TERRE
HAUTE, IND. -- Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology senior
Kyle Kovach (Munster/Andrean) has been named a
preseason All-American by three different organizations heading
into the 2012 football season.
Kovach earned first-team Preseason All-American honors from USA College Football, Inc., in the organization's 25th Anniversary release on Sunday.
He was also named a second-team preseason All-American by the D3Senior Classic on Friday. Earlier this summer, Kovach was named a second-team Beyond College Sports Network Preseason All-American.
The USA College Football organization sponsors the annual Hansen Bowl, which will become the NCAA Division III Senior All-Star Event. The first-team All-American squad acts as a preseason watch list for the game, set for Monday February 18 at 1:15 p.m.
The D3Senior Classic is a second All-Star event for graduating seniors scheduled for Friday December 7 at 7 p.m. in Salem, Virginia. The contest will take place the night before the NCAA Division III National Championship game at the same venue. This All-America team also serves as a watch list for the D3Senior Classic.
Kovach earned the NCAA Division III all-purpose yardage national championship this season by averaging 225.1 yards per game. He earned his second straight HCAC rushing championship this season with 1,213 rushing yards on a school record 298 carries.
His 2011 efforts included a school record 246-yard performance at Anderson University and the fifth-best rushing effort in school history with 221 yards at Kalamazoo.
Kovach ranks third in school history with 3,005 rushing yards and needs 311 yards to become Rose-Hulman's all-time leading rusher. He holds the career school record with 5,192 all-purpose yards and stands third in school history in rushing touchdowns (31) and fourth in total touchdowns (38).
His all-purpose efforts in 2011 included 1,213 rushing yards; 408 receiving yards on 46 catches; 486 kickoff return yards on 24 attempts; and 144 punt return yards on 20 attempts.
Kovach was named to the SI.com / Associated Press Little All-America Team as the third-team all-purpose player in 2011. The AP Little All-America Team features the nation's best players at the NCAA Division II, III and NAIA levels.
Rose-Hulman opens the 2012 season with a home game against Kalamazoo College on September 1 at 7 p.m.