Bowling Green, KY – The Cumberlands football team had seven players earn Mid-South Conference All-Conference honors, including one top honor and a first-team all-conference selection, conference officials announced Thursday.

Malik Thornton headlines the list as the MSC Defensive Freshman of the Year.  Kendall Adams-Young is the lone Patriot to earn first team honors, while Kumi Sarpong Jr., Logan Stephens, Cortez Brown, Walker Dunn, and Damon Byrnes-Mitchell were second team selections. 

Malik Thornton becomes just the second Patriot to be named the MSC Defensive Freshman of the Year, joining UC Hall of Famer Weston Hazelhurst who earn the honor in 2020.  The Eatonton, GA native tallied 15 tackles, 13 of which were solo, and a team-high four interceptions on the second with a pair of pick six's.  Thornton came up big for Patriots down the stretch with three interceptions over Cumberlands final two wins.  Against 11^th-ranked Georgetown, Thornton notched his first career multi-interception game, including a 75-yard pick six to extend the Patriots lead to 24-10.  That performance helped the freshman earn both MSC and NAIA Defensive Player of the Week accolades.  Thornton followed it up with his second pick six on the opening drive against Campbellsville.  His four interceptions are tied for the second most in the conference this season, while his two pick six's are tied for the most in a season for a Patriot player.

Defensive tackle Kendall Adams-Young earns First Team honors for the second consecutive season. Adams-Young was a formattable force on the Patriots defensive line with 40 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, and five sacks.  He was fourth on the team in sacks and tackles for loss and was a key part of the Patriots line that limited opponents to 2.5 yards per carry.  The Mobile, AL native made a career-high 11 tackles, including three tackles for loss against Pikeville.    

Earning all-conference honors for the third time as a Patriot was Kumi Sarpong Jr., who was a second—team selection.  The senior made a team-high 13 tackles for loss, while being second on the team with 7.5 sacks, and closed out the year with 44 tackles.  The Grayson, GA native closed out the season ranked second in the Mid-South in sacks and fourth in tackles for loss, while being part of the Patriots defense that totaled 43 sacks on the year which was second most for a season.  Sarpong Jr. had a seas-high three sacks, eight tackles, and a force fumble in the win over Campbellsville to be named the MSC Defensive Player of the Week.  Sarpong Jr. closes out his career as UC's career leader with 26.0 sacks and made 38.5 tackles for loss, which is second all-time.

Logan Stephens earns all-conference accolades for the fourth-time making him just the second Patriot offensive lineman and the seventh player in program history to be a four-time all-conference selection.  This marks the third time that Stephens has earned second team accolades.  The fifth-year senior was instrumental in the Patriots win over Georgetown as he helped UC gain 233 yards of offense and a touchdown.

After a breakout season as a defensive end/ linebacker Cortez Brown earned second team all-conference accolades.  Brown a career-high 16 solo tackles, 34 tackles, 7.5 sacks, and 9.5 tackles for loss.  His 7.5 sacks ranked second in the conference as he was a key part of the Patriots defense that closed out the season with 43 sacks.  The Cordova, TN native made a career-high 2.5 sacks against Faulkner and finished with a pair of forced fumbles to help UC knock-off #11 Georgetown.  He closed out his season with a career-high nine tackles in the win over Campbellsville.

Walker Dunn is no stranger to the all-conference list as this marks the second straight year that he was a Second-Team All-Conference selection.  Dunn made a career-high 60 tackles, 34 of which were solo, had 12 tackles for loss, an interception, and four pass breakups.  The 60 tackles were fourth most on the team as he made a season-high 10 tackles in two games on the season.  In the win over Campbellsville, the Athens, AL native made ten tackles, had an interception and blocked a field goal to help preserve the victory. 

Damon Byrnes-Mitchell is another Patriot that had a break out season for the red and navy.  The sophomore finished second on the team with 71 tackles, including a team best 47 solo tackles, to go along with two tackles for loss, an interception, nine pass breakups and three blocked kicks.  Byrnes-Mitchell came up huge on special teams blocking a pair of punts against Cumberland and Bethel, which was return for touchdowns, before adding a blocked field goal against Pikeville.  The Clearwater, FL native closed out the year ranked fourth in the NAIA in blocks, while his ranked fourth in the MSC in solo tackles.  Byrnes-Mitchell closed out the season with 42 tackles over his final three games, including a career-best 19 tackles in the win over Georgetown.

Cumberlands closed out the season with a 5-5 record, including the win over the 11^th-ranked Tigers.

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