Welcome to the 2019 FCS Kickoff Jersey Countdown.
The regular season begins Saturday, Aug. 24 with Samford vs. Youngstown State in the Guardian Credit Union FCS Kickoff along with Villanova playing at Colgate.
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HERO Sports is going to count down each day by highlighting the best player in the FCS who wears the jersey number equal to the number of days until kickoff. You can find the running list of top players here.
*Note: Jersey numbers are from the 2018 season.
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92: Nick Wheeler, DL (Sr.) — Colgate
Colgate's defense was on a whole different level in 2018, finishing first in the FCS with 9.3 points allowed per game. The next best was Dartmouth's 12.0. Opponents scored less than 10 points in eight of Colgate's 10 regular-season games. Zero points were allowed in five games as the Raiders went 10-2 with a trip to the quarterfinals.
A key part of that defense was Wheeler, a First Team All-Patriot League selection and Second Team HERO Sports All-American. It was his second straight First Team All-Conference honor and Wheeler was selected to the AP's 2017 All-American Third Team.
Last year, the 6-foot-2, 255-pounder had 51 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, nine sacks and five QB hurries. Wheeler finished eighth in the Buck Buchanan Award voting for best defensive player in the FCS.
Raider defense gets the ???? with help from Nick Wheeler‼️
Check it????#gogate #GATA pic.twitter.com/CneHktOhoX— Colgate Football (@ColgateFB) September 22, 2018
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