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Football All-Conference

Football

Henry Dryden, Connor Taylor, and AJ Kelly Headline 13 All-Conference Selections for Football

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – On Wednesday morning, the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference selected its All-RMAC teams for 2024.

The South Dakota Mines football program honored 13 players on those teams, with Henry Dryden and Connor Taylor headlining as they earned spots on the RMAC All-Conference First Team. AJ Kelly joined them, earning a spot on the second team. Smith headlining as they were named to the RMAC All-Conference First Team.

Henry Dryden repeats as a first-team selection after also earning the honor in 2023. In 2024, he outdid his catch total, catching 35 passes in one less game, as he only played in 10. On those receptions, he had 297 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns.

Connor Taylor had a phenomenal year as the kicker for the Hardrockers. He tied for the conference lead in field goals with 13, hitting 13 of 17, which was also the second-highest in the league, but had nearly double the attempts of the only kicker with a higher percentage. Taylor was fourth in the RMAC in points per game, averaging 6.8, while he was third in total points with 75. Taylor set school records for the Hardrockers in making field goals and points in a career and tied the school record for field goals made in a season. Taylor made 46 of 49 of his extra points and booted 38 touchbacks. Also, a punter this year named as an honorable mention at that spot, Taylor set a school record for the longest punt with an 81-yard punt.

AJ Kelly earned a second-team all-conference spot, emerging this season as a regular starter and picking up the mantle left behind by Grant and Connor Smith. Kelly has played in 32 games over the past three seasons, starting all 11 this season, and was a huge factor in an offense that saw a lot of success, especially in the run game over the past few weeks. Overall, the Hardrockers had five games of over 200 yards rushing, including three-in-a-row to end the season, and Kelly was a large part of that.

The Hardrocker Football team also had ten honorable mention players: Caleb Franklin, Connor Taylor (P), Holden Gilbert, Hunter Newsom, Isaac Engle, Jake Martinelli, Keegan Tandy, Kevin Bruxvoort, Trevor Griffin, and William Lester.

The full teams are listed below with the RMAC press release linked above.

RMAC Football First Team All-Conference – Offense

Pos. Name Cl. School Hometown
QB Drew Nash R-Jr. Western Colorado Torrance, Calif.
RB Howard Russell V Sr. CSU Pueblo Phoenix, Ariz.
RB Tevita Valeti Fr. New Mexico Highlands Springville, Utah
WR Max McLeod R-Sr. Colorado School of Mines Seattle, Wash.
WR Reggie Retzlaff Sr. CSU Pueblo Corona, Calif.
WR Flynn Schiele R-Jr. Colorado School of Mines West Linn, Ore.
TE Henry Dryden R-Jr. South Dakota Mines Boise, Idaho
OL Stevie Byron Gr. Western Colorado Ketchikan, Alaska
OL Senon Chapple So. CSU Pueblo Fort Worth, Texas
OL Tyler Ethridge So. CSU Pueblo Midlothian, Texas
OL Jayson Rouse R-Jr. Black Hills State Angleton, Texas
OL Nic Van de Graaf R-Sr. Colorado School of Mines Houston, Texas
 
RMAC Football First Team All-Conference – Defense
Pos. Name Cl. School Hometown
DE Ricky Freymond R-Jr. Western Colorado Chino, Calif.
DE Hunter O'Connor Sr. Chadron State Broomfield, Colo.
DT Kellen Collier R-Jr. Black Hills State Willard, Utah
DT Dominick Fini R-Sr. CSU Pueblo Colorado Springs, Colo.
ILB Kendall Lightfoot Gr. Western Colorado Las Vegas, Nev.
ILB Adrian Moreno R-Sr. Colorado School of Mines Bakersfield, Colo.
OLB Jaden Healy R-Sr. Colorado School of Mines Allen, Texas
OLB Colin Stuhr R-Jr. Colorado School of Mines Littleton, Colo.
S Daniel Bone III Sr. CSU Pueblo Colorado Spring, Colo.
S Dax Yeradi Jr. Chadron State Wright, Wyo.
CB Donovan English So. CSU Pueblo Pomona, Calif.
CB JaCari Williams Sr. Colorado Mesa Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
 
RMAC Football First Team All-Conference – Special Teams
Pos. Name Cl. School Hometown
PK Connor Taylor Sr. South Dakota Mines Longmont, Colo.
P Blake Doud R-Jr. Colorado School of Mines Parker, Colo.
PR Kash Bradley Jr. Colorado Mesa Bushland, Texas
PR Zack Rakowsky Jr. CSU Pueblo Loveland, Colo.
KR Kash Bradley Jr. Colorado Mesa Bushland, Texas
LS Josh Wojciechowicz Sr. Colorado School of Mines Bridgeport, W. Va
 
RMAC Football Second Team All-Conference – Offense
Pos. Name Cl. School Hometown
QB Evan Foster R-Sr. Colorado School of Mines Olathe, Kan.
RB Aiden Taylor Jr. Colorado Mesa Modesto, Calif.
RB Landon Walker R-Jr. Colorado School of Mines Fort Worth, Texas
WR Josiah Ayon Jr. Western Colorado Fresno, Calif.
WR Teneil Nichols Sr. New Mexico Highlands Exeter, Calif.
WR Tommy Thomas Jr. Chadron State Fort Collins, Colo.
TE Daniel Parsek R-Jr. Western Colorado Johnstown, Colo.
OL Zach Brumfield R-Jr. Western Colorado Las Vegas, Nev.
OL AJ Kelly R-Jr. South Dakota Mines Rock Springs, Wyo.
OL Cade Myer R-So. Colorado School of Mines Frisco, Texas
OL Cooper Mumford So. Colorado Mesa Highland, Utah
OL Domingo Prince II Jr. CSU Pueblo Aurora, Colo.
 
RMAC Football Second Team All-Conference – Defense
Pos. Name Cl. School Hometown
DE Mylic Ritche R-Sr. Black Hills State Ardmore, Okla.
DE Makeah Scippio Sr. CSU Pueblo Colorado Springs, Colo.
DT Mikey Smith R-Fr. Western Colorado Colorado Springs, Colo.
DT James Turrentine Sr. CSU Pueblo Elk Grove, Calif.
ILB Jacob Penney R-So. Fort Lewis Sparks, Nev.
ILB Gary Seidenberger So. CSU Pueblo Fredericksburg, Texas
OLB Xavier Harrell Sr. Chadron State Highlands Ranch, Colo.
OLB Cy Shope Sr. Western Colorado Pottsboro, Texas
S Nicc Quinones R-Sr. Black Hills State Peoria, Ariz.
S Liban Shongolo S Colorado Mesa Commerce City, Colo.
CB Keith Mckaney Jr. CSU Pueblo Avondale, Ariz.
CB Jackson Zimmerman R-Jr. Colorado School of Mines Highlands Ranch, Colo.
 
RMAC Football Second Team All-Conference – Special Teams
Pos. Name Cl. School Hometown
PK Matt Eich R-Jr. Colorado School of Mines Broomfield, Colo.
P Brodie Eisenbraun Jr. Chadron State Sturgis, S.D.
PR Jack Jones Sr. Western Colorado Olympia, Wash.
KR Orland Guevara Fr. Fort Lewis Denver, Colo.
LS Zac Heaton Jr. Fort Lewis Fort Worth, Texas

 
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 13 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.

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Players Mentioned

Connor Smith

#79 Connor Smith

OL
6' 3"
Graduate Student
Kevin Bruxvoort

#71 Kevin Bruxvoort

OL
6' 4"
Junior
Henry Dryden

#88 Henry Dryden

TE
6' 3"
Redshirt Junior
Caleb Franklin

#94 Caleb Franklin

DL
6' 3"
Senior
Holden Gilbert

#3 Holden Gilbert

RB
5' 7"
Senior
Trevor Griffin

#68 Trevor Griffin

OL
6' 2"
Senior
AJ Kelly

#78 AJ Kelly

OL
6' 6"
Redshirt Junior
Jake Martinelli

#12 Jake Martinelli

QB
6' 0"
Redshirt Senior
Hunter Newsom

#34 Hunter Newsom

LB
6' 0"
Senior
Keegan Tandy

#74 Keegan Tandy

OL
6' 5"
Redshirt Senior

Players Mentioned

Connor Smith

#79 Connor Smith

6' 3"
Graduate Student
OL
Kevin Bruxvoort

#71 Kevin Bruxvoort

6' 4"
Junior
OL
Henry Dryden

#88 Henry Dryden

6' 3"
Redshirt Junior
TE
Caleb Franklin

#94 Caleb Franklin

6' 3"
Senior
DL
Holden Gilbert

#3 Holden Gilbert

5' 7"
Senior
RB
Trevor Griffin

#68 Trevor Griffin

6' 2"
Senior
OL
AJ Kelly

#78 AJ Kelly

6' 6"
Redshirt Junior
OL
Jake Martinelli

#12 Jake Martinelli

6' 0"
Redshirt Senior
QB
Hunter Newsom

#34 Hunter Newsom

6' 0"
Senior
LB
Keegan Tandy

#74 Keegan Tandy

6' 5"
Redshirt Senior
OL