June 20, 2013
2013 Beyond Sports Network Preseason All-America Teams
Bronx, N.Y. -
Fordham University senior running back Carlton Koonce (Lumberton, N.J./Rancocas Valley), junior tight end Dan Light (Sutton, Mass./St. John's) and junior wide receiver Brian Wetzel (Dallas, Tex./Jesuit College Prep) were all named to the 2013 Beyond Sports Network Preseason NCAA FCS All-America team it was announced today. Fordham is one of three Patriot League teams to have a player named to the team and the only league team to have three players honored.
Koonce, who earned First Team All-Patriot League honors in 2012, rushed 300 times for 1,596 yards, breaking the Fordham single season school rushing mark of 1,477 yards set by Kirwin Watson in 2003. He also led the Rams with 13 rushing touchdowns and was second on the team with 48 receptions for 313 yards and two scores.
Koonce led the Patriot League and was fourth in the NCAA FCS in rushing yards/game (145.1) and had two 200-yard games in 2012, including a 250-yard contest at Columbia where he tied a Patriot League record with a 92-yard touchdown run. Koonce also led the Patriot League and was sixth in the NCAA FCS in all-purpose yards/game, averaging 173.6/contest.
Light, who was named First Team All-Patriot League last fall, caught 45 passes for 388 yards on the season, ranking third on the team in receptions and fourth in receiving yards. He set career-highs last year in receptions and receiving yards with nine catches for 66 yards at Holy Cross.
Over his two years at Fordham, Light has accumulated 68 receptions for 621 yards and one touchdown.
Wetzel, who was named First Team All-Patriot League at wide receiver and Second Team as a return specialist last fall, led the 2012 Rams with 72 catches for 1,042 yards and seven touchdowns. He ranked fourth on the Fordham single season reception list and fifth on the receiving yards list and became just the third Ram to accumulate more than 1,000 receiving yards in a season (Javarus Dudley did it three times and
Jason Caldwell once). Wetzel led the Patriot League and was 18th in the NCAA FCS in receiving yards/game (94.7) and ranked third in the league and 22nd in the NCAA FCS in receptions/game (6.5).
On the year, Wetzel had seven 100-yard receiving games, including a career-best 187 yards on 14 catches in the season finale with Colgate. The 14 receptions tied the Fordham single game record while the 187 receiving yards was the seventh most in a game in school history. Wetzel now has eight 100-yard receiving games in his career, tied for fourth best at Fordham.
The BSN Preseason recognition is the second preseason accolade for each player as all three have also been named to their respective College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) FCS Award watch list
Fordham will open the 2013 season on Thursday, August 29, as the Rams host the University of Rhode Island on Jack Coffey Field at 7:00 p.m.
