dame.
Cornerbacks — Vernon Hargreaves III, sophomore, Florida; Jacoby Glenn, sophomore, Central Florida.
Safeties — Jalen Ramsey, sophomore, Florida State; Cody Prewitt, senior, Mississippi.
Punter — JK Scott, freshman, Alabama.
The voting panel included Bob Asmussen, Champaign (Ill.) News-Gazette; Daniel Berk, Arizona Daily Star, Tucson; Seth Emerson, The Macon (Ga.) Telegraph/Columbus (Ga.) Ledger-Enquirer; Tim Griffin, San Antonio Express-News; Eric Hansen, The South Bend (Ind.) Tribune; Mike Herndon, Alabama Media Group (al.com); Adam Jude, The Seattle Times; Iliana Limon, Orlando (Fla.) Sentinel and Sun Sentinel; Rob Long, WJFK-105.7 Baltimore; Chuck McGill, Charleston (W.Va.) Daily Mail; Kyle Ringo, Daily Camera, Boulder, Colorado; Nate Sandell, 1500 ESPN Twin Cities/KSTP AM, St. Paul, Minnesota; Keith Sargeant, New Jersey Advance Media/ NJ.com; John Silver, The Journal Inquirer, Manchester, Connecticut; Gary Smits, Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville; Sam Werner, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
