by Austin Post
Eight weeks into the football season, the Berry College Vikings (7-1 overall, 6-0 conference) are looking down at everyone else in the Southern Athletic Association. So it’s a good time to hand out awards to this, the first class of Postie Award winners. These football players are the cornerstones of a team that has surpassed everyone’s expectations this season.
Offensive Player of the Year: Trey Ciresi, wide receiver
The Vikings passing game has been pivotal in the team’s success, and junior Trey Ciresi has shined in this pass-heavy offense. A 6-foot-2-inch receiver out of University Christian School in Jacksonville, Fla., Ciresi is quarterback Dale Jackson’s favorite target. Through seven games, Ciresi leads the team in receptions (34), receiving yards (403) and touchdowns (6). Deep fly routes seem to be this receiver’s specialty, as Ciresi and Jackson have connected on seven passes of 20 yards or farther.
Ciresi’s numbers should get a boost in the final three weeks of the season when the Vikes go up against two of the weaker pass defenses in the SAA. Millsaps College ranks ninth in pass defense, averaging 329 yards allowed per game, and Birmingham Southern is just ahead of the Panthers in No. 8 by allowing 243 yards through the air.
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Defensive Player of the Year: Preston Stewart, linebacker
Double teams, cut blocks, hard counts – Preston Stewart has seen it all from offenses trying to slow him down. An outside linebacker, Stewart garnered the attention of every offensive coordinator in the SAA in 2014 when he was named to the All-SAA team, but that has not slowed him down. In Berry’s first seven games, he has recorded 40 tackles, including 11 tackles for a loss, a forced fumble and 5.5 sacks. He had 2.5 sacks against Rhodes College. His sack total is high enough to place him second on the conference leader board for the category. Not only has he produced huge numbers, but Stewart also tends to draw extra blockers on every down. This gives his teammates opportunities to make plays.
Stewart should finish the season strong. Birmingham Southern, Millsaps and Centre each allowed six sacks a piece from the linebacker position this season.
Newcomer of the Year: Kevin Grier, free safety
An early season injury to All-SAA member Anthony Batey gave Kevin Grier, a freshman from Lilburn, Ga., an opportunity to display the ability that made him All-State last year in high school. Grier has racked up 25 tackles from the free safety position, including a team-leading three interceptions and a defensive touchdown. He is tied for fourth in the SAA in interceptions.
Grier should be able to wreak havoc in the final three games of the season because Millsaps, Birmingham Southern and Centre have combined to give the ball away in the air 29 times.
Outstanding Single Game Performance: Mamadou Soumahoro, defensive end
Two games prior to Berry’s showdown with the University of Chicago, Chicago’s Chandler Carroll set a school record for rushing yards in a single game with 331. He followed that up with another mammoth performance against Birmingham Southern — 245 yards. What did sophomore defensive end Mamadou Soumahoro and the Berry defense do? They held Carroll to just 49 yards. Soumahoro collected a career-high 12 tackles, including 3.5 for a loss, in the Vikings overtime victory in the Windy City. He also brought down the quarterback twice in handing the Maroons their first loss of the season.
Special Teams Player of the Year: Mitchell Blanchard, kicker
This award nomination is a no-brainer. Junior Mitchell Blanchard has keyed the special teams and leads the team in points scored with 40. He’s done this with eight field goals, three from distances greater than 40 yards, and 16 extra points. His punting has helped Berry win the field position battle: 20 of his 55 punts were downed inside the 20-yard-line. And Blanchard has yet to have a punt blocked this season.
That’s quite a lineup, but I’ll keep a few extra Posties on hand just in case. This season isn’t over yet.