BECKLES, HOLLEY GARNER MAJOR NE-10 FOOTBALL AWARDS, SIX NAMED ALL-CONFERENCE

SOUTH EASTON, Mass. (November 8, 2006) - Senior running back Marlon Beckles (Brooklyn, N.Y.) of the American International College football team has been named the 2006 Northeast-10 Conference Offensive Player of the Year, while freshman linebacker Terrence Holley (Bronx, N.Y.) has been named the league's Freshman of the Year, it was announced by the conference office on Wednesday.  In addition, four other players were named NE-10 All-Conference.

The football award winners and All-Conference teams were selected by a vote of the Conference's 10 head coaches.

Beckles, Holley and senior defensive end Jason Dominique (Roselle, N.J.) were named First Team All-Conference.  Sophomore fullback Marcus Cameron (Hempstead, N.Y.) was named to the Second Team on offense, while sophomore defensive lieman Brian Destephano (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and sophomore punter Jon Thorpe (East Longmeadow, Mass.) were named to the Second Team on defense.

Beckles earns his second major award from the Northeast-10, as he was the league's 2003 Freshman of the Year.  In 2006, Beckles has rushed for 1,377 yards, the fourth-highest total in school history, and nine touchdowns.  He ranks third in the NE-10 and fifth in Division II in rushing (153 yards per game).  He has rushed for at least 100 yards seven times in nine games and ran for a season-best 213 yards at Southern Connecticut.  His 4,097 career yards are the second-highest total in school history, while his 192 career points are the fourth-highest total in Yellow Jacket history.

Holley leads the Yellow Jackets with 65 total tackles in 2006.  Starting all nine contests to date, Holley leads AIC and the Northeast-10 while ranking ninth nationally in tackles for a loss with 17.  A two-time NE-10 Freshman of the Week, he had a season-high 11 tackles in the Yellow Jackets' most recent game against Stonehill, and on the season had a pair of fumble recoveries for touchdowns in wins over Bryant and Stonehill.  Holley was the only freshman among 29 players selected to the First Team.

Dominique emerged as one of the league's top defensive players in 2006.  Desipte missing AIC's most recent game due to injury, Dominique leads the Yellow Jackets with 10.5 quarterback sacks and  is third on the team in tackles with 50 (33 solo).  His 13.5 tackles for a loss are second only to Holley on the squad, and his 1.3 sacks per game rank second nationally in Division II.  He recorded 11 tackles and 2.5 sacks in a home win over Bentley.

Cameron, in his second year on the Yellow Jackets, emerged as a key blocker for Beckles en route to his Offensive Player of the Year award.  Starting all nine contests, Cameron himself carried 14 times and had a pair of touchdowns on the season, hitting paydirt in wins over Saint Anselm and Assumption.

Destephano started all nine contests at tackle for American International and ranks sixth for the Yellow Jackets in total tackles with 38, while also registering five tackles for a loss and three quarterback sacks.  The sophomore was a model of consistency down the stretch, making at least five tackles in each of the final six contests, including a season-high six stops in a home shutout of Pace.

Thorpe led the Northeast-10 in 2006 with his 38.5 yard punting average on 48 punts this season, with that average also ranking 28^th in Division II.  14 of his punt attempts landed inside the 20-yard line, while only four punts crossed the goal line for touchbacks.  Thorpe also did not have a punt blocked all year and had a long punt of 56 yards in a win over Bryant.

AIC returns to action Saturday when it faces Bentley in a non-conference game on the road starting at 1:00.  The Yellow Jackets have already posted their highest victory total since the 2001 season and finished just one game shy of the top spot in the Northeast-10 this season.