Photo: Tab Brockman
Murray State junior Pokey Harris closed out the 2014 postseason award season Tuesday by being named as a first team All-American by TonySoftli.com (formerly the Phil Steele awards), as selected by widely respected college football analyst Josh Buchanan of the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl. In addition to Harris’ final honor, D’Montre Wade was named to the Freshman All-America third team as a corner back.
Harris was the top returner in FCS this season, taking back a nation-leading three kick-off returns for touchdowns and finishing seventh in the nation in yards per return at 28.8, both of which also led the OVC. In addition, Harris finished 2014 second in the OVC and 23rd in the country in all-purpose yards at 138.4 per game and first in the OVC and eighth in all of the FCS in total return yards at 920.
The Winchester, Kentucky native made history Eastern Illinois when he became the first Racer ever to return a kick-off 100 yards for a touchdown. One week later he repeated the feat at EKU, becoming the third-ever OVC player with two 100-yard returns for a touchdown and the first-ever to do it in consecutive games.
Harris was named to eight separate All-America first-teams this postseason, including five of the seven universally recognized teams by the FCS Athletic Directors Association, the Sports Network and the Walter Camp Football Foundation, the College Sporting News and TonySoftli.com. In addition to those teams, he was also named to the Beyond Sports Network team, the College Sports Madness team and College Football Performance Awards teams.
Wade played in 11 of 12 games for the Racers this season and started in 10 of those. The Columbia, Tennessee native ranked fifth on the team in tackles in 2014 with 64 total and 38 solo, including one for a loss of one yard. Wade also had one interception, four break-ups and six passes defended in his first collegiate season.
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