PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Six members of the Plymouth State University football program were honored by College Sports Communicators for their academic achievements on Tuesday, as the CSC Academic All-District Teams were announced.
 
Senior Mitchell Cripps (Dracut, Mass.), juniors Jack Claeys (Melrose, Mass.) and Khari Whitehead (Manchester, N.H.), and sophomores Shane McCormick (Plainville, Conn.), Hunter Burke (Pembroke, Mass.), and Ben Brown (York, Maine) were each recognized.
 
Academic All-District honorees are considered for advancement to the CSC Academic All-America ballot, where First-, second- and third-team Academic All-America honorees will be announced in late-January.
 
To be eligible for Academic All-District recognition, a student-athlete must be at least a sophomore academically and athletically and must maintain at least a 3.50 cumulative grade point average. Student-athletes must compete in 90 percent of the institution's matches or must start in at least 66 percent of the contests.
 
Under the leadership of 23-year head coach Paul Castonia, the Panthers went 8-2 (7-2 MASCAC) to earn a share of the regular season title after being picked fifth in the Preseason Coaches' Poll. It was PSU's second league title since joining the MASCAC in 2013.