Vea Named Pac-12 Defensive POY; Six Dawgs Earn First-Team All-Pac-12
December 05, 2017 | Football
SAN FRANCISCO – Vita Vea was named Pat Tillman Defensive Player of the Year, six Washington football players earned first-team honors and another six made the second team as the 2017 All-Pac-12 football team was announced today.
Vea, a junior defensive tackle from Milpitas, Calif., is the first Husky to earn Pac-12 Player of the Year on defense since 1996, when Jason Chorak won the honor. The 6-foot-5, 340-pounder is the centerpiece of the Husky defense that led the conference in rushing, scoring and total defense.
The six first-teamers counts senior Dante Pettis twice, as he was named a first-team selection as both a wide receiver and return specialist. He was joined on the top unit by offensive lineman Kaleb McGary and Coleman Shelton, Vea and safety Taylor Rapp.
Pettis, a senior from San Clemente, Calif., broke the NCAA record for career punt returns for a touchdown, scoring four more this year to give him nine in his career. He leads the NCAA with his 20.4-yard average on punt returns and is the only player to score more than two punt returns TDs this season. As a receiver, he's the UW's leader with 62 receptions for 721 yards and seven touchdowns.
McGary, a junior from Fife, Wash., and Shelton, a senior from Pasadena, Calif., helped lead a Husky offense that compiled 2,278 rushing yards and allowed just 16 sacks. Shelton was a second-team selection last season.
Rapp, a sophomore from Bellingham, Wash., was the Pac-12's Defensive Freshman of the Year last season. In 2017, he notched 55 tackles, second-most on the team, for the conference's top defense.
Washington's second-team selections were junior tailback Myles Gaskin (Lynnwood, Wash.), senior tight end Will Dissly (Bozeman, Mont.), junior defensive tackle Greg Gaines (La Habra, Calif.), senior linebacker Keishawn Bierria (Carson, Calif.), junior linebacker Ben Burr-Kirven (Menlo Park, Calif.) and junior safety Jojo McIntosh (Canyon Country, Calif).
Earning honorable mention were freshman tailback Salvon Ahmed (Kirkland, Wash.), LB Tevis Bartlett (Cheyenne, Wyo.), junior quarterback Jake Browning (Folsom, Calif.), sophomore cornerback Myles Bryant (Pasadena, Calif.) and sophomore offensive lineman Nick Harris (Inglewood, Calif.).
Vea, a junior defensive tackle from Milpitas, Calif., is the first Husky to earn Pac-12 Player of the Year on defense since 1996, when Jason Chorak won the honor. The 6-foot-5, 340-pounder is the centerpiece of the Husky defense that led the conference in rushing, scoring and total defense.
The six first-teamers counts senior Dante Pettis twice, as he was named a first-team selection as both a wide receiver and return specialist. He was joined on the top unit by offensive lineman Kaleb McGary and Coleman Shelton, Vea and safety Taylor Rapp.
Pettis, a senior from San Clemente, Calif., broke the NCAA record for career punt returns for a touchdown, scoring four more this year to give him nine in his career. He leads the NCAA with his 20.4-yard average on punt returns and is the only player to score more than two punt returns TDs this season. As a receiver, he's the UW's leader with 62 receptions for 721 yards and seven touchdowns.
McGary, a junior from Fife, Wash., and Shelton, a senior from Pasadena, Calif., helped lead a Husky offense that compiled 2,278 rushing yards and allowed just 16 sacks. Shelton was a second-team selection last season.
Rapp, a sophomore from Bellingham, Wash., was the Pac-12's Defensive Freshman of the Year last season. In 2017, he notched 55 tackles, second-most on the team, for the conference's top defense.
Washington's second-team selections were junior tailback Myles Gaskin (Lynnwood, Wash.), senior tight end Will Dissly (Bozeman, Mont.), junior defensive tackle Greg Gaines (La Habra, Calif.), senior linebacker Keishawn Bierria (Carson, Calif.), junior linebacker Ben Burr-Kirven (Menlo Park, Calif.) and junior safety Jojo McIntosh (Canyon Country, Calif).
Earning honorable mention were freshman tailback Salvon Ahmed (Kirkland, Wash.), LB Tevis Bartlett (Cheyenne, Wyo.), junior quarterback Jake Browning (Folsom, Calif.), sophomore cornerback Myles Bryant (Pasadena, Calif.) and sophomore offensive lineman Nick Harris (Inglewood, Calif.).
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