December 16, 2015

Sauder Earns Second-Straight AFCA All-American Honor

WACO, Texas – Taylor University's Adam Sauder was named as an AFCA NAIA First-Team All-American for the second time in as many years on Tuesday, as announced by the American Football Coaches Association.

Sauder joins TU Athletics Hall of Famers, Doug Bonura (1993, 1994) and Justin Heth (1998, 1999), as the only three players in the history of the Taylor football program to earn multiple NAIA First-Team All-American honors. Sauder is among an exclusive group of eight Trojans who have accounted for the 11 NAIA First-Team All-American awards in program history.

The 25-man 2015 AFCA NAIA First-Team All-America Team consists of 13 seniors, 10 juniors and two sophomores, with Sauder joining Point's David Stickland as the only repeat selections on the list.

Sauder's First-Team All-American honor comes on the heels of the senior strong safety also being named as the Mid-States Football Association Mideast League Defensive Player of the Year. Other postseason honors for Sauder have included receiving a third-straight All-MSFA selection and being named as a Cliff Harris Award Nominee for the second-straight year.

The Grabill, Indiana native closed his career on the gridiron at Taylor with a team-leading 97 tackles to go with eight stops for lost yardage, two sacks, two interceptions and a pair of forced fumbles.

Sauder led the Trojans in tackles over each of the last three seasons, ending his career with 364 total tackles, 20 tackles for lost yardage and nine interceptions, while anchoring the TU secondary.