Dec. 9, 2010

Complete 2010 d3football.com All-South Region Team in PDF Format

BALTIMORE, MD - Johns Hopkins placed four players on the 2010 d3football.com All-South Region Team it was announced today by Pat Coleman, Executive Editor of the d3 network of sites. Junior center Ed Rodger (Glen Ridge, NJ/St. Peter's Prep) earned first team honors, while junior wide receiver Sam Wernick (Dallas, TX/Dallas Jesuit), junior linebacker Ryan Piatek (Sewell, NJ/Bishop Eustace) and senior place kicker Alex Lachman (Livingston, NJ/Livingston) all garnered second team status. Johns Hopkins led all Centennial Conference teams with its four selections as the Blue Jays accounted for four of the 11 CC players named to the team. No other Centennial school placed more than two players on the squad.

Rodger has established himself as one of the top centers in school history as he adds his First Team All-Region selection to an already impressive resume that includes First Team All-Centennial honors this year and Second Team All-Centennial a year ago. Rodger has started 23 games since the start of the 2009 season and anchored an offensive line this season that paved the way for an offense that averaged 35.8 points and a school-record 442.5 yards per game. The Blue Jays allowed just 11 sacks in 404 pass attempts this season and set a school record by scoring 394 points.

Wernick, the 2010 Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Year and a First Team All-Centennial Conference selection, was the only junior among the six wide receivers named to the team. He led the Blue Jays in receptions (69), receiving yards (1,265), touchdown receptions (17) and all-purpose yards (1,773) with the latter three of those marks all setting JHU single-season records. He also set a school record with seven 100-yard receiving games and tied the JHU single-game record for TD receptions with four at Susquehanna. In addition to his exploits on the football field, Wernick is a two-time CoSIDA/ESPN First Team Academic All-District selection. He also hit .367 for the Johns Hopkins baseball team last spring as the Blue Jays won the Centennial Conference Championship and placed fifth at the Division III College World Series.

The unquestioned leader of the Johns Hopkins defense, Piatek led the team in tackles (111), tackles for losses (14.0) and sacks (5.5) in 2010 while also contributing four pass breakups and four interceptions. His 111 tackles are the most by a Johns Hopkins player since 1993. Piatek earned First Team All-Centennial Conference honors this season after grabbing second team honors a year ago. In addition, he was selected to the CoSIDA/ESPN Academic All-District First Team this season after grabbing second team status as a sophomore.

Lachman concluded his career as JHU's career leader in numerous categories. A 2010 First Team All-Centennial selection, he hit 12-of-17 field goals and 46-of-50 extra points on the year to account for 82 of JHU's school-record 394 points on the year. His 46 extra points and 50 attempts are both JHU single-season records, while his 12 fields goals are tied for the fifth-best total in school history. He finishes his career as Johns Hopkins' career leader in field goals (46), extra points made (144) and attempted (155) and points scored by a kicker (282). A three-time All-Centennial selection, this is also Lachman's third appearance on the d3football.com All-South Team as he grabbed second team honors as a freshman and third team status last season.

Under the guidance of head coach Jim Margraff, Johns Hopkins posted an 8-3 record this season. The Blue Jays earned a share of the Centennial Conference title and defeated Lebanon Valley, 44-14, in the ECAC South Atlantic Bowl. The Centennial title is the sixth for JHU since 2002, while the ECAC Championship is the fourth for the Blue Jays since 2002.

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