Army West Point defensive lineman Curtis Jerzerick was named the 2017 Collegiate Sprint Football League (CSFL) Player of the Year, taking home the Kay Trophy as the league’s top performer after pacing the Black Knights’ defense to an unbeaten season that included a shutout in the inaugural CSFL title game.
In addition to Jerzerick taking home the top major award of the year, a pair of freshmen linebackers were named co-Newcomers of the Year after a tie in the voting. Mansfield’s Josh Friebis and Penn’s Matt Gorman split the honor for a defensive sweep of the major awards.
The league’s head coaches nominate and vote for the All-CSFL team each season. The complete All-Conference team, available here, includes 93 total players split into a first team, second team and honorable mention. Others on the First Team from NY area schools include Army West Point’s QB Keegan West, TE Ty Galvin, OL Zach Trainor, RB Jake Gigliotti, K Peter Davis, DB Desmond Young, LB Jacob Marchillo and P John Herrmann and Caldwell DB Quinton Quartararo.
Jerzerick led Army West Point to the league title this year after recording nine tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss and 1.0 sack in a 10-0 win over Penn in the inaugural title game. Jerzerick helped lead the top defense in the league this season as Army West Point held opponents to just 5.8 points and 171.9 yards per game. He finished the year with 38 total tackles, including 12.5 tackles for loss and 6.0 sacks. Jerzerick also blocked one kick, recovered one fumble and returned it for a touchdown and broke up two passes.
Penn won the South Division title and the right to play at Army West Point in the league title game. The Quakers, who won the CSFL crown in 2016, finished the year with just two losses, both to undefeated Army. Gorman paced the Penn defense with a team-high 60 total tackles, including 7.5 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks. The 60 tackles ranked third in the entire CSFL this season. He also recorded one interception, forced one fumble and broke up two passes.
The 2017 CSFL season marked a year of firsts for the league, which split into two divisions for the first time and featured the North Division and South Division winners playing in a true championship game. The league also welcomed Caldwell as its ninth member and changed the weight limit for players from 172 pounds to 178 pounds.
Army West Point finished the year at 8-0 to cap the 35th CSFL title in program history and the 19th perfect season for the Black Knights.