LOCK HAVEN, PA – West Chester University put seven players on the 2022 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) all-league squad it was announced Wednesday afternoon. Three first-team selections and four second-team nods included junior linebacker
Jackson Taylor (Glenside, Pa./Abington) and freshman quarterback
Cooper Jordan (Downingtown, Pa./Bishop Shanahan), who walked away with two of the four major awards.
Taylor was named the PSAC Eastern Division Defensive Player of the Year for a second straight fall. Jordan was tabbed the Eastern Division's Freshman of the Year. Taylor becomes the 10th West Chester player to earn the loop's defensive player of the year award and the fourth to be a repeat selection. The previous three Golden Rams to win a pair of defensive player of the year awards were all linebackers as well. As for Jordan, he becomes the fifth freshman of the year and the third quarterback from West Chester to take home the honor. Defensive player of the year has been handed out in the PSAC every year since 1996 – for the exception of 2020 when no season was played. Freshman of the year has been on the books since 1985.
Joining Taylor on the first team was senior defensive end
Zach Liggitt (Danielsville, Pa./Northampton) and junior running back
Ja'Den McKenzie (Morton, Pa./Springfield). Second team honors went to offensive guard
Caelen Krasley (Chester Springs, Pa./Downingtown East), sophomore wide receiver
D'Shaun Seals (Philadelphia, Pa./Imhotep Charter), red-shirt freshman defensive tackle
David Blay (Levittown, Pa./Harry S. Truman) and sophomore place-kicker
Sean Henry (Reading, Pa./Exeter).
For Taylor, it was another outstanding season in the middle of the Golden Rams' defense. The three-time, first team All-PSAC East linebacker was named PSAC East Defensive Player of the Week once, he reached double figures in stops five times and posted a season-best 15 tackles against Millersville. His 97 tackles on the year was a single-season high for the middle linebacker. It ranked seventh overall in the PSAC and third in the Eastern Division. He led the conference in fumble recoveries with four. His 20 tackles for a loss ranked eighth in the nation and second in the PSAC. He was credited with seven QB hurries and six sacks.
For Jordan, he probably thought 2022 would be a red-shirt season. Instead, he quickly rose to the No. 1 slot on the depth chart at quarterback and led the Golden Rams to a 7-4 record. He was 4-1 as the starting QB. Jordan threw for 718 yards and eight touchdowns against just one interception in 78 attempts on the year. He completed 53.9 percent of his passes to lead the squad. His QB rating of 161.91 was also a team high. On the ground, Jordan was the team's second-leading rusher, gaining 510 yards on 79 attempts. He scored three times and averaged 6.5 yards per carry. He engineered a game-winning drive in the final two minutes against East Stroudsburg.
McKenzie makes his third straight appearance on the PSAC Eastern Division all-conference squad as well. He and Taylor are both three-time, first-team All-PSAC East honorees in their careers. He was the Eastern Division freshman of the year in 2019 as well. The powerful running back for the Golden Rams rushed for 706 yards on 177 attempts averaging 4.0 yards per carry. He rushed for seven touchdowns and caught another. Out of the backfield, he caught nine passes for 76 yards.
Blocking up front for McKenzie was Krasley, who makes his first appearance on an all-league team. He found himself in the starting lineup right out of camp and held onto that spot at right tackle all year long. He was a big reason the Golden Rams run game was third in the conference, averaging 170.4 yards per game. Behind Krasley and that big offensive line, three different runners rushed for over 400 yards on the season individually.
Out on the perimeter was Seals – another first-time all-league honoree. The youngster seemed to work well with Jordan once the freshman took over control of head coach
Bill Zwaan's offense. Seals led the team with 27 catches and five touchdown receptions. He was second on the team in receiving yards with 403. He averaged 14.9 yards per catch. He also returned punts and kicks for the Golden Rams racking up 612 all-purpose yards on the season.
Joining Taylor on the first team All-PSAC East defensive squad, Liggitt turned in his best college performance while receiving his first all-league plaudit. He registered 24 tackles on the year, including 9.5 for a loss, and 7.5 of those were sacks. That ranked him second in the Eastern Division in sacks. Liggitt forced three fumbles, which tied for the most in the entire PSAC this fall. He was also credited with four QB hurries and two pass breakups.
David Blay is one of the young defensive linemen up front that Zwaan is very excited about. He makes his initial appearance on an all-league team. However, the coaching staff believes there are many more accolades coming his way in the near future. He finished sixth on the team in tackles with 38. He recorded 13 tackles for a loss, including five sacks. He was credited with four QB hurries and also forced a fumble. He appeared in all 11 games and made eight starts for the Golden Rams' defense, which was eighth in the conference overall.
Finally, Henry emerged as one of the loop's most prolific kickers while taking on the added pressure of punting, along with kickoffs. He became the Golden Rams' kicker for all occasions as the 2022 season wore on. Named to the all-league squad for the first time as a place-kicker, Henry made 14 of 19 field goals and converted 29 of 31 extra points. His 14 field goals ranks third on the school's single-season charts while his 19 attempts ranks fourth. Impressively enough, he was 3-for-3 from beyond 40 yards and 6-for-6 from in close (under 29 yards). He made his last seven consecutive field goal trys.
