COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – Eight Ursinus Football players were named Academic All District honorees by the College Sports Communicators (CSC), the organization announced Tuesday afternoon.
 
 
Seniors Jordan Carr, Deane Leader, Neil O'Donnell, and Alan Paturzo, plus juniors Matt Agar, Jason Bernard, and Tristan Machado along with sophomore Nick Strusowski all earned spots on the team. Carr Leader, O'Donnell, Paturzo, and Bernard are all multi-time selections while Machado, Agar, and Strusowski earn spots on the team for the first time in their careers.
 
 
 The CSC Academic All-District football team recognizes the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances in the classroom and on the field of competition.  Academic All-District honorees were considered for advancement to the CSC Academic All-America ballot. Student-athletes selected as CSC Academic All-America finalists are denoted with an asterisk on the list above and will advance to the national ballot to be voted on by CSC members.
 
 
A biochemistry major, Carr was one of four Bears to earn their third CSC Academic All-District Team selection.  Carr paced the Centennial Conference with a career best 43.4 punting average and recorded a career-long 62-yard punt.  He tied for the Centennial Conference lead with five 50+ yard punts and earned Centennial Conference Special Teams Player of the Week honors in September. Carr became the Bears all-time leader in career extra points as well while earning All-Centennial Second Team honors at punter was named to the PhillySIDA Academic All-Area team.
 
 
Leader, a finance major, also became a three-time CSC Academic All-District Selection. He overcame an injury in the season opener against Alvernia and returned to help power the Ursinus offense that ranked third in total offensive yards and third in passing yards. He earned All-Centennial Second Team honors for his third career All-Centennial honor in his career while also being named to the PhillySIDA Academic All-Area Team.
 
 
 
A political science major and three-time CSC Academic All-District selection, O'Donnell continued to be a consistent presence on the Bears line by once again started all 11 games on the Bears offensive line. O'Donnell helped guide the Ursinus offense to rank among the top-3 in the Centennial Conference and served as a team captain.
 
 
Paturzo, a health and exercise physiology major, continued to serve as a reserve quarterback in all 11 games this season and as the team's primary holder for field goal/extra point attempts to earn his third straight CSC Academic All-District selection. Paturzo threw his first collegiate touchdown against Franklin & Marshall in late October.
 
 
 
A health and exercise physiology major, Bernard repeated his selection from a year ago. earned his first career All-Centennial nod in his first season as the Ursinus primary running back. Bernard ranked fourth in the Centennial Conference with 586 rushing yards on 118 carries and ranked second in the conference with 11 touchdowns. He claimed Centennial-MAC Bowl Series game MVP numbers behind a career-high 133 rushing yards on 23 carries with two touchdowns in the Bears win over Lebanon Valley. Bernard tallied five multi-touchdown games and averaged 5.0 yards per carry.
 
 
 
Machado, a finance major, exceled in his first season as the starting quarterback for Ursinus and makes his CSC Academic All-District team debut. He led the Centennial Conference in the regular season with 27 touchdown passes and 185 completions. Machado ranked second in the Centennial with 2,558 passing yards and ranked third by averaging 232.5 passing yards per game. He tallied a trio of 300+ yard passing games and four touchdown pass games. Machado earned PhillySIDA Academic All-Area team honors as well.
 
 
 
A health sciences major, Strusowski had a breakout season in his first season as a starter by leading the Centennial Conference with eight interceptions and returned a pick-6 against Kean back in September. His efforts against Kean earned him Centennial Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors and a spot on the D3football.com Team of the Week. Strusowski also earned the Kenneth E. Walker trophy as the most outstanding Ursinus player in their homecoming game and grabbed two interceptions in the Centennial-MAC Bowl Series win over Lebanon Valley. He tied for third on the team with 56 tackles (32 solo) and ranked third on the team with five pass break-ups.


Agar, a finance major, had a strong season after taking over starting linebacker duties. He ranked fourth on the team with 56 tackles (14 solo), 3.0 TFL, one sack, and ranked second on the team with four interceptions. He had two interceptions in his first career start against Alvernia in the Bears season opener.