Penn Hills grad Strader named an All-American
The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) has named Raion Strader, a Penn Hills grad, a freshman All-American on Tuesday. Strader is the first freshman All-American for Miami (Ohio) football since Ben Roethlisberger earned the same award in 2001.
Strader, a true freshman, played in 13 games, making 12 starts at cornerback. He finished the season with 57 tackles, one interception and 13 pass breakups for the No. 8 scoring defense in the nation (15.9 points per game) and one of the best defenses in the history of the Mid-American Conference.
He had a career-best nine tackles in a win at Ohio and recorded six stops and his first career interception in a win at Ball State. He added three pass breakups in wins against Cincinnati and Bowling Green.
Fox Chapel grad went to Japan for bowl game
Penn defensive lineman Micah Morris, a Fox Chapel grad, was part of the Ivy League squad that is being sent to Tokyo for the second annual Dream Bowl, held on Saturday at the National Stadium.
The team is comprised of senior and graduate student-athletes from all eight Ivy League programs. The Japan All-Star team will be a combined team of X League (Japan’s top American football league) players, including nine Americans, college players and crossover sport athletes. The Ivy League squad will be led by Brown head coach James Perry and the Bears coaching staff.
Morris was a second-team All-Ivy selection and he started all 10 games at defensive tackle. He totaled 20 tackles on seven solo stops with two tackles for loss and a sack. He also finished with four quarterback hurries.
The Ivy League delegation arrived in Tokyo on Jan. 14 and balanced its time between preparation for the game along with several Japanese cultural and educational events, including a planned visit to the historical city of Kamakura, a visit to the U.S. embassy, interaction with Ivy League alumni, discussions with Japanese students and social exchanges with the Japanese team.
Kickoff was set for Saturday night at the National Stadium, site of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. The event was broadcast live in Japan and on tape delay on ESPN+.
Last year, the Ivy League defeated the Japan All-Star team, 24-20.
Youngstown State adds Hall brothers, Central Valley grads
FCS level Youngstown State football officially added 14 athletes to the 2024 roster Tuesday. All 14 are currently enrolled at Youngstown State and are participating in offseason activities with the program. Included in that roster are Central Valley grads and transfers Jawon Hall (Slippery Rock and Lackawanna Junior College) and Stephon Hall (Pitt).
Jawon earned all-conference honors as a kick returner in 2022. Stephon played in 18 games for the Panthers in his final two seasons.
Norwin grad transfers to Elon
Norwin grad Jack Salopek will move onto the FCS level.
The former Western Michigan quarterback, who entered the NCAA transfer portal in November, announced on Monday that he will sign with Elon, an FCS program in North Carolina that plays in the Colonial Athletic Association. Salopek (6-foot-3, 186 pounds) said he felt a growing disconnect with Western Michigan, where he had been for four years. This past season, he played in six games and completed 42 of 63 passes for 316 yards and one touchdown. He started seven games in 2022 and threw for 1,287 yards and seven scores. He has thrown 13 career interceptions.
Do you know of a local Division I athlete who earned a weekly conference honor or qualified for a national tournament? Forward your news to kmurphy@post-gazette.com.