ECU lands eight on All-GAC football squad
Nov. 18—RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. — The Great American Conference announced its All-Conference selections and yearly award winners on Wednesday and the East Central University football team saw eight players receive recognition for their performance during the 2023 season.
Nominations were submitted and voted on by the league's 12 head coaches.
The Tigers had four land on the All-GAC Second Team — senior wide receiver Dior Scott, senior running back Miles Davis, senior linebacker Devon Roush, and senior safety Jimmy Pitts — and four notches to the All-GAC Honorable Mention Team — junior running back David Hall, senior offensive lineman Colby Thomas, fifth-year defensive lineman Darian Williams, and junior cornerback Gio Waller.
Scott was instrumental in the Tiger offense, tallying a team-high 600 receiving yards on 43 catches and four touchdowns in his final collegiate season. His best game was against Southeastern where he picked up 110 reception yards with a long of 80 yards.
Davis led the charge out of the backfield, carrying the ball 79 times for 415 yards while also catching 15 passes for 132 yards for a total of four touchdowns this season. Davis is now a two-time All-GAC Second Team member.
Roush ended the season with 86 tackles, placing him No. 3 in the league with an 8.6 average per game. Roush has racked up the awards during his time at ECU, earning D2CCA Second Team All-American, First Team All-Super Region 3, Cliff Harris Nominee, Great American Conference Defensive Player of the Year, All-GAC First Team, and now All-GAC Second Team honors.
Pitts started in all 11 games and led the league in interceptions with 5, all of which were recorded over four consecutive games. He was also tied for third on the team in tackles with 61.
Hall had a breakout season in the backfield, finishing behind teammate Davis with 344 rushing yards on 76 carries and picking up 132 yards on 12 receptions for three total touchdowns. This is Hall's first career All-GAC accolade.
Thomas has been an anchor for the Tiger offensive line. He saw action in nearly every game of his four-year career while receiving All-GAC Honorable Mention honors for the second season in a row.
Williams transferred to ECU for his final season, making an immediate impact on the Tiger defense ranking second among his team in tackles with 63 and 20th in the league averaging 5.7 per game.
Waller earns his first All-Conference award ending the year with 25 tackles and frequent stops behind the line of scrimmage. He had 4.0 tackles for losses, one sack, two interceptions, and broke up a team-best nine passes.
