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| Howard Payne athletics photo; AMZimages.com photo |
Jefferson Fritz and Jake Parker lead the D3football.com 2021 All-Region 3 team. Fritz was named Region 3 Defensive Player of the Year, while Parker was named the Region 3 Offensive Player of the Year.
Trinity (Texas) coach Jerheme Urban, who led the Tigers to the Southern Athletic Association title and the NCAA Division III playoffs, is the Region 3 Coach of the Year. Urban is the first person to be named a D3football.com All-American as a player and also win a regional Coach of the Year award.
NCAA Division III realigned Division III football into six regions in 2021. Region 3 includes the American Southwest Conference, the Old Dominion Athletic Conference, the Southern Athletic Association and the USA South Athletic Conference.
Fritz, a senior from Kaufman, Texas, plays safety, punts and returns kicks for the Cru. He has broken up eight passes, forced a fumble, recovered two fumbles and intercepted a pass for Mary Hardin-Baylor (13-0), which is playing at UW-Whitewater in the national semifinals this upcoming weekend. Fritz has 59 tackles, 41 solo. He also averages 40.6 yards per punt and has placed 18 of his 33 punts within the opponents’ 20. In addition, he averages 14.7 yards a punt return and has one punt return for a touchdown.
Parker, a senior from Whitehouse, Texas, caught 52 passes for 1,113 yards and 13 touchdowns for the Yellowjackets. He also has a punt return for a touchdown to his credit, has run for a touchdown, and had two interceptions as Howard Payne went 7-3, posting its best mark since 2005.
The teams, selected in balloting by Region 3 sports information directors and D3football.com staff, were chosen from 161 nominations by full Division III member schools. A total of 75 players were chosen to 78 positions. Players nominated for All-Region are eligible to be considered for D3football.com All-America honors, which will be announced the evening of Dec. 17, in D3football.com’s pregame coverage for Stagg Bowl XLVIII.
Previous years’ award winners from 2005-2019 for All-South Region can be found at:
https://www.d3football.com/awards/all-region/all-time-south
2021 D3football.com All-Region 3 Team
Offensive Player of the Year: Jake Parker, WR, Howard Payne
Defensive Player of the Year: Jefferson Fritz, S, Mary Hardin-Baylor
Coach of the Year: Jerheme Urban, Trinity (Texas)
| First Team Offense | ||||
| Pos. | Player | School | Yr. | Hometown |
| QB | Tucker Horn | Trinity (Texas) | Jr. | Graham, Texas |
| RB | Chris Shufford | Birmingham-Southern | Sr. | McKenzie, Ala. |
| RB | Brad Foley | Belhaven | Sr. | Memphis, Tenn. |
| WR | Jake Parker | Howard Payne | Sr. | Whitehouse, Texas |
| WR | Brant Butler | Shenandoah | Sr. | La Plata, Md. |
| TE | Jonathan Castaneda | Hardin-Simmons | Sr. | Abilene, Texas |
| T | Ethan Ruckman | Mary Hardin-Baylor | So. | San Antonio, Texas |
| G | Boomer Warren | Hardin-Simmons | Jr. | Haslet, Texas |
| C | Jeffery Sims, Jr. | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Jr. | Mesquite, Texas |
| G | Wyatt Bush | Trinity (Texas) | Jr. | Hempstead, Texas |
| T | John Hughes | Trinity (Texas) | So. | Cypress, Texas |
| K | Chris Vidal | Randolph-Macon | Sr. | Wake Forest, N.C. |
| RET | K.J. Miller | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Sr. | Orange, Texas |
| First Team Defense | ||||
| Pos. | Player | School | Yr. | Hometown |
| DE | Carlton Brown | Belhaven | So. | Memphis, Tenn. |
| DT | Oliver Hunter | Centre | Sr. | Franklin, Tenn. |
| DT | Matthew Willis | Trinity (Texas) | Sr. | Granbury, Texas |
| DE | Tristin Quick | Averett | Sr. | Charlotte, N.C. |
| LB | Caleb Harmel | Trinity (Texas) | Jr. | Burton, Texas |
| LB | Jacob Mueller | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Sr. | Fort Worth, Texas |
| LB | Court Coley | Birmingham-Southern | Sr. | Gadsden, Ala. |
| CB | Keith Gipson | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Sr. | Killeen, Texas |
| S | Jefferson Fritz | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Sr. | Kaufman, Texas |
| S | Jeremy Irving | Trinity (Texas) | Sr. | Dallas, Texas |
| CB | Fred Flavors | Huntingdon | Sr. | Atmore, Ala. |
| P | Garrett Graves | Bridgewater | Jr. | Chester, Va. |
| ST | Fred Flavors | Huntingdon | Sr. | Atmore, Ala. |
| Second Team Offense | ||||
| QB | Kyle Jones | Hardin-Simmons | Sr. | Giddings, Texas |
| RB | Justin DeLeon | Randolph-Macon | Sr. | Powhatan, Va. |
| RB | Josh Breece | Washington & Lee | Sr. | Lorton, Va. |
| WR | Tmahdae Penn | Ferrum | So. | Martinsville, Va. |
| WR | Brandon Jordan | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Sr. | Santa Barbara, Calif. |
| TE | Gary Ruckman | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Sr. | San Antonio, Texas |
| T | Zach Reiners | Centre | So. | Mount Washington, Ky. |
| G | Jared Cordova | Washington & Lee | Sr. | Purcellville, Va. |
| C | Eli Berkel | Hardin-Simmons | Jr. | Houston, Texas |
| G | David Turner | Belhaven | Fr. | Tuscaloosa, Ala. |
| T | Will Jackson | Randolph-Macon | Sr. | Biscoe, N.C. |
| K | Stamati Damalos | Brevard | Sr. | Tarpon Springs, Fla. |
| RET | Chris Stewart | Trinity (Texas) | Sr. | The Woodlands, Texas |
| Second Team Defense | ||||
| DE | Tyler DeBerry | Randolph-Macon | Sr. | Greensboro, N.C. |
| DT | Campbell Miller | Trinity (Texas) | Sr. | Tyler, Texas |
| DT | Jace DePriest | Randolph-Macon | Sr. | Richmond, Va. |
| DE | Robert Poindexter | Washington & Lee | Jr. | Atlanta, Ga. |
| LB | Brendan Weinberg | Hampden-Sydney | Sr. | Apex, N.C. |
| LB | Steffon Canady | Brevard | Sr. | Glendale, Ariz. |
| LB | Michael Jewett | Trinity (Texas) | Sr. | Houston, Texas |
| CB | Brock Bujnoch | Hardin-Simmons | Fr. | Hutto, Texas |
| S | Dean Johnson | Washington & Lee | Sr. | Atlanta, Ga. |
| S | Davonte Nephew | Hardin-Simmons | Fr. | Willis, Texas |
| CB | Jordan Wilson | Berry | Sr. | Dallas, Ga. |
| P | Jefferson Fritz | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Sr. | Kaufman, Texas |
| ST | Carlton Brown | Belhaven | So. | Memphis, Tenn. |
| Third Team Offense | ||||
| QB | Trentin Dupper | Centre | Jr. | Decatur, Ala. |
| RB | Aphonso Thomas | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Jr. | Ben Wheeler, Texas |
| RB | Keyshaun Pete | Methodist | So. | Tampa, Fla. |
| WR | Jordan Gunter | Centre | Sr. | Louisville, Ky. |
| WR | Chris Childress | Hendrix | Sr. | Gravette, Ark. |
| TE | Tim Hanratty | Randolph-Macon | Sr. | Severna Park, Md. |
| T | Johnny Alston | Averett | So. | Charlotte, N.C. |
| G | Connor Denning | Randolph-Macon | Sr. | Benson, N.C. |
| C | Nick Wiggins | Methodist | Jr. | Gastonia, N.C. |
| G | Matt Sanders | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Jr. | Austin, Texas |
| T | Brandon Armstrong | Birmingham-Southern | Jr. | Clarksville, Tenn. |
| K | Juan Ocampo | Texas Lutheran | Sr. | Lockhart, Texas |
| RET | Kobe Praylow | Methodist | Jr. | Pamplico, S.C. |
| Third Team Defense | ||||
| DE | E’Monte Smith | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Sr. | Austin, Texas |
| DT | Demetrius Brokenberry | Belhaven | Sr. | Shreveport, La. |
| DT | Mason Caldwell | Shenandoah | Sr. | Martinsburg, W.Va. |
| DE | Jerome Bass | Brevard | Sr. | Red Springs, N.C. |
| LB | Akeem Jackson | Mary Hardin-Baylor | Sr. | Fairfield, Texas |
| LB | Josh Smith | McMurry | Sr. | Bossier City, La. |
| LB | Brett Tharp | Bridgewater | Sr. | Baker, W.Va. |
| CB | Chase Rosenthal | Bridgewater | Sr. | Great Bridge, Va. |
| S | Will Pickren | Hampden-Sydney | So. | Mt. Pleasant, S.C. |
| S | Nate Jones | Methodist | Sr. | Fayetteville, N.C. |
| CB | Stephen Richardson | Randolph-Macon | Sr. | Richmond, Va. |
| P | Chris Vidal | Randolph-Macon | Sr. | Wake Forest, N.C. |
| ST | Trevor Higginbotham | Hardin-Simmons | Jr. | Comanche, Texas |