Manny Longoria advances to Academic All-America ballot for second time

(photo by Dustin Wyatt)

SEGUIN, Texas – For the second straight season, Texas Lutheran defensive end Manny Longoria (Geronimo/Navarro) is headed to the NCAA Division III Football Google Cloud Academic All-America® national ballot.

Longoria, a junior, has been named to the 2018 Google Cloud Academic All-District® Football Team, selected by CoSIDA. Longoria, a two-year starter for the Bulldogs, is on the Academic All-District® First Team for a second consecutive season.
  
Longoria, an education major, holds a 3.80 grade point average.
 
This year, Longoria is among the national leader in sacks (19^th) and tackles for loss (10^th). He also ranks 32^nd in forced fumbles.
 
Longoria leads the ASC in sacks per game and tackles for loss, and he is tied for the conference lead in fumbles forced per game.
 
Early in the 2018 season, Longoria broke Texas Lutheran's DIII-era record for career sacks, and he is closing in on the TLU DIII-era record for tackles for loss. He needs 10 more to break the record.
 
Longoria is a top contender for conference honors once again, having been named to the ASC's Second Team All-Conference in 2017.
 
With Longoria leading the charge, TLU concluded its 2018 season with a one-win improvement from 2017, going 7-3 overall and 6-3 in the ASC. The Bulldogs matched the program's best-ever finish – third place – in the ASC.
 
Longoria is a conscientious member of his community. He volunteers his time with numerous organizations and with his team. Longoria volunteered at Seguin ISD's Jefferson Elementary School and with TLU's campus-wide service days. He has worked as a church camp leader and with his church's Vacation Bible School.
 
The 2018 Google Cloud Academic All-District® Football Team, selected by CoSIDA, recognizes the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances on the field and in the classroom.
 
The Google Cloud Academic All-America® program separately recognizes football honorees in four divisions - NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA.
 
First- and second-team (if applicable) Academic All-America® honorees will be announced in early December.
 
The Division II and III Google Cloud Academic All-America® programs are partially financially supported by the NCAA Division II and III national governance structures to assist CoSIDA with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 2018-19 Divisions II and III Academic All-America® programs.
 
For more information about CoSIDA's Google Cloud Academic All-District® and Academic All-America® Teams program, visit AcademicAllAmerica.com or the Academic All-America® home page on CoSIDA.com.
 
2018 Google Cloud Academic All-District® Football Team
NCAA DIVISION III – DISTRICT 8 (AK, AZ, CA, CO, HI, IA, ID, KS, LA, MT, ND, NE)
 (NM, NV, OK, OR, SD, TX, UT, WA, WY, Canada)
 
FIRST TEAM
Pos. Name School Yr. GPA Major
QB Brian Baca East Texas Baptist University Jr. 3.79 Business / Marketing
RB Mason Elms Whitworth University Sr. 3.82 Psychology
RB Pat Gray Central College Sr. 3.90 Engineering
WR Jewell Day University of Puget Sound Jr. 3.40 Dual-Degree Engineering
WR Kolin Schulte Wartburg College Jr. 3.89 Biochemistry
TE Blake Roy University of Redlands Jr. 3.70 Business Administration
OL Ty Crain Hardin-Simmons University Sr. 3.84 Criminal Justice
OL Christian Godina University of Redlands Sr. 3.96 Biology / Pre-Med
OL Austin Prather Pomona-Pitzer Sr. 3.84 Public Policy
OL Patrick Riley Hardin-Simmons University Sr. 3.75 Biology / Pre-Med
OL Steven Sellers University of Mary Hardin-Baylor So. 4.00 Management
K Jon Alberts Central College Jr. 3.93 Business Management / Philosophy
ST Reese Childress Hardin-Simmons University Sr. 3.39 Education
DL Grant Bednar Nebraska Wesleyan University Sr. 3.93 Biology
DL Trey Chumbley Simpson College Jr. 3.77 Computer Science
DL Sam Fults Linfield College Jr. 3.98 Economics & Business Finance
DL Joey Longoria University of Mary Hardin-Baylor Jr. 3.65 Computer Science
DL Manny Longoria Texas Lutheran University Jr. 3.80 Education
LB Galen Gist Simpson College Sr. 3.84 Biology
LB Drew Kithcart Central College Sr. 3.74 Actuarial Science / Computer Science
LB Pete Lahti Lewis & Clark Sr. 3.88 Biology
LB Patrick Pipitone Linfield College Sr. 3.80 Athletic Training
DB Elan Harris Pomona-Pitzer Sr. 3.64 Biology
DB Blake Johnston Hardin-Simmons University Jr. 3.71 Exercise Science
DB Ryan Lehr Simpson College Sr. 3.86 Psychology
DB Vail Miesfeld Trinity University Sr. 3.88 Accounting
P Nathan Hawkins Simpson College Sr. 3.91 Computer Science / Computer Information Systems