Utica, NY – The Utica College football team earned 11 spots on the 2016 Empire 8 All-Conference teams released Wednesday.  Utica senior left tackle Robert Pontbriand (Yorktown Heights, NY/Somers) and linebacker Juwan Wilson (South Ozone Park, NY/Holy Cross) earned first team recognition, while running back Ryan Burnett (Mount Vernon, NY/Arch Bishop Stepinac), defensive lineman Nicholas Bruzzese (Utica, NY/Proctor), kick returner Nicodemus Gambill (Rochester, NY/East High) and defensive backs Anthony Beaubrun (West Hempstead, NY/West Hempstead) and Chancellor Harris (West Henrietta, NY/Rush Henrietta) earned second team status.

Utica's Jerred Beniquez (Port Ewen, NY/Kingston) earned honorable mention for both the wide receiver and all-purpose positions, while Jack Doyle (Greenlawn, NY/Harborfields) was an honorable mention on the offensive line.  Utica senior quarterback Teddy VanGalen (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) was selected as the College's representative on the Sportsman of the Year team.

The Pioneers, who matched a program-best 7-4 overall record, made their second ECAC Bowl game appearance in the last three years. Utica has now won at least five games in five of its last seven seasons.

Senior left tackle Robert Pontbriand (Yorktown Heights, NY/Somers) is making his second straight appearance on an all-conference team for Utica after earning honorable mention in 2015.  He helped pave the way for all-conference second team running back Ryan Burnett (Mount Vernon, NY/Arch Bishop Stepinac) who set a new school-record this past season for both single season (995) and career (1,876) rushing yards.  He also protected the blind side of senior quarterback Teddy VanGalen (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) who will graduate ranked second on the College's all-time list in career passing yards (5465), completions (447) and TD passes (30).  Pontbriand and the UC offense compiled 4,168 yards of total offense this year, which ranks second on the College's all-time single-season list.

Senior linebacker Juwan Wilson (South Ozone Park, NY/Holy Cross) made his second straight appearance on the all-conference first team and will graduate ranked second on the College's career list with 339 total tackles. His 103 tackles this season rank ninth on the College's single-season list. Wilson finished the year tied for sixth in the Empire 8 with an average of 9.4 tackles per game. He also added 3.5 sacks, two interceptions and two pass breakups. His 10.5 tackles for a loss this season ranked second on the team. 

Running back Ryan Burnett (Mount Vernon, NY/Arch Bishop Stepinac) is making his first all-conference appearance after capping his decorated career with a record breaking senior season. He finished the year ranked second in the Empire 8 with an average of 90.5 yards rushing per game.  He also added eight touchdowns on the ground and broke the College's single season record with 995 yards rushing.  Burnett posted 100+ yards four times this past season, including a 204 yard, one touchdown, performance in the Pioneers win at home over nationally-ranked St. John Fisher College. 

Senior defensive lineman Nicholas Bruzzese (Utica, NY/Proctor) earned his first career appearance on an Empire 8 All-Conference team after leading the conference with 8.0 sacks.  He led the team with 11.0 tackles for a loss and he also led all defensive lineman with 38 total tackles.  Bruzzese made headlines in week 10 after posting a school-record 4.5 sacks in the Pioneers' win over Hartwick.  For his efforts he was named the Conference's defensive player of the week and he also earned a spot on the coveted D3football.com National Team of the Week.

Defensive backs Chancellor Harris (West Henrietta, NY/Rush Henrietta) and Anthony Beaubrun (West Hempstead, NY/West Hempstead) are both making their first Empire 8 All-Conference appearance.  The Utica secondary tied for the conference lead with 17 interceptions this past season. Harris, a junior, finished the season ranked fifth in the Empire 8 with 11 passes defended.  He totaled a team-high nine pass break ups and also added two interceptions.  Beaubrun led the team and finished tied for third in the Empire 8 with four interceptions. He also finished fourth on the team with a career-high 46 tackles for the Pioneers.

Senior kick returner Nicodemus Gambill (Rochester, NY/East High) haunted opposing special teams coordinators all season and earned an All-Conference second team selection.  The 2016 Outdoor Track & Field All-American, capped his final season of football with a single-season school-record 711 kick return yards.  He returned two kickoffs for a touchdown against Morrisville and Alfred.  His average of 32.3 yards per kick return led the Empire 8 and ranked fifth nationally. He also set a new school-record with a 99 yard kickoff return for a touchdown. 

Senior Jerred Beniquez (Port Ewen, NY/Kingston) earned honorable mention at both wide receiver and all-purpose, marking the third honorable mention appearance of his career.  Beniquez led the Empire 8 and set a new single-season school record with 87 catches this past season. He finished fifth in the Empire 8 with an average of 83.3 yards receiving per game and he also caught seven touchdowns. His 7.9 receptions per game led the conference and ranked 12^th nationally.  He will graduate as the College's all-time leader in all-purpose yards. He is one of just two players in program-history to record over 200 career catches (207) and he capped his career ranked third all-time with 2,171 receiving yards.

Offensive lineman Jack Doyle (Greenlawn, NY/Harborfields), who was named a captain in his senior season, is making his second straight all-conference honorable mention appearance.  He helped the Utica offense average 26.91 points per game and paved the way for 1,412 rushing yards on the ground this season.  He played a major role on an offensive unit that scored 40 touchdowns and allowed just 21 sacks all season. The Pioneer offense averaged 5.4 yards per play and 378.9 yards of total offense per game. 

Senior quarterback Teddy VanGalen (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) was named the College's Sportsman of the Year for the first time in his career. One member of each team was named that institution's representative on the 2016 Football Sportsman of the Year Team.  Empire 8 emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete's experience in conjunction with an institution's educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportsmen.

VanGalen finished the year ranked third in the Empire 8 with an average of 248.8 yards passing per game.  He led the conference with 233 completions and he also added 15 touchdown passes.  His 2,737 total yards passing ranked second in the conference, as did his 63.5 completion percentage. He finished fourth in the conference in total offense.