ST. LOUIS — Seven South Dakota State student-athletes, including four first-team selections, were honored Tuesday on the 2021 All-Missouri Valley Football Conference All-Academic Team. The 51-member squad was determined by a vote conducted by the league's sports information directors.
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Earning first-team recognition for the fourth time was offensive lineman Wes Genant. The offensive lineman from Parkston compiled a 3.90 undergraduate grade-point average in human biology and is in his first semester as a graduate student.
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Also repeating on the first team was senior linebacker Logan Backhaus with a 3.66 GPA as a human biology major. A native of Spirit Lake, Iowa, Backhaus was honored for the third time overall as he was a second-team honoree in 2019.
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Moving up to the first team was senior defensive lineman Reece Winkelman. A business economics major from Marshall, Minnesota, with a 3.87 GPA, Winkelman previously was a second-team honoree in 2019 and an honorable mention selection during the 2020-21 spring season.
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Completing the list of the Jackrabbits' first-team selections is sophomore linebacker Adam Bock. A native of Solon, Iowa, Bock has posted a 3.94 GPA as a mechanical engineering major, along with being the team's leading tackler each of the last two seasons.
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Offensive lineman Aron Johnson was honored on the second team for the second year in a row. The senior from Chisago City, Minnesota, has compiled a 3.82 GPA in pharmacy and interdisciplinary studies.
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Repeating as honorable mention selections were senior kicker Cole Frahm (3.64, aviation) and junior wide receiver Jaxon Janke (3.52, physical education/teacher education).
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Nominees must be starters or key reserves, carry a cumulative GPA of at least 3.2 and must have participated in at least 50 percent of his team's regular season games. Additionally, nominees must have reached sophomore athletic and academic standing at their institution, and must have completed at least one calendar year at their school. True freshman, redshirt freshmen and first-year transfers (with the exception of graduate transfers) are not eligible.