Seven Earn All-OAC Recognition

Seven members of the Heidelberg College football team closed out the 2008 season earning a spot on the All-Ohio Athletic Conference Team as voted on by league head coaches.
 
Leading the way on the first team offense was senior wide receiver Dawond Roddy (Sidney, Ohio / Sidney) and senior offensive tackle James Blankenship (Perrsyburg, Ohio / Northwood). Securing a place on the second team offense was senior tailback Jemar Lewis (Bedford Heights, Ohio / Bedford) and sophomore placekicker Jesse Hawkins (Georgetown, Ohio / Scott County). Junior defensive tackle Matt Grieves (Huron, Ohio / Huron) was tabbed a member of the second team defense, while senior wide receiver Lucas Bauer (Huron, Ohio / Huron) and sophomore linebacker Vaughn Klein (Galloway, Ohio /Central Crossing) were honorable mention honorees.
 
Heidelberg, under the guidance of second-year head coach Mike Hallett, finished the 2008 campaign winners of three of its last four outings to stand at 4-6 overall. Within the OAC, the Berg was 3-6, earning road victories at Baldwin-Wallace College, Marietta College and Muskingum College. Heidelberg opened the year with a convincing 62-27 win over visiting Westminster College, which is tied for ninth for points in a game. 
 
A three-time All-OAC honoree, Roddy is picking up his first nod on the first team. He earned second team honors in 2007 and honorable mention accolades as a sophomore. In his final campaign he led the team with 49 receptions, 809 receiving yards, eight touchdowns and an average of 80.9 receiving yards a game. All statistics are season-bests for the wide receiver. Roddy finished with four 100-yard receiving games. Not to be outdone, Roddy handled the kick return duties for the Berg and led the way with 521 yards in 30 returns.
 
Returning to the all-league list is Blankenship. A season ago, he was named to the second team and has earned a spot on the first team in 2008. Blankenship helped anchor an offense that featured three OAC Offensive Player of the Week awards, and a team that closed out the year with three wins that were earned in the final offensive series of the game. The Berg offense picked up over 3,000 total yards for the second-straight season.
 
Picking up his first postseason honor of his career is Lewis. Lewis led the Berg ground game, picking up a team-best 704 yards in 155 carries. Lewis also led the way with 70.4 rushing yards per game and six rushing TD’s. On the year, Lewis had three 100-yard rushing games, highlighted by 151 yards in 28 carries in a win at Baldwin-Wallace Oct. 25.
 
Hawkins continued to make a statement in 2008, earning second team honors as a placekicker for the second-consecutive season. For the year, Hawkins converted on 21-of-24 PAT’s and was successful on 9-of-10 field goals to lead the Berg. He accumulated 48 points on the year to share team honors with Roddy. He booted a season-long 44 yard field goal, which ranks third on his career list. For his career, Hawkins has 23 field goals, which is just five shy of the career mark.
 
Another two-time all-conference honoree is Grieves. A season ago, Grieves was named to the honorable mention list as a defensive end and in 2008 he moved to defensive tackle and was voted to the second team defense. Grieves led the defense with eight tackles for a loss, six sacks and four quarterback hurries. He also shared team honors with two forced fumbles and two blocked kicks. For the year he stood fifth on the team with 74 tackles, including 42 solo stops. He finished the year with three double digit tackle games, highlighted by tying his career-best of 12 stops at John Carroll Sept. 27.
 
Earning a spot on the honorable mention team for the second-straight season is Bauer. The wide receiver ranked second on the team with 35 receptions, 497 yards and 49.7 receiving yards a game. He closed out the year with a season-best 112 yards in seven receptions at Muskingum. Bauer handled the punt return duties in 2008 and finished with 130 yards in 14 returns. In the classroom Bauer was voted to the ESPN the Magazine Academic College Division District IV Second Team.  
 
Klein rounds out the 2008 all-league honorees for the Berg. He is picking up his first postseason accolade of his career. The linebacker finished third on the team with 83 tackles and picked up 58 solo stops on the year. He totaled two sacks on the year for 14 yards, to go along with two tackles for a loss, two pass breakups, a quarterback hurry and a forced fumble. Klein finished four games with double digit tackles and tied his career-high of 12 against Ohio Northern Oct. 11.