NORTHBROOK, Ill. - Carson-Newman football running back Antonio Wimbush (Kingsland, Ga.) is one of 137 football players nominated for the 2019 AFCA Allstate Good Works team, the AFCA announced Friday.
Carson-Newman has seen six players make the make the final 25 as Byron Bell (2011), Kevin Day (2012) and Curt Duncan (2013) did so in consecutive seasons with Joey King earning a spot in 2005 and 2003. Dan Gallman made the cutin 2016.
The Eagles six selections are the most in all Division II. The Eagles trail St. Thomas (Minn.) (D-III), 13 and Bethel (Minn.) (D-III), for the most selections among non-FBS schools. The Eagles are tied with FCS power North Dakota State.
In his redshirt junior season, Wimbush received national recognition for his efforts to return to the field from a torn ACL and meniscus.
Wimbush has was named one of three inaugural winners of the Mayo Clinic's Comeback Player of the Year. Wimbush tore his ACL and meniscus in a week two contest in 2017 against Saint Augustine's. The junior was bullish in the offseason with his rehab and work ethic. Within six months of his surgery, he was squatting 525 pounds. Carson-Newman Director of Sports Performance Johnny Long has called Wimbush, pound-for-pound, the strongest player on the football team.
After a hard offseason rehab, imbush turned in another stellar season to earn All-SAC first team honors for the second time in his career to go along with all-region accolades from the D2CCA and All-America honors from Don Hansen's Football Gazette.
He finished the season with 1,206 rushing yards to lead the South Atlantic Conference. The season-ending total represents the 18th best single-year on the ground for an Eagle rusher. He found the end zone seven times on the ground and once more through the air.
Wimbush had a string of four straight 100-yard games at the mid-point of the season and finished the year with 100-yard rushing efforts in five of Carson-Newman's final six games. He moved up to 11th on both Carson-Newman's career rushing yards and rushing touchdown charts. Wimbush earned South Atlantic Conference Player of the Week honors following his performance at Virginia Union when he had 21 carries for 184 yards and three scores.
That rushing tally marked a career high for Wimbush. He also went for more than 150 yards rushing against both Limestone and Virginia-Lynchburg. His 8.0 yards per carry are the eighth highest single-season total in Carson-Newman football history and the second highest total in NCAA Division II this year.
Established in 1992, the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® continues to be one of the most coveted community service awards in college football. From the 137 nominees, the final roster of 23 award recipients will be announced in September, bringing together 11 players from the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision;11 players from the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision, Divisions II, III and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA); and one honorary head coach. To be considered for a spot on the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®, each player must be actively involved with a charitable organization or service group while maintaining a strong academic standing.
The final 22-member team and honorary coach is selected by a voting panel consisting of former Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® members and prominent media members who look for both their dedication to giving back and the embodiment of true leadership on and off the football field.