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 FCS freshmen in 2020-21:
Freshman All-American
Offense
QB Mark Gronowski, South Dakota State
QB Cameron Ward, Incarnate Word
QB Tony Muskett, Monmouth
RB Isaiah Davis, South Dakota State
RB Devon Starling, Tennessee State
RB Dontae McMillan, Weber State
RB Lan Larison, UC Davis
RB Damonta Witherspoon, Murray State
OL Evan Roussel, Nicholls
OL Grey Zabel, North Dakota State
OL Justice Guillory, Stephen F. Austin
OL Michael Dorundo, Duquesne
OL Clayton Frady, Gardner-Webb
WR Antwane Wells Jr., James Madison
WR Bo Belquist, North Dakota
WR Yogi Flager, Butler
WR Ty James, Mercer
WR Josh Sterns, Houston Baptist
TE Ethan Howard, Southern
Defense
DL Jared Verse, UAlbany
DL Ty French, Gardner-Webb
DL Carson Hatchett, The Citadel
DL Eli Mostaert, North Dakota State
DL Jonathan Hammond, Davidson
DL Caleb Fox, Stephen F. Austin
LB Isaac Dowling, Mercer
LB Adam Bock, South Dakota State
LB Jaylen Swain, Jacksonville State
LB Jamar Shegog, Robert Morris
DB Myles Harden, South Dakota
DB Keyon Turner, Valparaiso
DB Pig Cage, Nicholls
DB Alijah Huzzie, ETSU
DB Braiden Clopton, Sam Houston
DB Dorian Davis, Western Carolina
Special Teams
P Zach Haynes, SEMO
P Scotty Roblow, Northwestern State
K Seth Morgan, Sam Houston
K Tyler Larco, UT Martin
LS Micah Torres-Whitmer, Grambling State
PR Alijah Huzzie, ETSU
KR Charlie Maxwell, Valparaiso
RELATED: Sophomore All-American Team
RELATED: All-FCS All-American Team
