Football | 11/21/2017 9:33:00 AM

Goodwell, Okla.—The Central States Football League has announced their All-Academic Teams and Champions of Character Teams for the 2017 season, and Panhandle State proudly graces both lists.

The CSFL regulates that student athletes selected to the All-Academic Team must earn a 3.0 cumulative grade point average and have successfully completed 12 hours of coursework at their current institution. Out of 129 selected representatives from nine league schools, Panhandle State brandishes 11 students, the sixth-highest in number of students nominated per school. The Aggies are proud to announce the All-Academic Team of 2017 honorees: sophomores Nathan Leithead and Jasper Smiley, juniors Sam Lemin, Brandon Ramon, Jacob Test, Dominique Coutee-Thomas and Sequoia Smith, and seniors Cullen Oliver, Zachary Perez-Clack, Matthew Granz and Jakob Popple.

To be honored on the Champions of Character Team, student-athletes must embody the five core values of the NAIA: respect, responsibility, sportsmanship and servant leadership. Two player representatives are chosen for the Champions of Character from each CSFL conference institution. As its' first year in the NAIA, Panhandle State joins Arizona Christian, Bacone College, Langston University, Lyon College, Southwestern Assemblies of God, Texas College, Texas Wesleyan University and Wayland Baptist University. The two Champions of Character Team members are young men who have shown their potential and pride on and off the field, and Panhandle State is pleased to congratulate seniors Diego Arenas-Purvinis and Linden Robertson.

Head Coach Russell Gaskamp is extremely proud of all of these young men stating, "This is just a great group of guys all around. They work hard and do things the right way, which will lead to success in all facets of their lives. It's a great thing to witness as a coach."

The complete listing of 2017 All-Academic and Champions of Character recipients is available online at the CSFL website.