Bauman Named to Big Sky Preseason All-Conference Squad

OGDEN, Utah (July 15, 2012) - Co-reigning Big Sky Conference champion Montana State placed six players on the preseason All-Conference Team. The squad was chosen by select media and sports information directors in the league, and released Sunday at the start of the Big Sky's Summer Kickoff in Park City, Utah.

Junior running back Zach Bauman, who is on pace to become one of the top rushers in Big Sky history, represented Northern Arizona. Bauman rushed for a league-high 1,435 yards and 15 touchdowns as a sophomore.

Montana State senior linebacker Jody Owens, from Mesquite, Texas, was named the preseason Defensive MVP.  Senior quarterback Brad Sorensen from league-newcomer Southern Utah was tabbed as the preseason Offensive MVP.

All 13 Big Sky Conference teams placed at least one player on the squad. Eastern Washington, the 2010 Division I National Champion, and league newcomer UC Davis each placed four on the squad. Portland State and Southern Utah each saw three of its student-athletes honored.

Eleven of the 31 players on the squad were named to the All-Big Sky First Team in 2011. Four more players were All-Great West First Team Selections in 2011.

Owens, a 6-foot, 218 pounder, was a unanimous All-Big Sky selection in 2011 after registering a league-high 17 tackles for loss and 105 total tackles.

Owens was one of three players unanimously selected to the preseason team. Montana State senior defensive tackle Zach Minter and Eastern Washington junior cornerback T.J. Lee III were the others featured on all the ballots.

Bobcats joining Owens and Minter on the squad are junior defensive end Brad Daly, senior safety Joel Fuller, senior cornerback Darius Jones and junior running back Cody Kirk.

Sorensen, a 6-foot-5, 235-pounder from Grand Terrace, Calif., was named the Great West Offensive Player of the Year in 2011 and has twice been named the All-Great West First Team Quarterback. He threw for 3,143 yards and 17 touchdowns as a junior. He enters his senior season as a candidate for the Walter Payton Award, won last season by former Eastern Washington quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell. 

Sorensen's teammates Zach Brackus, a senior offensive lineman, and Cody Larsen, a senior defensive tackle were also named to the squad.

Joining Lee from Eastern Washington are senior offensive lineman Will Post, senior wide receiver Nicholas Edwards and junior wide receiver Brandon Kaufman. Edwards hauled in 95 catches for 1,250 yards and 19 touchdowns during his All-American junior campaign.

UC Davis was well-represented on the squad as well, with four players: Center Ray Wilburn, punter Colton Schmidt, defensive end Bobby Erskine, and safety Keyvin Lewis.

All-American senior kicker Zach Brown led Portland State's trio. He was joined by fellow Vikings Ian Sluss (linebacker) and Nevin Lewis (special teams)

Montana, the 2011 Big Sky co-champion, was represented on the team by senior tight end Greg Hardy and junior offensive lineman Danny Kistler.

Weber State sophomore fullback Tevia Tolutau and senior offensive lineman Tytan Timoteo were selected to the team, along with Northern Colorado linebacker Clarence Bumpas and return man Dominic Gunn.

Idaho State, Northern Arizona, North Dakota, Cal Poly and Sacramento State each had one player selected.

North Dakota's Greg Hardin and Idaho State's Rodrick Rumble rounded out the receiving corps. Rumble became the first Big Sky player in history to catch 100 passes in a season, finishing 2011 with 112 grabs for 1,348 yards and nine touchdowns.

Cal Poly linebacker Kennith Jackson, who tallied 80 tackles last season, and Sacramento State linebacker Todd Davis rounded out the team.

2012 Big Sky Conference Preseason Team

Offensive MVP - Brad Sorensen, Sr., QB, Southern Utah
Defensive MVP - Jody Owens, Sr., LB, Montana State