Wittenberg Football Offensive Linemen Earn All-America Honors

Chad Thompson

Brad Kassner

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - Senior offensive lineman Chad Thompson and junior offensive lineman Brad Kassner were included in today's announcement of the 26th annual College Sports Information Directors Division III All-America Football Team. Thompson was selected second-team All-America for the second straight year by the organization, while Kassner made his first appearance on the list with honorable mention status.

Thompson is a four-year letterwinner and three-year starter from Fort Thomas, Ky. He carries a 3.74 GPA, and he has been a key member of an offensive unit that has ranked first or second in the NCAC in total yards and total points each of the last four years. In his career, Thompson was named first-team All-NCAC three times, second-team All-North Region two times and second-team All-America in both 2002 and 2003. In addition, Thompson was a second-team academic all-district choice in 2002 and a first-team academic all-district selection in 2003.

Kassner is a three-year letterwinner and starter from Circleville, Ohio. In his career, Kassner has been named first-team All-NCAC each of the last two years. This is the first national honor of his collegiate career.

Thompson was one of nine seniors on a 2003 Tiger football team that finished 8-2 overall and 4-2 in the North Coast Athletic Conference. During his career, the Tigers won two NCAC titles and participated in three NCAA Division III Tournaments. Wittenberg won 41 games in those four years, against just seven defeats.

A panel of 30 sports information directors from around the nation selected the 26th annual team, which was previously sponsored by Hewlett-Packard. The College Sports Information Directors Division III All-America Football Team is the longest-running Division III football All-America program in the country.

The 2003 ballot included 321 players representing 130 of the NCAA Division III (non-scholarship) football-playing institutions. Teams with two or fewer losses were allowed five nominations; teams .500 or better could nominate up to three players; and schools finishing below .500 were allotted two nominations.

056-03