football places 15 on all-cc squad

Nolan

Fifteen members of the Centennial Conference-champion Muhlenberg football team, including 10 of the 11 defensive starters, were voted to the All-CC team by the league’s coaches.

The nine first-team selections fell one short of the school record set in 2003, when nine players combined to grab 10 first-team spots. The Mules had a record 18 total selections in both 2001 and 2002, when the CC had two fewer teams.

Six players from a defense that leads the CC in every

Gawel

category made the first team, two from each level. Senior Chris Musselman (eight sacks, 12 tackles for loss) was a unanimous repeater on the first team, and fellow senior defensive end Chris Swensen (4½ sacks, eight tackles for loss) earned All-CC honors for the first team. Swensen made the play of the year when he blocked a last-minute field goal to preserve a one-point win at Gettysburg, Muhlenberg’s closest call in an undefeated season.

Senior outside linebackers Dustin Good and Tom Tarsitano both moved up to the first team after earning second-team honors in 2006. Good leads the Mules with 55 tackles and 15 tackles for loss, while Tarsitano has 41 tackles and six pass breakups.

In the secondary, junior cornerback Brandon Doyle and sophomore rover Dan Aitkens made the first team. Doyle, a second-team pick in 2006, leads the team with seven breakups to go along with an interception and 34 tackles, and Aitkens, in his first season as a starter, is tied for the team lead with four picks and leads the defensive backs with 44 tackles.

Junior center Mike Nolan was one of three members of the offensive unit on the first team, earning the honor for the second

Tarsitano

year in a row. Nolan helped the offense gain exactly 1,000 more yards (3,844 vs. 2,844) through 10 games than it did last season.

Also earning first-team honors on offense were junior running back John DeLuca (1,267 yards, CC-leading 14 touchdowns) and senior tight end Matt Johnson (42 catches, 662 yards, six touchdowns).

Senior offensive lineman Mike Gawel, junior nose tackle William Moates (25 tackles), junior linebacker Matt Rathbun (54 tackles, three fumble recoveries) and junior safety David Mazzola (four interceptions) all received second-team honors, with junior quarterback Eric Santagato (CC leader in pass efficiency) and sophomore cornerback Cameron Ahouse (28 tackles, five breakups) earning honorable mention.