CLEVELAND, Ohio ? Junior defensive tackle Yaky Ibia (South Lakes H.S./Reston, Va.) of Towson University has been selected to the 12th annual Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association (FCS ADA) Academic All-Star team, it has been announced by FCS ADA officials.
A two-year starter on the defensive line, Ibia is one of 55 players named to the team.
Ibia, who was named to ESPN The Magazine?s Academic All-America? District 2 University Division football team in November, is the ninth Tiger football player to be honored by the FCS ADA.
“The FCS ADA looks forward to honoring outstanding student-athletes each year, which culminates with the annual academic all-star team announcement,” said FCS ADA President Peter Fields, chair of the FCS ADA Academic All-Star Team Selection Committee and Athletic Director at Montana State University. “These football players represent the true meaning of the word student-athlete and we are proud of their accomplishments both in the classroom and on the field.”
An Actuarial Science major with a 3.60 G.P.A., Ibia started 10 games for Coach Rob Ambrose at defensive tackle. He was seventh on the team with 52 tackles, an average of 5.2 tackles per game. He also led Towson with 11.5 tackles for lost yardage. In addition, he had 2.5 quarterback sacks and one forced fumble.
Ibia ranked ninth among the defensive linemen in the Colonial Athletic Association with 5.2 tackles per game. He was also 12th in the CAA in tackles for lost yardage.
A 6-2, 295-pound native of Calabar, Nigeria, Ibia led the Tigers to a 21-17 win over Coastal Carolina when he made a career high seven tackles. He matched that total with seven tackles at Morgan State, including 2.5 tackles for lost yardage. In the Tigers? loss to #5 William & Mary in November, Ibia had six tackles, including two for lost yardage.
Football players from all Football Championship Subdivision institutions are eligible for these awards. Each nominee was required to have a minimum grade point average of 3.20 (on a 4.00 scale) in undergraduate study and have been a starter or key player with legitimate athletics credentials. He must have reached his second year of athletics and academic standing at the institution and have completed a minimum of one full academic year at the institution.
Ibia was one of only three CAA players named to the FCS ADA Academic All-Star team. Wide receiver Anthony Nelson of Hofstra and wide receiver Mark Mackey of Delaware were also chosen.
Ibia joins John Webb (2007), Eric Yancey (2006), Kevin Mager (2003), P.D. Moore (2003), Gene Liebel (2000, 2001), John Devoti (2000) and Adam Overbey (2000) as Tigers named to the FCS ADA Academic All-Star team.
