Release

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Four Saint John's University student-athletes earned American Football Coaches' Association (AFCA) All-America honors on Monday, Dec. 10.

Junior quarterback Jackson Erdmann (Rosemount, Minn.) was named to the first team, while senior tight end Tommy Auger (St. Cloud, Minn./Cathedral), senior wide receiver Will Gillach (Lindstrom, Minn./Chisago Lakes) and junior guard Dan Greenheck (St. Paul, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall) were named to the second team.

One hundred SJU football student-athletes have now earned All-America honors a total of 130 times in the program's 108-season history.

The AFCA's Division III All-America Selection Committee is made up of three head coaches from each of the AFCA's eight districts, one of whom serves as a district chairman, along with another head coach who serves as the chairman of the selection committee. The coaches in each district are responsible for ranking the top players in their respective districts prior to a conference call between the district chairmen and the committee chairman on which the team is chosen.

Erdmann is the seventh SJU quarterback to earn All-America honors and the first since Tom Linnemann '00 in 2000. The accolades continue to pour in for the junior, as he was named the D3football.com West Region Offensive Player of the Year (Dec. 4) and a finalist for the Gagliardi Trophy (Dec. 6) last week. The 2018 MIAC Most Valuable Player, Erdmann led the MIAC in completion percentage (65.1 percent), yards per attempt (10.1), touchdown passes (23) and passing efficiency (185.4) in conference play, and his 1,942 yards were good for second in the conference, despite playing only three full conference games. 

Erdmann played only five of the 13 games to completion and currently leads NCAA Division III in three statistical categories: passing efficiency (189.8), passing touchdowns (47) and points responsible for (290). He is also third in yards per pass attempt (10.03), fourth in passing yardage (3,450) and ninth in yards per completion (15.40). He set single-game program records this fall for passing yards (470 on Oct. 13 vs. St. Thomas) and passing touchdowns (7 on Nov. 10 vs. Thomas More). Erdmann also set a single-season school record for passing touchdowns and fell 39 passing yards short of Tom Linnemann's '00 school record of 3,489 set in 2000 (15 games).

Gillach is SJU's first All-American at wide receiver since Blake Elliott '03, a three-time honoree from 2001-03 (assistant coach Josh Bungum '16 earned the honor as a returner in 2015). A D3football.com All-West Region first-team honoree this fall, Gillach caught 72 passes for 1,282 yards (17.8 avg.) and 17 receiving touchdowns in 13 games this season. The 1,282 receiving yards are second-most in NCAA Division III and his 17 receiving touchdowns are fourth-most. He became the first Johnnie to reach 1,000 receiving yards in a season since Brian Weber '07 (1,031 yards) in 2007, and became the first Johnnie since 1994 to catch four touchdowns in a game Nov. 10 against Thomas More (Ky.). His 256 receiving yards Oct. 13 against St. Thomas set a school record. 

The All-America honor is the second consecutive for Greenheck, who is also a two-time All-MIAC first-team and D3football.com All-West Region selection. He has started each of the Johnnies' last 24 games at right guard. SJU averaged 47.5 points per game and SJU's offense averaged 491.8 yards per contest (192.2 rushing and 299.5 passing). The 491.8 yards per game were the second-most in an SJU season (495.2 average in 1993) and the 299.5 passing yards per game were the most since the school record set in 1994 (314.5 avg.). Greenheck was a 2017 D3football.com All-American and a 2018 D3football.com Preseason All-American. 

Auger is the fourth Johnnie tight end to receive All-America distinction and first since Nate Kirschner '01 in 2000. A 2018 All-MIAC first-team selection, Auger finished the season with 26 receptions for 303 yards and seven touchdowns. He caught touchdowns in each of the Johnnies' first four games this fall and recorded nine receptions for 97 yards and one touchdown in three playoff games. Auger tied his career-high with five receptions Nov. 24 against Whitworth (Wash.). He ended his career seventh among SJU tight ends in career receiving touchdowns (9) and 10th in both career receptions (53) and career receiving yards (710). 

SJU (12-1, 8-0 MIAC) won its MIAC-record 33rd conference title and made its 29th postseason appearance (25th in Division III), advancing to the national quarterfinals, this fall.