University of Richmond Athletics
Three Named All-Americans, 13 Take Home All-CAA By Phil Steele
12/15/2023 | Football
Richmond, Va. — Offensive lineman Ryan Coll, linebacker Tristan Wheeler and punter Aaron Trusler were named All-America by Phil Steele/Draftscout.com, announced Friday. Trusler was named to the second team, Coll was named to the third and Wheeler was named a fourth teamer.
The All-America honor comes as the second of the postseason for all three, with Wheeler being named a FCS Football Central All-American, while Coll and Trusler were both named Associated Press All-Americans earlier this week.
Wheeler capped a storied career in 2023 registering a single season career-high 121 tackles, 3.0 sacks and 10.0 tackles for loss. He opened the season with 17 tackles against Morgan State, the second-most in a single game in his career and with his fourth tackle of the game against Delaware State, Wheeler reached the 400 career tackles mark, becoming the seventh Spider to reach the milestone. With his fourth tackle of the day during the Campbell game, Wheeler moved into second place all time on the Spiders career tackles list. With his 11th tackle of the game against Elon, Wheeler recorded 100 or more tackles in four-straight full season of football (2019, 2021 fall, 2022, 2023).
This year, Coll helped the Spiders rank second in the CAA in completion percentage as quarterback Kyle Wickersham ranked second in the country in completion percentage at .726 with Coll in front of him. Richmond's redzone offense was second in the CAA at 0.867 percent and the Spiders averaged 345 yards and 28.2 points per game. Richmond was fourth in the CAA and 19th nationally in first downs with Coll's offensive line leading the way.
Trusler averaged 41.5 yards per punt and placed a conference-high 26 of them inside the 20-yard line. He helped the Spiders lead the CAA in net punting with 39.9 yards per kick. During the William & Mary game, Trusler booted a career-long 76-yard punt that ties for sixth-longest in program history, one of many field-flipping instances for Trusler and the Spiders this season. He also picked up a crucial first down off a fake punt during the Elon game that saw him pick up 21 yards. Of his 63 punts this season, only 10 were returned for a total of 22 yards — the second fewest in the FCS this season.
On top of the All-American honors, Phil Steele/Draftscout.com released their All-CAA teams, with 13 Spiders making the list including the following:
Phil Steele First Team All-CAA
Tristan Wheeler, Linebacker
Ryan Coll, Offensive Lineman
Aaron Trusler, Punter
Phil Steele Second Team All-CAA
Nick DeGennaro, Wide Receiver
Marlem Louis, Defensive Line
Phil Steele Third Team All-CAA
Savon Smith, Running Back
Jeremiah Grant, Defensive Line
Tom Elia, Offesnive Line
Phil Steele Fourth Team All-CAA
Aaron Banks, Defensive Back
Phil Steele Five Team All-CAA
Brooks Heagarty, Halfback
Jabril Hayes, All-Purpose
Wayne Galloway, Linebacker
Brian Catanzarite, Long Snapper
The All-America honor comes as the second of the postseason for all three, with Wheeler being named a FCS Football Central All-American, while Coll and Trusler were both named Associated Press All-Americans earlier this week.
Wheeler capped a storied career in 2023 registering a single season career-high 121 tackles, 3.0 sacks and 10.0 tackles for loss. He opened the season with 17 tackles against Morgan State, the second-most in a single game in his career and with his fourth tackle of the game against Delaware State, Wheeler reached the 400 career tackles mark, becoming the seventh Spider to reach the milestone. With his fourth tackle of the day during the Campbell game, Wheeler moved into second place all time on the Spiders career tackles list. With his 11th tackle of the game against Elon, Wheeler recorded 100 or more tackles in four-straight full season of football (2019, 2021 fall, 2022, 2023).
This year, Coll helped the Spiders rank second in the CAA in completion percentage as quarterback Kyle Wickersham ranked second in the country in completion percentage at .726 with Coll in front of him. Richmond's redzone offense was second in the CAA at 0.867 percent and the Spiders averaged 345 yards and 28.2 points per game. Richmond was fourth in the CAA and 19th nationally in first downs with Coll's offensive line leading the way.
Trusler averaged 41.5 yards per punt and placed a conference-high 26 of them inside the 20-yard line. He helped the Spiders lead the CAA in net punting with 39.9 yards per kick. During the William & Mary game, Trusler booted a career-long 76-yard punt that ties for sixth-longest in program history, one of many field-flipping instances for Trusler and the Spiders this season. He also picked up a crucial first down off a fake punt during the Elon game that saw him pick up 21 yards. Of his 63 punts this season, only 10 were returned for a total of 22 yards — the second fewest in the FCS this season.
On top of the All-American honors, Phil Steele/Draftscout.com released their All-CAA teams, with 13 Spiders making the list including the following:
Phil Steele First Team All-CAA
Tristan Wheeler, Linebacker
Ryan Coll, Offensive Lineman
Aaron Trusler, Punter
Phil Steele Second Team All-CAA
Nick DeGennaro, Wide Receiver
Marlem Louis, Defensive Line
Phil Steele Third Team All-CAA
Savon Smith, Running Back
Jeremiah Grant, Defensive Line
Tom Elia, Offesnive Line
Phil Steele Fourth Team All-CAA
Aaron Banks, Defensive Back
Phil Steele Five Team All-CAA
Brooks Heagarty, Halfback
Jabril Hayes, All-Purpose
Wayne Galloway, Linebacker
Brian Catanzarite, Long Snapper
Players Mentioned
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