Five named All-ECAC South Region Football

CENTERVILLE, Mass. – Four members of the Ursinus College football team were named to the 2011 ECAC All-South Regional football team on Tuesday afternoon. The team was voted upon by the coaches in the South Region.

The selections were highlighted by senior linebacker Greg Martell (Levittown, Pa./Neshaminy) being named as the Defensive Player of the Year, echoing the honor he received from the Centennial Conference in November.

Martell senior defensive end Sean Whelan (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks East) and junior cornerback Chris Rountree (Lawnside, N.J./Haddon Heights) were both named to the first-team defensive unit, while senior offensive lineman Victor Jaramillo (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic) and senior return specialist Al Desiderio (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic) were named to the second-team.

Martell became the first Ursinus player to earn Centennial Conference Defensive Player of the Year honors after leading the Bears and finishing fifth in the conference with 87 tackles during the season. Martell, who recorded four games this season with 10 or more tackles, helped lead a Ursinus defense that ranked third in the Centennial in scoring defense, averaging 21.1 points per game and fourth in total defense, allowing 315.9 yards per game.

Rountree , a first-team All-Centennial selection,  had five interceptions this season, finishing in a tie for second in the conference. His 132 yards in interception returns, including a 75-yard TD return against Dickinson, were a conference high.

Whelan, who was also a first-team All-Centennial pick, ranked second in the Centennial with nine sacks, including a four sack performance against Susquehanna. A second-team All-Centennial pick in 2010, he finished the season with 47 total tackles, 14 of which were for losses of 81 yards.

Desiderio made the All-Centennial first-team as a kick returner and the second-team as a wide receiver. As a kick returner, he finished first in the conference in kick return average at 29.6 yards per return. As a wide out, he led the team in receptions (40), yardage (707) and scoring catches (6). He had a team-best 1513 all-purpose yards.

Jaramillo was part of an offensive line that allowed just 12 sacks on the season and averaged 340.8 yards of total offense a game. Both Jaramillo and Rountree were three-time first-team All-Centennial selections during their career.

Ursinus finished the season 6-4, 6-3 in the Centennial Conference.