NORFOLK, Va. (July 21, 2023) – The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) revealed its 2023 Football Preseason All-Conference honors where Howard University saw 14 Bison make the cut. The announcement came during the league's annual media day, live on ESPN+.
HU had seven Bison on the Preseason All-MEAC First Team, led by graduate offensive lineman
Anim Dankwah (Accra, Ghana) and senior defensive back
Kenny Gallop, Jr. (Portsmouth, Va.). Dankwah was recently named to the East-West Shrine Bowl 1000 List after starting all 11 games a year ago while the Virginia native topped the conference with 58 solo tackles (89 total).
Other notable Bison on the Preseason All-MEAC First Team included graduate defensive linemen
Darrian Brokenburr (Manassas, Va.) and
Jevin Jackson (Lawrenceville, Ga.), senior tight end
Brennan Brown (Dallas, Texas), senior wideout
Kasey Hawthorne (Sebring, Fla.) and junior offensive lineman
Darius Fox (Washington).
Graduate linebacker
Christian White (Richmond, Va.) and graduate quarterback
Quinton Williams (Upper Marlboro, Md.) headline the Preseason All-MEAC Second Team. White finished 2022 with 48 total tackles (16 solos) while the DMV native accounted for 21 total TDs (16 passing, four rushing & one receiving).
Five other Bison joined White and Williams on the Preseason All-MEAC Second Team: graduate offensive lineman
DeShawn Ingram (Detroit); running backs graduate
Ian Wheeler (Houston) and senior
Jarett Hunter (Mineral, Va.); junior wide receiver
Richie Ilarraza (Clearwater, Fla.) and junior defensive back
Robert Jones III (Fairwood, Md.).
Additionally, the league unveiled its Preseason Predicted Order of Finish and Howard was projected to second behind reigning Celebration Bowl Champion North Carolina Central (NCCU). HU tallied 98 points, including one first-place vote, while the Eagles registered 124 points with nine first-place votes.
Individually, NCCU's Davius Richard and Khalil Baker were named MEAC Preseason Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, respectively.
Howard is set to open the 2023 season against Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan Friday (Sept. 1). Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET.
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at
www.HUBison.com or the MEAC website at
www.MEACSports.com.
