URNSVILLE, Minn. (Augie PR) – Augustana head football coach Jerry Olszewski is the NSIC Coach of the Year after guiding the Vikings to a 9-2 regular-season record the league announced Wednesday. In the same release, four Vikings earned NSIC South Division All-Conference First Team honors while four others earned second-team accolades.
Olszewski, in his seventh season with Augustana, earns the league’s top coaching honor for the second time. He was awarded the NSIC Coach of the Year in 2015 where he also guided the Vikings to the playoffs. Augustana was picked to finish sixth in the overall NSIC Preseason Coaches’ Poll and fourth in the NSIC South. However, the Vikings tallied a 9-2 record to finish second in both the overall and south division standings.
He has compiled a 47-31 record at Augustana and is the only coach in Augustana history to lead his team to nine or more wins on more than one occasion.
To hear “Coach OJ” on his weekly Wednesday interview with KWSN’s Sports Talk with Craig & John, click here. OJ joins the show every Wednesday at 3:20 p.m. during the season.
Preseason All-American center Jake Lacina was tabbed to the first team along with Sean Engel, Eli Weber and Logan Swanson. Lacina, a senior, has started every game of his career at center. The native of St. Paul, Minnesota, leads an offensive line that ranks 19th in the nation in tackles for loss allowed. He also helped protect an offense that racked up 611 yards of total offense against Minot State (Oct. 26), the eighth-most in program history.
Engel, a junior wide receiver, led the Vikings with 38 receptions this season while grabbing a pair of touchdowns against Southwest Minnesota State. Hailing from Chaska, Minnesota, Engel totaled eight receptions for 104 yards at Minnesota State (Sept. 14) and tallied 543 receiving yards on the season.
Weber, a native of Dawson, Minnesota, tied for the Vikings’ team lead with four interceptions. The sophomore defensive back was also credited with eight pass breakups including three at Winona State (Nov. 9). For the season, he totaled 60 tackles including 7.5 tackles for loss. He recorded a season-high 11 tackles in the victory over SMSU (Nov. 16).
One of the top defensive linemen in the league, Swanson has tied the school record with eight sacks in a season. The junior from Mankato, Minnesota, has recorded 14.5 tackles for loss and forced a fumble in the victory over Sioux Falls (Sept. 26). He led a defensive line that ranks 12th in the nation in rushing defense while the Vikings held seven opponents to less than 100 yards rushing.
It was a senior, two sophomores and a true freshman for Augie on the second team. Senior defensive back Michael Kloza, an honorable mention honoree last season, earns his spot on the second team after totaling 44 tackles and 55 tackles for loss. The Wylie, Texas, native missed the final two games of the regular season due to injury but still ranked sixth on the team in total tackles.
Joining Kloza on the second team were T.J. Liggett, Luis Guarita and Jarod Epperson. Liggett, a sophomore linebacker, was a turnover machine for the Vikings, forcing three fumbles and recovering two others helping the Vikings rank in the top three in the nation for turnovers gained. The Rosemount, Minnesota, native totaled 79 tackles including three games of 10 or more tackles.
Guarita etched his name into the Viking record books when he connected on his 16th field goal of the season against SMSU. The sophomore from Sau Paulo, Brazil, leads the NSIC in field-goal percentage, having made 88.9 percent of his attempts. His 16 makes this season ties the single-season mark for makes in a year.
Epperson, a true freshman running back, is the Vikings’ leading rusher with 717 yards on the year. He did not play in the season-opener and saw limited time in the season’s second game before taking off against Wayne State (Sept. 26). He tallied three games of 103 yards or more of rushing including an output of 236 all-purpose against Minot State (Oct. 26).
Augustana also received four honorable mentions to the south squad: Kenneth Griffin, Kevin Hartman, Anthony Karmazyn and Kyle Theis.
Griffin, a senior defensive back, has four interceptions this season and has totaled 29 tackles. Hartman, a junior offensive linemen, has been a steady presence in all 11 games for the Vikings and is key to pass protection and run protection. Karmazyn, a senior, has two touchdowns from the tight-end position and recorded a long reception of 65 yards against Minot State. Theis, also a senior, has totaled 45 solo tackles as part of his 65 for the season while owning three tackles for loss.
Augustana continues its season Saturday at CSU-Pueblo in the opening round of the NCAA Division II Playoffs. Kickoff from Pueblo, Colorado, is slated for 2 p.m.
