GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— Eight Colorado Mesa University football student-athletes were all named to the College Sports Communicators NCAA Division II Academic All-District® Team, which was released by the organization this week.
 
The award-winning Mavericks are Kash Bradley, Zach Dibella, Trevin Edwards, Sam Horneck, Levi Krebs, Charlie Smith, Colin Stuhr and Jason Thome.
 
Horneck and Bradley are repeat selections from 2023.
 
Additionally, both of them as well as Smith, Stuhr and Thome have been advanced to the national ballot for potential first, second or third team Academic All-America® honors, which are scheduled to be released on Jan. 28.
 
In order to be eligible for the Academic All-District® honors, student-athletes must be a sophomore or above both athletically and academically and have a 3.50 or higher GPA.  They also must have played in 90 percent or started 66 percent of their team's games.  Institutions are limited to eight nominations for football and have now had the maximum possible number of honorees in each of the last two seasons.
 
Bradley, a junior exercise science major from Bushland, Texas, holds a 3.81 GPA and was a Second Team CSC Academic All-America® honoree last year as a defensive back.  He has also earned First Team Academic All-RMAC honors in each of the past two seasons.
 
He also earned a trio of All-RMAC honors for his on-field play in 2024, claiming first team honors as both a kick and punt returner while garnering honorable mention plaudits as a defensive back.  He was also named to the Division II Conference Commissioner's Association All-Super Region IV First Team as a return specialist and was named to the All-Colorado Team.  He averaged 26.3 yards on kick returns and 11.6 yards on punt returns while recording 37 tackles, eight pass breakups and an interception defensively.
 
He was also a key part of the Maverick secondary that held opponents to just 120.2 passing yards per game, the second best mark in the national statistics.
 
Thome, a sophomore business administration major with a 3.86 GPA, was also a part of that unit and earned Honorable Mention All-RMAC honors after making 51 tackles, including 29 solos.  He was also named as the Sept. 30 RMAC Defensive Player of the Week after recording two interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown in a win over Chadron State.
 
Krebs, Smith and Stuhr were all linebackers on the highly regarded Maverick defense, which also led the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference in scoring and total defense after allowing just 16.5 points and 249.6 yards per game.
 
Smith, a sophomore construction management major, holds a 4.00 GPA and hails from Arvada.  He was an Honorable Mention All-RMAC selection and led the Mavericks with 97 tackles, including 32 solos.  He was ranked second in the conference in total tackles and tied for 16^th in the national statistics with his 9.7 per game average and added 7.5 tackles for losses.
 
Stuhr, a redshirt junior, is also a construction management major and sports a 3.61 GPA.  He has also earned a multitude of honors in the recent weeks, highlighted by Second Team All-America honors from both the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and the D2CCA and RMAC Academic Defensive Player of the Year honors.  He finished the 2024 season with 64 total tackles and was third in the conference for sacks with eighth and fourth with 15 tackles for losses.
 
Krebs, is a biological science major out of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and holds a 3.62 GPA.  He made 72 total tackles in 2024 and was ranked amongst the RMAC's top 10 players in tackles per game (6.5) and tackles for a loss (11.0).  He also added 2.5 sacks and was earned Honorable Mention All-RMAC honors.
 
Dibella, is an outdoor recreation major from Mead, Colorado.  He holds a 3.69 GPA and was a starting offensive lineman for the Mavs, who allowed just 18 sacks, the second fewest in the RMAC.  He was also a key blocker for a pair of All-RMAC running backs and was also personally named to the RMAC Academic Honor Roll.
 
Edwards, a redshirt junior wide receiver from Fredricksburg, Virginia, was also named to the RMAC Academic Honor Roll for the second straight year and finished second on the squad for receptions with 30.  He also racked up 307 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns and holds a 3.51 GPA in his business administration major.
 
Horneck, a redshirt junior tight end from Evergreen, Colorado, holds a 3.82 GPA and was named to the RMAC All-Academic First Team.  He finished fourth on the team in total receptions (22) and led the Mavs with three touchdown receptions.  He holds a 3.82 GPA and is majoring in criminal justice.
 
The Division II and III CSC Academic All-America® programs are partially financially supported by the NCAA Division II and III national governance structures to assist CSC with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 2024-25 Divisions II and III Academic All-America® programs. The NAIA CSC Academic All-America® program is partially financially supported through the NAIA governance structure. For more information about CSC Academic All-District® and Academic All-America® Teams program, visit AcademicAllAmerica.com.