WU quintet receives honors
Waynesburg University freshman running back Robert Heller headlined a quartet of Yellow Jackets that were named as Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Southwest Football All-Stars. In addition to being selected as an all-star, Heller was tabbed Rookie of the Year by the ECAC. Heller led Division III with 197.8 rushing yards a game this season and ranked third in the country in scoring at 14.7 points per contest. The freshman standout set single-season school records with 2,176 rushing yards and 26 rushing touchdowns on 383 attempts. Heller also became the first player in school history to rush for 300 yards in a game and eclipsed the 100-yard mark in all 11 games this season.
Senior defensive end Mike Czerwien continues to earn accolades following his outstanding season. The Pittsburgh native led all NCAA divisions with 2.1 sacks and 3.1 tackles for loss (TFL) a game this season. Czerwien, who was selected the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) Most Valuable Player, finished the year with a career-high 90 tackles (61 solo), 34.5 TFL and 23.0 sacks. He was also an All-American selection by the Associated Press (AP), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and D3football.com following the season.
Senior middle linebacker Brendon Steele joined Czerwien on the all-star team as a representative from the nation’s fifth-ranked team in total defense.
Steele, a two-year starter, set a career high with 93 stops (57 solo) this year with 10.5 TFL, 2.0 sacks, three interceptions and two blocked kicks. The Canon-McMillan graduate also became just the fifth player since the 1995 season to amass 200-plus career tackles.
Senior offensive lineman Alex Tempalski rounded out the Yellow Jacket quintet honored by the ECAC. Tempalski started all 11 games at right guard this season and finished his career with 33 career starts, including 31 consecutive starts. He anchored an offensive line that cleared lanes for the nation’s 17th-ranked rushing offense, averaging 250.2 yards on the ground per game. The Waynesburg offensive line also ranked second in the PAC, allowing 19 sacks this season, including just 11 in the final nine games of the season.
The Yellow Jackets finished the season with an 8-3 overall record and a second-place finish in the PAC with a 5-1 league mark. Waynesburg lost the three games this year by a combined 14 points with each game being decided by seven points or less.
The Yellow Jackets finished the 2007 campaign with their third post-season appearance in the last five years and opened the season with a 7-0 record for the first time since 1967.