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COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Five Saint John's University student-athletes earned Associated Press Division III All-America honors on Thursday, Dec. 13.

Junior quarterback Jackson Erdmann (Rosemount, Minn.), senior wide receiver Will Gillach (Lindstrom, Minn./Chisago Lakes), junior guard Dan Greenheck (St. Paul, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall) and senior safety Max Jackson (St. Paul, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall) were named to the first team. Senior defensive end Nathan Brinker (Avon, Minn./Holdingford) was named to the second team.

Erdmann (first team), Gillach (second team) and Greenheck (second team) were named American Football Coaches' Association (AFCA) All-Americans Dec. 10.

The five awardees bring the total to 101 SJU football student-athletes who have earned All-America honors a total of 131 times. 

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. A biochemistry major (pre-medicine emphasis) with a 3.78 GPA, Gillach was named a Google Cloud Academic All-American Dec. 12.

The All-America distinction is the second consecutive for Jackson, who earned D3football.com All-America honors last fall and D3football.com Preseason All-America honors in 2018. He started all 13 games and led the team in tackles (80), solo tackles (51) and pass breakups (11). He recovered two fumbles, including the game-breaking 99-yard return for touchdown Oct. 13 in the 40-20 win over St. Thomas. Jackson ended his career as SJU's all-time leader in defensive touchdowns (4) and finished fifth in combined kick and punt return yards (1,188). The two-sport star is a combined three-time All-Region selection (two in football and one in baseball).

The All-America honor is also the second consecutive for Greenheck, who is 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. 

A three-time All-West Region and All-MIAC first-team honoree, Brinker earned the MIAC's Mike Stam Award as the conference's top lineman this fall. He recorded 19 tackles for loss and 9 sacks in 11 games this season. A 2018 D3football.com Preseason All-American, Brinker led the MIAC with 13.5 tackles for loss in conference play and finished second with 6.5 sacks. He ended his career fourth in school history in tackles for loss (51) and fifth in sacks (27). A nightmare for opposing defenses and a textbook definition of toughness, Brinker played most of his sophomore season in 2016 with a torn ACL in both knees and the majority of the 2018 campaign with a torn labrum in his hip.

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.