Wheaton leads the D3football.com All-Region 5 Football Team with 14 selections; Dallas McRae honored as Defensive Player of the Year

Wheaton, Ill. – The Wheaton Thunder football team placed 14 players on the 2021 D3football.com All- Region 5 Team on Wednesday, the most of any program in Division III's Region 5. Six players from the Thunder defense earned All-Region recognition, five offensive players picked up the honor, with three special teams honorees. Wheaton placed nine players on the First Team unit, two on the Second Team and two on the Third Team.

Dallas McRae earned special recognition from the website as the Region 5 Defensive Player of the Year. This marks the second consecutive full season that McRae has been named a Regional Defensive Player of the Year by the website, as he was named the North Region Defensive Player of the Year in 2019. He is the third Wheaton player to be named Regional Defensive Player of the Year by the website, however, he is the first to pick up the recognition twice in a career. Wheaton's previous Regional Defensive Player of the Year selections were Andy Studebaker (2006) and Pete Ittersagen (2008). A First Team All-Region selection, McRae is earning All-Region for the third time. He was a Second Team honoree in 2018 and was First Team All-North Region in in 2019. McRae was a D3football.com First Team All-American in 2019 and was also named the website's Division III Defensive Player of the Year.

McRae, a defensive tackle, led the Wheaton defense with 13 sacks (91 yards) this season. His 22 tackles for loss (-118 yards) led the Thunder defense and he was second on the team in total tackles with 51, including 37 solo stops. He registered eight quarterback hurries this season, breaking up five passes. McRae is ranked 15th in Division III in sacks per game (1.08 SPG) and is 16th in the nation in tackles for loss per game (1.8 TFLPG).

McRae was joined on the All-Region 5 First Team by two other members of the Wheaton defense. His fellow defensive tackle Jake Holaday joined him on the First Team and linebacker Ryan Schwartz is a First Team All-Region honoree for the second time. Holaday, a Second Team All-North Region pick at defensive tackle in 2019, was second on the Thunder defense with 9.5 sacks (-54 yards). He has 14 tackles for loss (-64 yards) this year. Holaday made 44 total tackles this fall, including 27 solo stops. He led Wheaton with nine passes broken up. Schwartz was a Third Team All-American at linebacker for the Thunder 2019. For the second-consecutive season he led the Wheaton defense in total tackles, as he made 89 total tackles in 2021, including 64 solos. Schwartz registered 9.5 tackles for loss (-17 yards), with three interceptions (-35 yards).

Tight end Spencer Peterson is a First Team All-Region 5 selection this season. Peterson led the Thunder with 13 touchdown catches this fall. His 533 receiving yards was second on the team. He caught 35 passes this season, and his 15.2 yards per reception average was second on the Thunder offense.

Three members of the Thunder offensive line earned All-Region honors this season. Center Jake Hibben and tackle Gabriel McGill are First Team honorees, with guard Trevor Gabriele earning Third Team recognition. Both Hibben and McGill (at guard) were Second All-North Region selections in 2019. Hibben was a Third Team All-American pick by D3football.com in 2019. The trio keyed a Thunder offense that ranks fourth in Division III in scoring offense (48.2 PPG), is 10th in total offense (491.0 YPG), and is 11th in rushing offense (253.5 yards per game).

Three members of the Thunder special teams unit earned First Team All-Region 5 selection this season: punter John Bickle, kicker Tommy Gallagher and Jalen Shaffer. In the regular season, Bickle averaged 45.0 yards per punt to lead the CCIW in 2021. His final 2021 season average of 42.1 yards per punt broke his own school record of 40.6 yards per punt that he set in 2019. The Thunder punter nine of his 32 punts go for 50 or more yards, including a long of 61 yards at Carroll. Additionally, he had 11 punts inside the opponents' 20-yard line. Gallagher converted nine of his 14 field goal attempts this season, including a season-long field goal of 52 yards. Shaffer's First Team All-Region selection comes specifically as a special teams player. Shaffer blocked six punts this season, leading Division III in blocked kicks. He has a return for touchdown, and has helped lead Wheaton to first in the nation in both blocked kicks (12), and blocked punts (8)

Corner back Caleb Egbert is a Second Team All-Region 5 selection this season. The senior led Wheaton's defense with four interceptions for 127 return yards, including three INT returns for a touchdown. Egbert registered 40 total tackles this fall, including 33 solos hits. His seven passes broken up ranked second on the Thunder defense this season.

Thunder running back Giovanni Weeks is a Second Team All-Region 5 selection at running back. Weeks led Wheaton with a school-record 1,462 rushing yards this season, and his average of 8.2 yards per carry ranks second in Division III. The junior's 20 rushing touchdowns established a new school record, and he had 21 total TD this year. Weeks caught 31 passes for 470 yards, averaging 15.2 yards per catch. He averaged 178.2 all purpose yards per game this season, a mark that is fourth in Division III, and he is fifth in Division III in rushing yards.

Defensive end River Shindledecker and linebacker Wyatt Lee are Third Team All-Region 5 picks this season. Shindledecker recorded 8.5 quarterback sacks (-35 yards) this season among his 11.5 (-63 yards tackles for lost yardage. The senior registered 42 total tackles, including 26 solo stops. He was tied for the team lead with eight quarterback hurries. Lee was third on the Wheaton defense in total tackles with 47, including 33 solos. He made 11 tackles for loss (-57 yards) in 2021, including seven sacks (-51 yards).

Originally published by Wheaton College Athletics: /news/2021/12/8/wheaton-leads-the-d3football-com-all-region-5-football-team-with-14-selections-dallas-mcrae-honored-as-defensive-player-of-the-year.aspx