COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. --- On Thursday morning the RMAC selected its' All-Conference Football team for the 2021 season.  
 
The South Dakota Mines football program had 16 players honored on those teams, with Gavin Chaddock and Kyante Christian headlining as they were named to the RMAC All-Conference First Team. Joining them on the Second Team was Isaiah Eastman who was selected as a Punt Returner.
 
Kyante Christian, a junior defensive lineman from Aurora, Colo. had a big year and was a big part of a defense that was able to put consistent pressure on the quarterback. On the season he recorded 70 total tackles which was 12^th in the RMAC and sacked the quarterback 7.5 times, tied for 5^th in the conference. He had three games with multiple sacks with his season-high coming against Fort Lewis when he had 2.5. His season-high of 11 tackles came in the game against Chadron State.
 
"Kyante is a tremendous player with an extremely high motor," said head coach Charlie Flohr. "He has put in a lot of hard work to get to this point."
 
Gavin Chaddock also recorded 7.5 sacks on the season. The pass-rushing linebacker added a total of 39 tackles on the season. In addition, the Peoria, Ariz. native added 2 forced fumbles and an interception. His best game of the year came early in the season against Mayville State in which he recorded two sack-fumbles and an interception. His season-high of 11 tackles came in the game against Chadron State.
 
"Gavin did an unbelievable job for us the year playing a new position," stated coach Flohr. "He accepted the challenge, put in a lot of work and it paid off in the end."
 
Isaiah Eastman was a multi-faceted weapon all season long. He was named to the second team as a punt returner, recording 242 yards on 24 returns with a long of 36, but he was versatile and could hurt teams in the run game, as a receiver, or even as a passer. For the season he had 31 rushes for 113 yards and 2 rushing touchdowns. Eastman finished in the top 11 in the conference in both receptions and receiving yards (46-492) and threw a 33-yard touchdown pass against New Mexico Highlands. Eastman was also dangerous returning kicks, averaging 25.7 yards per return.
 
"Isaiah did a great job in the return game by making plays to give us good field position all season long."
 
The Hardrocker Football team also had 13 players named honorable mention. They were as follows: Jayden Johannsen, Jeremiah Bridges, Collin Zur, Joe Luebbers, Ira Murphey, Connor Taylor, Casey Knutsen, Kaleb Tischler, Kendahl Johnson, Will Carroll, Cole Peterson, Connor Smith, and Austin Roth.

The full teams are listed below with RMAC press release linked above.
 
2021 RMAC Football First Team All-Conference - Offense

Pos.	Name	Cl.	School	Hometown
QB	Ramone Atkins	Sr.	New Mexico Highlands	Gary, Ind.
RB	Josh Cummings	R-So.	Western Colorado	Fairbanks, Alaska
RB	Michael Zeman	R-Sr.	Colorado School of Mines	Wheat Ridge, Colo.
WR	CJ Sims	Jr.	New Mexico Highlands	Covington, La.
WR	Josh Johnston	R-Sr.	Colorado School of Mines	Snohomish, Wash.
WR	Elijah Harper	Jr.	Adams State	Stockton, Calif.
TE	Ian Fryday	Gr.	Adams State	San Diego, Calif.
OL	Justin Calderon	Sr.	Chadron State	Levittown, N.Y.
OL	Matt Armendariz	R-Sr.	Colorado School of Mines	Austin, Texas
OL	Elijah Reed	Jr.	CSU Pueblo	Aurora, Colo.
OL	Clayton Martin	R-So.	Western Colorado	Buena Park, Calif.
OL	Juan Estrada-Sanchez	Jr.	Chadron State	Denver, Colo.

 
2021 RMAC Football First Team All-Conference - Defense

Pos.	Name	Cl.	School	Hometown
CB	Bryce Hampton	Jr.	Adams State	Las Vegas, N.M.
CB	Bobby Peele	Sr.	Chadron State	Fresno, Calif.
S	Damar'ren Mitchell	R-Sr.	Colorado Mesa	Magnolia, Texas
S	Malik Brown	Sr.	New Mexico Highlands	Chicago, Ill.
ILB	Kyante Christian	Jr.	South Dakota Mines	Aurora, Colo.
ILB	Lane Farris	R-Sr.	Western Colorado	Falcon, Colo.
OLB	Trevor Philio	Sr.	CSU Pueblo	Denver, Colo.
OLB	Mack Minnehan	R-Sr.	Colorado School of Mines	Woodinville, Wash.
DT	Will Lydle	R-Sr.	Western Colorado	Cedar Park, Texas
DT	Ikenna Onwuasoanya	Sr.	CSU Pueblo	Houston, Texas
DE	Gavin Chaddock	Jr.	South Dakota Mines	Peoria, Ariz.
DE	Zach Hester	R-Jr.	Colorado School of Mines	Palmer Lake, Colo.
DE	Torren Calhoun	Jr.	Colorado Mesa	Fort Worth, Texas

 
2021 RMAC Football First Team All-Conference – Special Teams

Pos.	Name	Cl.	School	Hometown
K	Alec Fonseca	Jr.	Western Colorado	Temecula, Calif.
P	Justin Dwinell	So.	CSU Pueblo	Colorado Springs, Colo.
P	Jacob Parks	Sr.	Black Hills State	Peoria, Ariz.
KR	Elijah Lilly	Gr.	Colorado Mesa	San Bernardino, Calif.
PR	Mason Pierce	Sr.	Colorado School of Mines	Bulverde, Texas

 
2021 RMAC Football Second Team All-Conference - Offense

Pos.	Name	Cl.	School	Hometown
QB	John Matocha	Jr.	Colorado School of Mines	Magnolia, Texas
RB	Michael Roots	Sr.	CSU Pueblo	Sacramento, Calif.
RB	Tyreik Campbell	Sr.	Adams State	Carencro, La.
WR	Chad Mikelson	Sr.	Chadron State	Julesburg, Colo.
WR	Nick Williams	Jr.	CSU Pueblo	Aurora, Colo.
WR	Quavon Beckford	R-So.	New Mexico Highlands	Miami, Fla.
TE	Dagan Rienks	R-Jr.	Colorado Mesa	Paonia, Colo.
OL	Caelan Keenan	So.	Colorado Mesa	Boerne, Texas
OL	Joey Orrino	R-Jr.	Western Colorado	Thornton, Colo.
OL	Justin Wood	R-Sr.	Colorado School of Mines	Williamsport, Pa.
OL	Jonah Stupar	Jr.	CSU Pueblo	Pueblo, Colo.
OL	Nic Van De Graaf	R-So.	Colorado School of Mines	Houston, Texas

 
2021 RMAC Football Second Team All-Conference - Defense

Pos.	Name	Cl.	School	Hometown
CB	Darrien Young	Jr.	Colorado Mesa	Katy, Texas
CB	Marcus Lawrence	Sr.	CSU Pueblo	Aurora, Colo.
S	A'brae Booker-Currin	Sr.	Adams State	Dallas, Texas
S	Cory McLellan	So.	CSU Pueblo	Monument, Colo.
ILB	Max Gonzales	Jr.	CSU Pueblo	Aurora, Colo.
ILB	Gabriel Kortz	R-Sr.	Colorado School of Mines	Centennial, Colo.
OLB	Nolan Reeve	R-Jr.	Colorado School of Mines	Mission Viejo, Calif.
OLB	Wyatt Buhr	R-So.	Western Colorado	La Junta, Colo.
DT	Brian Rattery	R-Jr.	Colorado Mesa	West Palm Beach, Fla.
DT	Trejen Lawrence	Jr.	New Mexico Highlands	Amarillo, Texas
DE	Dominick Fini	So.	CSU Pueblo	Colorado Springs, Colo.

 
2021 RMAC Football Second Team All-Conference – Special Teams

Pos.	Name	Cl.	School	Hometown
K	Lucas Ruiz Diaz	R-Jr.	Colorado Mesa	Montrose, Colo.
KR	CJ Sims	Jr.	New Mexico Highlands	Covington, La.
PR	Isaiah Eastman	Fr.	South Dakota Mines	Gilbert, Ariz.

 
About South Dakota Mines
The South Dakota School of Mines & Technology is a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) and NCAA Division II offering 11 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletic programs. The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference is a premier NCAA Division II conference with 15 members, as well as four associate members, located in the states of California, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah.