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Three Blue Devils Named CoSIDA Academic All-District
11/16/2017 3:32:00 PM | Football
DURHAM, N.C. – Redshirt senior offensive tackle Gabe Brandner, senior safety Alonzo Saxton II and redshirt junior tight end Davis Koppenhaver were named to the Academic All-District III first team, according to an announcement by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
It is the second straight season Saxton II has received first team honors, while it is the second career selection for Brandner and the initial pick for Koppenhaver.
Duke, which has had 22 CoSIDA Academic All-District nods in the last six seasons, led the ACC with its three selections. N.C. State, Syracuse and Virginia each had two honorees while Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, Miami and Virginia each had one student-athlete make a CoSIDA Academic All-District first team.
A two-time first team CoSIDA Academic All-District selection, Brandner has been Duke's starting left tackle for the past three seasons. Already this fall, he has been named a National Football Foundation William V. Campbell Trophy semifinalist and an AFCA Good Works Team member. A 2016 Academic All-ACC selection, Brandner also earned ACC Top 6 for Service accolades in 2017. A product of Blythewood, S.C., Brandner was a 2015 first team CoSIDA Academic All-District III. He has already graduated from Duke with an evolutionary anthropology degree and is pursuing a master's in liberal studies.
Koppenhaver leads Duke with three receiving touchdowns this season. He is a three-time ACC Academic Honor Roll member as a psychology major. The Valencia, Calif., native owns two of Duke's four receiving scores in ACC play, reaching the end zone at North Carolina and Virginia. He is fifth on the team in scoring (18 points) and owns 12 total receptions, three resulting in touchdowns and six resulting in first downs.
A three-time ACC Academic Honor Roll member and two-time Academic All-ACC selection, Saxton II owns a team second-best 77 tackles with 3.5 TFL, 1.0 sack and two pass breakups. The Columbus, Ohio, product is helping Duke rank 12th in fourth down defense (.333), 18th in interceptions (12), 19th in passing yards allowed per game (182.50), 21st in third down defense (.321), 22nd in first down defense (170) and 25th in tackles for loss per game (7.1). Saxton II, a theater studies major with a minor in education, booked a career high 15 tackles against Florida State.
The Blue Devils (4-6, 1-5 ACC) host Georgia Tech (5-4, 4-3 ACC) Saturday for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff. The game will be televised live on RSN. Tickets are available online at www.GoDuke.com/FootballTix or by calling the Duke Athletic Ticket Office at 919-681-2583.
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