The 2020-21 FCS season kicked off Aug. 29 with the first football game since the COVID pandemic began as Central Arkansas defeated Austin Peay 24-17. The season ended May 16 when Sam Houston beat South Dakota State 23-21 to win the national championship.
HERO Sports’ postseason honors will recognize players from the fall and spring seasons, as teams who were able to pull off a successful fall season shouldn’t be punished. Players on teams who were only able to play a few games this spring also won’t be punished. The NDSU one-time fall showcase game won’t count for players who didn’t play in the spring, like Trey Lance or Dillon Radunz.
We will recognize the best freshmen, the best sophomores, and the best overall FCS players.
Here are the top overall players in 2020-21:
All-American (All Classes)
Offense
QB Eric Barriere, Eastern Washington
QB Eric Schmid, Sam Houston
QB Cole Kelley, Southeastern Louisiana
RB Julius Chestnut, Sacred Heart
RB Otis Weah, North Dakota
RB Pierre Strong Jr., South Dakota State
OL Cordell Volson, North Dakota State
OL Drew Himmelman, Illinois State
OL Mason McCormick, South Dakota State
OL PJ Burkhalter, Nicholls
OL Raymond Gillespie, James Madison
WR Jakob Herres, VMI
WR Jequez Ezzard, Sam Houston
WR Tyler Hudson, Central Arkansas
TE Trae Barry, Jacksonville State
Defense
DL Isaiah Chambers, McNeese
DL Jared Brinkman, Northern Iowa
DL Mike Greene, James Madison
DL Joseph Wallace, Sam Houston
DL Jordan Lewis, Southern
LB Colby Campbell, Presbyterian
LB Stone Snyder, VMI
LB Tre Walker, Idaho
LB Ryan Greenhagen, Fordham
LB Storey Jackson, Prairie View A&M
LB Logan Backhaus, South Dakota State
DB Kordell Jackson, Austin Peay
DB Robert Rochell, Central Arkansas
DB Nicario Harper, Jacksonville State
DB Qua Brown, Southern Illinois
DB Zyon McCollum, Sam Houston
Special Teams
P Daniel Whelan, UC Davis
P Garret Wegner, North Dakota State
K Ethan Ratke, James Madison
LS Robert Soderholm, VMI
PR Jequez Ezzard, Sam Houston
KR Christian Watson, North Dakota State
RELATED: Freshman All-American Team
RELATED: Sophomore All-American Team
