Football Lands Four on All-District Team
This article was posted with permission from Kevin Beattie
By Kevin Beattie, Associate Athletic Director for Communication and Compliance
TROY, N.Y. - Four Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) student-athletes have been selected to the 2013-14 Capital One Academic All-District ® 3 Football Team, selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Sophomore wide receiver Pat Hogan, sophomore running back Matthew Lane, junior offensive lineman Jay Yaskanich and junior defensive back Nick Borkowski are all now eligible for Capital One National Academic All-America ® recognition.
Hogan (Mt. Sinai, NY / Mt. Sinai) has started all nine games for the Engineers, collecting 13 passes for 215 yards and a team-best four touchdowns, including a long of 61 yards. He has at least one catch in six contests with a season-high of five receptions for 35 yards and a touchdown (8 yards) at rival WPI in the Transit Trophy Game.
Also a member of RPI's lacrosse team, Hogan is a chemical engineering major with a 3.76 cumulative grade point average. He has volunteer experience as a football coach as well as at INN Soup Kitchen.
Through nine games, Lane (Hanover, MA / Hanover) is third on the team in all purpose yards with 476. He has 185 yards on 37 carries and two touchdowns, 104 receiving yards on 13 catches and 187 kickoff return yards on nine attempts, including a long of 39 yards. He totaled his most yards against the University of Rochester when he had 156. Lane registered 20 rushing yards (6 attempts), 38 receiving yards (2 catches) and 98 return yards (4 attempts) against the Yellowjackets.
A business and management major with a 3.83 cumulative GPA, Lane earned the Rensselaer Leadership Award, is the scholarship chair for Theta Chi Fraternity Delta Chapter and has volunteered with Habitat for Humanity.
Yaskanich (Troy, NY / Troy) is a third-year starter who has played across the offensive line for the Engineers throughout his career. This season, playing primarily as the center, he has helped the team average 21.6 points, 183.9 rushing yards and 140.1 passing yards. The offensive line has allowed only 14 sacks in the nine contests.
An All-Liberty League First Team choice as a sophomore, Yaskanich was also a Capital One Academic All-District ® First Team choice a year ago. He is a member of Theta Chi who has worked as a counselor for underprivileged children at a summer camp. He is a business and management major with a 3.70 GPA.
The team's strong safety, Borkowski (Fort Salonga, NY / Kings Park) has a 3.50 grade point average as a business and management major. He is also a brother of Theta Chi who is a member of Epsilon Delta Sigma Business Honor Society. He has also volunteered with the Peanut Butter Jelly Gang, which makes sandwiches for the homeless.
On the field, Borkowski has 56 tackles, including 33 unassisted and four for lost yards (10) in nine games, all starts. He is third on the team in total stops and second in solo tackles. He also has an interception (5 return yards) and four pass breakups. He has had two games with 10 tackles, in both of which he had six unassisted tackles and a pass breakup. Last season he had 42 tackles and a team-high four interceptions on his way to earning All-Liberty League recognition.
The Engineers, who are 4-5 overall and 1-5 in the Liberty League, conclude the season on Saturday at noon at arch-rival Union College in the Dutchman Shoes Trophy Game. The game will be broadcast live on WRPI, 91.5 FM, and www.wrpi.org.