Siena Heights junior linebacker Kole Murlin was named the Co-Mid-States Football Association Mideast League Defensive Player of the Year when the league office announced the annual awards on Friday morning. The Celina, Ohio native also earned a spot on the MSFA All-Mideast League First Team for the second time in his career.
Nine other Saint football players were honored with awards as well. Running back Jared Jordan was named to the MSFA All-Mideast League First-Team offense for the first time in his career. He was joined by the Saints freshman standout receiver, Eric Williams II. Joining Murlin on the first-team defense was Trenton Morrow who was named to the squad for the second time as a Saint.
Murlin had a fantastic season leading the Saints defense with 56 total tackles, 12 solo, four tackles for loss, and a sack. He tied a school record for tackles in a game with 19 against Lawrence Tech and earned an MSFA Mideast defensive player of the week award for his efforts. Despite only playing four games this season, Murlin leads the NAIA with 14.0 tackles per game.
"Kole is the leader of our defense," said head coach Matt Kohn. "All things run through Kole."
Jordan averaged 66.5 yards on the ground for a season total of 266 yards. He scored one touchdown and was averaging 4.9 yards per carry as the workhorse back for SHU.
"Jared does a great job leading our running backs room," stated coach Kohn. "He is very deserving of this honor."
Willims II led all Saint receivers with 17 catches for 280 yards and four touchdown grabs. His 70 receiving yards per game was nearly half of the Siena Heights total receiving yards per game. Williams was also a threat in the return game, leading SHU with 241 kick-return yards. He ranked fifth in the NAIA in kick return yards per game (30.1) and 16th in all-purpose yards per game (134.0).
Coach Kohn said, "Eric made some big plays for us on offense, we are looking forward to his growth and development as a player."
Morrow finished third on the team in tackles with 26. He also led the Saints in interceptions for the second consecutive season. This year, he hauled in two picks for the top mark which averaged half an interception per game which ranked in the top-25 nationally.
"Trenton has tremendous instincts at safety and anticipates things happening well," lauded coach Kohn.
On the MSFA All-Mideast League Second-Team offense was offensive lineman Nick Turchiano. The second-team defense consisted of d-linemen Wyatt Gardocki and Andrew Loria.
Turchiano helped anchor the Siena Heights offensive line. He made four starts on the season and was a key component to the Saints' offensive success.
"Nick has developed into one of our top players on offense," praised Kohn. "He leads the offensive line."
Gardocki finished 2020-21 with 16 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and a team-high 1.5 sacks.
"Wyatt is a very aggressive player that plays with a very high motor," said coach Kohn.
Loria tallied 18 tackles, a team-high five tackles for loss, and tied Gardocki with 1.5 sacks.
"He is the strongest player on our team," Kohn stated about Loria. "He does a great job making his presence felt in the trenches."
Defensive backs Gabe Callery and Khoreice Crawford along with quarterback Tyler Knecht were listed among the honorable mentions.
Callery ended the year with the second-most tackles on the team at 29 stops. He had one interception and a half tackle for loss on the season.
Coach Kohn said, "Gabe is a tremendous leader and is the voice of our secondary."
Crawford totaled 13 tackles in the secondary for the Saints defense during the year. That total was eighth-best on the team.
"Khoreice had a breakout year," said Kohn. "He was consistently matched up on our opponent's best player and did a great job."
Knecht started in three games under center for Siena Heights. He completed 73% of his passes for 575 yards and six scoring tosses. He ranked seventh in the NAIA in pass efficiency with a clip of 177.90.
"His production in his final three games was the best it has been in his career," stated Kohn.
For the complete list of MSFA All-Mideast League Awards click here.
