News Release and Complete List of Players Honored
 
After a record-setting debut for the Eastern Washington University football team, junior quarterback Gage Gubrud has been picked to defend his title as the league's Offensive MVP, joining two other Eagles on the 2017 Big Sky Conference Preseason All-Conference Team announced Monday (July 17) by the league.
 
Gubrud was joined on the preseason all-conference list by senior defensive end Albert Havili and junior safety Mitch Fettig. A year ago, Gubrud joined teammate Cooper Kupp as the MVP on offense, while Fettig earned honorable mention all-league honors. Havili and Gubrud are among the four Eagles serving as co-captains in the  upcoming 2017 season.
 
Gubrud, who was last year's NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Player of the Year by the Touchdown Club of Columbus, is EWU's player representative at the Big Sky Conference Football Kickoff in Park City, Utah, with new head coach Aaron Best also attending. The preseason team picks will be announced Tuesday (July 18).

"I couldn't accomplish any of this without great teammates and coaches," said Gubrud. "A big part of it are the players around me -- they are the main reason I have had so much success. It's an honor and I thank the Big Sky for the preseason award, but now I have to go out and prove them right. I always have something to prove and the team has something to prove, and we're going to go out and do that."
 
A former linebacker, Havili had 61 tackles with five sacks from his defensive end position in 2016, with two passes broken up and a team-high eight quarterback hurries. Entering his final year as an Eagle, Havili has 148 tackles in his 42-game Eastern career and was a 2013 graduate of Federal Way.
 
Fettig, a 2014 graduate of Olympia (Wash.) HS, had 97 tackles to rank third on the team a year ago -- tops among returning players. He had four interceptions and five passes broken up as a sophomore, and is a candidate for Big Sky Conference Defensive Player of the Year accolades in 2017.
 
As a first-year starter, Gubrud broke the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision record for passing yards with 5,160. In all, he broke three FCS records, seven Big Sky Conference marks and 18 EWU records. He finished with 48 touchdown passes and a Big Sky record of 5,766 yards of total offense, and was also the team's leading rusher with 606 yards and five more scores.
 
Best of all, Eastern won 11 of 13 games with Gubrud as the starter, having stepped aside to allow Jordan West to start on Senior Day. As an indication of how impressive Guburd was, West would get invited to a rookie free agent tryout with the Chicago Bears.
 
"He's a good player to have back," said Best, perhaps even understated. "He has a year under his belt and over-achieved last year – he belongs in the EKG (Eastern Kind of Guy) family. Nobody, including myself, would have said after a year of starting he would be where he is at.
 
"But now that the bar has been raised, now you have to raise it even higher," Best continued. "He's put that stress on himself, and we love that. We like the challenge of competing at a higher level, and now the challenge is doing it in a leadership role on the field and in the locker room."
 
Gubrud's main role as a leader started in the spring when highly-touted 2016 redshirt freshman Eric Barriere shared snaps at quarterback. It will continue in the fall when EWU welcomes a pair of true freshmen – Nick Moore and Gunner Talkington.
 
 
 
Preseason All-Conference list
 
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: Gage Gubrud, QB, Eastern Washington
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: Cole Reyes, S, North Dakota
 
Offense
Quarterback: Gage Gubrud, Eastern Washington
Wide Receivers: Emmanuel Butler, Northern Arizona (Consensus); Keelan Doss, UC Davis; Jerry Louie-McGee, Montana
Offensive Tackles: David Reese, Montana; Randin Crecelius, Portland State
Offensive Guards: Tyler Shank, Northern Arizona; Demon Taylor, North Dakota
Center: Joey Kuperman, Cal Poly
Tight End: Andrew Vollert, Weber State (Consensus)
Running Backs: John Santiago, North Dakota (Consensus); Brady Oliveira, North Dakota
Fullback: Joe Protheroe, Cal Poly
 
Defense
Defensive Tackle: Robert Torgerson, Southern Utah; Anthony Del Toro, Portland State
Defensive End: Albert Havili, Eastern Washington; Ben Sorensen, Sacramento State
Outside Linebackers: Mike Needham, Southern Utah; Josh Buss, Montana
Inside Linebackers: Mac Bignell, Montana State; Landon Stice, Weber State
Cornerbacks: Deion Harris, North Dakota; Taron Johnson, Weber State
Safeties: Cole Reyes, North Dakota; Mitch Fettig, Eastern Washington
 
Special Teams
Placekicker: Griffin Roehler, Northern Arizona
Return Specialist: John Santiago, North Dakota
Punter: Jacob DeMaio, Weber State
Special Teams: Hakeem Deggs, Northern Colorado