Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina senior placekicker Richard McCollum was today named to the Phil Steele All-America team, while wide receiver Corey Washington collected Freshman All-America honors from the same publication. McCollum was dubbed fourth-team All-America and Washington was a fourth-team selection on the all-rookie team stemming from the 2023 season.
 
McCollum was among 10 players from the SoCon to land on the Phil Steele postseason All-America team, while Washington joined 11 others from the league on the Freshman All-America list. Six SoCon schools were represented on the All-America squad with Furman and Mercer both putting three players on the list, while eight SoCon teams were represented on the Freshman All-America team with ETSU (4) and The Citadel (2) tallying multiple selections.
 
McCollum adds the Phil Steele All-America honor to his litany of postseason awards that included consensus first-team All-Southern Conference accolades by the league's head coaches and voting media, and a first-team All-America selection from the FCS Football Central, a partnership between The Bluebloods and Sports Illustrated/Fan Nation that was announced on Dec. 11. McCollum was joined by classmate offensive lineman Christian Coulter who was a third-team honoree on the FCS Football Central award listing.
 
Returning for his sixth season in 2023, McCollum scored a career-best 93 points to finish his career ranked second in program history in scoring with 300 points, just two shy of the program record (302, Kirk Roach – 1984-87). His 93 points were the fourth-most by a player in the regular season – and the most by a kicker. The Sanford, N.C., product finished 14-of-15 (93.3%) on field goals including 4-of-4 from beyond 40 yards, adding 51-of-52 on point after touchdowns.
 
First-year wideout Corey Washington was a SoCon All-Freshman team selection honoree, recording 16 receptions for 213 yards including a career-best 108 yards on just three receptions in the win over Charleston Southern. The Miami, Fla., product added eight punt returns for 69 yards and a pair of kickoff returns totaling 23 yards to amass 305 all-purpose yards on the season.
 
Additionally, on Friday, 17 Catamounts were named to the All-Southern Conference team as selected by Phil Steele, headlined by the 2023 SoCon Offensive Player of the Year in Catamount quarterback Cole Gonzales. It's his second top-player billing after being named the SoCon's Roy M. "Legs" Hawley Offensive Player of the Year by the voting media. The Ocala, Fla., product led the nation's top yardage-producing offense as WCU led the NCAA FCS with 504.1 yards per game.
 
A first-team All-SoCon selection from Phil Steele, Gonzales was joined by offensive teammates in sophomore running back Desmond Reid and senior offensive linemen Coulter and Tyler Smith. McCollum was additionally the first-team selection at kicker on the all-conference squad.
 
WCU wide receivers Censere Lee and David White Jr. were both second-team Phil Steele All-SoCon selections. A third WR in AJ Colombo landed on the third team twice – both as a receiver and as a punt returner. He was flanked by senior tight end Ajay Belanger and offensive lineman Blake Whitmore on the third-team offense, while defensive lineman Marlon Alexander and defensive backs Rod Gattison and Andreas Keaton represented the defensive unit.
 
Rounding out the Phil Steele All-SoCon teams were fourth-team selections in defensive end Jayelin Davis, linebackers Va Lealaimatafao and Antoine Williams, and defensive back Samaurie Dukes.
 
Among those honored by Phil Steele, nine were recognized by the SoCon's head coaches on their postseason squads with six listed on the 2023 SCSMA All-SoCon team by the media.
 
Western Carolina football turns its attention to filling vacancies on its coaching staff and a focus on next week's early National Signing period, Dec. 20-22. Head coach Kerwin Bell has done a tremendous job in locking in the bulk of his first signing classes in the early period ahead of the traditional National Signing Day on the first Wednesday in February – this year, Feb. 7, 2024. Looking to capitalize on the momentum from the highly successful 2023 season, WCU will also look to officially release the squad's 2024 schedule and season ticket information in the coming weeks.
 
Keep track of everything related to Catamount football and WCU Athletics through its social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/CatamountSports) and Twitter (@Catamounts, @CatamountsFB).
 
 
Phil Steele All-Southern Conference Team:
Offensive Player of the Year – QB Cole Gonzales
 
WCU's first-Team Selections:
QB Cole Gonzales, RB Desmond Reid, OL Christian Coulter, OL Tyler Smith, PK Richard McCollum
 
WCU's Second-Team Selections:
WR Censere Lee, WR David White Jr.
 
WCU's Third-Team Selections:
WR/PR AJ Colombo, TE Ajay Belanger, OL Blake Whitmore, DL Marlon Alexander, DB Rod Gattison, DB Andreas Keaton
 
WCU's Fourth-Team Selections:
DE Jayelin Davis, LB Va Lealaimatafao, LB Antoine Williams, DB Samaurie Dukes