Feb. 13, 2008
Senior Matt Champa and junior Kalen Hemmelgarn were both honored on Jan. 5 as 2007 Sports Network All-Americans in the Football Championship Subdivision. Champa garnered first-team honors, while Hemmelgarn received honorable mention status as one of the few juniors on the squad.
Appalachian State had a record 11 selections to the senior dominated team - which included 19 juniors, nine sophomores and one freshman.
Champa continues to receive national recognition immediately after a senior season in which his 59 catches were the third-most in a single year at UD. His 921 receiving yards were the second-most in a season and both are Flyer records for tight ends.
Champa's nine touchdown receptions tied Jim Currin for the best scoring season by a UD tight end and are the second-highest total for any Dayton receiver.
On the Flyer career all-time lists, Champa finished second in touchdown catches (19), fifth in total receptions (104) and seventh in yardage (1,588). All are UD tight end career records.
Champa was a unanimous First Team All-Pioneer Football League selection.
Champa hails from Sagamore Hills, Ohio and is a 2002 graduate of Nordonia High School. He received his University of Dayton degrees in Leadership and Marketing on December 15, 2007.
Hemmelgarn received an honorable mention after helping Dayton rank among the national leaders in team defense.
Hemmelgarn totaled 41 tackles, 10.5 of which were for a loss. The junior also recorded 8.5 sacks and forced two fumbles.
The Dayton defense was disruptive all season and finished first nationally in sacks (four per game), second in rushing defense (yielding just 75.4 yards per game), fourth in total defense (271.5 yards), fourth in scoring defense (15.6 points) and seventh in tackles for loss (100).
Dayton was 11-1 in 2007. The Flyers were voted as FCS Mid-Major National Champions after defeating #3 Albany 42-21 in the Gridiron Classic Bowl Game. UD also claimed the co-championship in the PFL, the school's ninth league title in the last 15 years. Dayton ended the season ranked #24 in the final FCS Coaches Poll.
