ESPN College Football

The Sporting News came out with its All-America lists Tuesday and 10 players from the nonautomatic qualifying schools, including two on the first team, made the cut.

TCU defensive end Jerry Hughes, who has made the first team of every All-America team that’s been published this season, and Central Michigan punt returner Antonio Brown were the two players on the first team. This is Brown’s first All-America first-team selection.

Here’s a look at the players who were honored:

FIRST TEAM

Jerry Hughes, DE, TCU

Antonio Brown, PR, Central Michigan

SECOND TEAM

Mike Iupati, OL, Idaho

Daryl Washington, LB, TCU

Matt Dodge, K, East Carolina

LaVon Brazill, PR, Ohio

THIRD TEAM

Freddie Barnes, WR, Bowling Green

Dennis Pitta, TE, BYU

Zane Beadles, OL, Utah

Rafael Priest, CB, TCU

Must admit that Brown and Brazill are a bit of a surprise, but deserving since they were two of the best punt returners in the country. It's also surprising to see Barnes and Pitta fall to the third team. Both were more deserving than the current selections.

Central Michigan senior quarterback Dan LeFevour has been named the winner of the 28th Vern Smith Leadership Award, which is voted on by the league’s coaches and presented annually to the conference’s top football player.

LeFevour led the Chippewas to an 8-0 conference record, 10-2 overall, and is tied with Texas Tech’s Graham Harrell and Hawaii Colt Brennan for the most total touchdowns of any player in Football Bowl Subdivision history with 146 touchdowns (99 passing, 46 rushing, 1 receiving).

LeFevour is the conference career leader in total offensive yards (15,140), attempts (1,669), completions (1,110), passing yards (12,255) and is tied for second in touchdown passes (99).

LeFevour also was named the league’s Offensive Player of the Year and first-team All-Mid-American Conference, as announced by the league office on Wednesday.

Temple earned three awards, including Coach of the Year for Al Golden, Freshman of the Year for Bernard Pierce and Defensive Player of the Year for defensive end Adrian Robinson.

Central Michigan receiver Antonio Brown was named Special Teams Player of the Year.

Temple led all MAC teams with eight players on the first team, Central Michigan was second with five players on the first team.

Posted by ESPN.com’s Graham Watson

CENTRAL MICHIGAN CHIPPEWAS (6-1, 4-0 MAC)

Central Michigan lost its season opener to Arizona and hasn’t lost a game since. The Chippewas are off to their best start since 1984 and their 4-0 start to the Mid-American Conference schedule has given them the inside track to nab their third conference title in the past four seasons. Coach Butch Jones attributes the strong start to his 13 seniors, who were so dismayed with the way the Chippewas finished 2008 that they vowed for a better performance in 2009. And currently, there’s not a team remaining on the schedule that seems to be able to stand in the Chippewas' way.

Offensive MVP

Dan LeFevour, QB: After being hampered by injuries most of last season, LeFevour seems to be back to the dual-threat quarterbacking style that earned him both conference freshman of the year and offensive player of the year honors his first two seasons in the league. LeFevour has thrown for 1,549 yards and rushed for 395 yards. But his most impressive stat is that he’s accounted for 23 total touchdowns.

Defensive MVP

Nick Bellore, LB: There’s been no player more important to CMU’s defensive turnaround than Bellore, who leads the team in tackles (68), tackles for loss (8.5), sacks (3) and interceptions (1). Bellore has helped CMU turn its defense from one of the worst in the country to one of the most dominant allowing just 15.86 points per game.

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

It was an OK, but not great week for the Big Ten, and the same for my picks. I went 8-3, wasn't close on several scores and came close on a few others.

Here's hoping for better results all around on Saturday.

Michigan 34, Eastern Michigan 14 -- A bit a hangover for Michigan after the Notre Dame win, but the run game eventually gets going behind Brandon Minor. Tate Forcier does his thing, and Rich Rodriguez gets Denard Robinson some more reps as Michigan matches its wins total from 2008 only three games into the season.

California 35, Minnesota 23 -- I could see Cal starting slow, but the Bears shouldn't be nearly as flat as they were last year against Maryland. Minnesota has done some nice things on defense, but Cal's offense seems just too powerful. The Gophers haven't found offensive playmakers aside from wide receiver Eric Decker and aren't able to keep up with Cal on the scoreboard.

Penn State 48, Temple 6 -- After a ho-hum win against Syracuse, Penn State shows a greater sense of urgency with Big Ten play looming and thumps Temple. The run game finally gets going as Evan Royster eclipses 100 rushing yards and Stephfon Green adds 75. The Lions defense holds Temple to two field goals as defensive end Jack Crawford has a big day.

Wisconsin 44, Wofford 7 -- The Badgers are healthier and Wofford is not, as leading rusher Eric Breitenstein will be out a month with a knee injury. John Clay puts up 150 rush yards in his first career start and Dave Doeren's defense gets some of its swagger back against the FCS Terriers.

Purdue 35, Northern Illinois 27 -- Something tells me this one won't be easy for Purdue, but the Boilers prevail behind Ralph Bolden and quarterback Joey Elliott, who bounces back from last week's loss with an encouraging performance. Northern Illinois quarterback Chandler Harnish tests a banged-up Boilermakers secondary, but Purdue tightens up its play and prevails.

Ohio State 41, Toledo 17 -- This is a good matchup for a struggling Buckeyes offense, which should put up points against a Toledo team that allowed 90 in the first two games. Terrelle Pryor has a big day with his arm and his feet, and the Buckeyes roll. Aaron Opelt could give Ohio State some problems, but the defense I saw last week in Columbus is too solid up front to allow many points.

Notre Dame 28, Michigan State 27 -- By far the toughest game to pick this week, but I'm going with the team that needs it more. Home field really doesn't matter for Notre Dame, which has dropped six straight to Michigan State. But the Irish know a loss here likely torpedoes their season and head coach Charlie Weis. The Spartans secondary struggled mightily last week, and Notre Dame's Golden Tate and Michael Floyd are better than Central Michigan's Antonio Brown and Bryan Anderson. Kirk Cousins plays well, but the Spartans come up just short.

Akron 24, Indiana 20 -- My lack of faith in the Hoosiers hurt me last week, and we'll see what happens this time around. Indiana's defense has performed admirably so far, but the team has made too many mistakes for my liking. Akron quarterback Chris Jacquemain is pretty good, and he attacks the IU secondary with Deryn Bowser. The Hoosiers can't survive mistakes on the road and drop this one.

Iowa 21, Arizona 17 -- It will be a defensive struggle at Kinnick Stadium, as both units are solid. Arizona running back Nic Grigsby makes some plays, but Iowa forces several turnovers, including a key interception in the fourth quarter that proves to be the difference. Quarterback Ricky Stanzi limits mistakes and throws a pair of touchdown passes

Northwestern 26, Syracuse 21 -- The win won't come easily for Northwestern, but you have to think the coaches will expand the playbook on both sides of the ball. Quarterback Mike Kafka finally showcases his mobility against an aggressive Orange defense, and he has another big day in a dome. The Wildcats defense gets a big boost from the return of cornerback Sherrick McManis, who keeps Orange star wideout Mike Williams relatively in check.

Bye -- Illinois

Season record -- 18-4 (.818)

Posted by ESPN.com's Graham Watson

1. Offensive player of the year: Dan LeFevour, QB, Central Michigan -- LeFevour suffered some ankle injuries, which resulted in a down season, but he's still the best quarterback in the league and maybe one of the beat dual-threats in the country.

2. Defensive player of the year: Frank Zombo, DE, Central Michigan -- Zombo didn't get a lot of help last year, but still managed to lead the conference in tackles for loss and rank third in the conference in sacks.

3. Newcomer of the year: Ansel Ponder, WR, Western Michigan -- Ponder joins Western Michigan after a season with Hargrave Military Academy. While there, he amassed 760 yards receiving and 11 receiving touchdowns. He had 13 touchdowns overall.

4. Comeback player of the year: Theo Scott, QB, Ohio -- Scott was the Bobcats starter at the beginning of last season, but suffered a broken collarbone and a dislocated shoulder in the second quarter of the second game. He's still competing with Boo Jackson for the starting job.

5. Freshman of the year: Kelly Page, QB, Ball State -- Page steps in for all-everything quarterback Nate Davis, and does so having been groomed for the starting role last season. He has the receivers and running back to be successful, but his offensive line is in question.

6. Most exciting player: Antonio Brown, WR, Central Michigan -- Brown led the conference and was fourth in the country with 178.08 all-purpose running yards per game. He was dynamic on both kick and punt returns and was the team's leading receiver.

7. Coach of the year: Al Golden, Temple -- Temple has gotten better every year Golden has been in charge and this could be his best season yet. If the Owls challenge for the MAC East, which they have the personnel to do, Golden should win the coach of the year award for the turnaround of the program.

8. Game of the year: MAC Championship, Dec. 4 -- Last year's MAC title game was the best and most surprising game of the season. This year's game could be equally as interesting especially since many believe Central Michigan should run away with the title and no one's talking about the threats in the East.

9. Surprise team of the year: Temple -- The Owls are a team no one is talking about and that's probably a big mistake. The Owls finished third in the East last season and were a game away from bowl eligibility. Behind a new (unnamed) starting quarterback, they should be much improved this season.

10. Team that will disappoint: Ball State -- After a fantastic 2008 campaign, the Cardinals are going to have a little trouble getting back to the top of the MAC West, especially with Central Michigan and Western Michigan poised to have stellar seasons behind senior quarterbacks. Still, the season will be a good learning experience for Page and new head coach Stan Parrish.

Posted by ESPN.com's Graham Watson

The Biletnikoff Award watch list was recently released and 18 players from the nonautomatic qualifying schools made the cut.

The award goes to the nation's best collegiate receiver.

Three players from the non-AQ schools have won the award, but none this decade. Wyoming's Marcus Harris won in 1996, Randy Moss of Marshall won in 1997 and Troy Edwards from Louisiana Tech won in 1998.

Several players have been finalists, though, including Rice's Jarett Dillard in 2006, Ball State's Dante Ridgeway in 2004 and Nevada's Nate Burleson in 2002.

Both Conference USA and the Mid-American Conference lead the non-AQ's with five nominees each.

The winner of the 17th Biletnikoff Award will be announced as part of ESPN's College Football Awards Show on Dec. 10. The award will be officially presented to the winner at the annual Biletnikoff Award dinner, hosted by the Tallahassee Quarterback Club, on Feb. 12, 2010.

2009 BILETNIKOFF AWARD WATCH LIST (From non-AQs)
Kris Adams, UTEP
Seyi Ajirotutu, Fresno State
Antonio Brown, Central Michigan
DeAndre Brown, Southern Miss
Tyron Carrier, Houston
Cortez Gent, Florida Atlantic
Rashaun Greer, Colorado State
T.Y. Hilton, Florida International
Jerrel Jernigan, Troy
Damaris Johnson, Tulsa
Dennis Pitta, BYU
Taylor Price, Ohio
Aldrick Robinson, SMU
Naaman Roosevelt, Buffalo
Greg Salas, Hawaii
Jacory Stone, Eastern Michigan
Stephen Williams, Toledo
Ryan Wolfe, UNLV