Register Staff Report
RICHMOND —
Former Madison Central standout Ricky Rhodes was recently named a Preseason Division I FCS Honorable Mention All-American by the Beyond Sports Network (BSN).
Rhodes was one of three Gardner-Webb players to receive the honor.
Rhodes, a senior punt returner/all-purpose back filled in at running back last season and was dynamic in a variety of roles within the GWU offense and on special teams. He earned First-Team All-Big South Conference honors as a punt returner, leading the league with an average of 11.0 yards per attempt — with a long runback of 59 yards.
Rhodes averaged 134.5 all-purpose yards on the season, rushing for a career-high 553 yards and three touchdowns on 118 carries. He played quarterback in the wildcat formation, completing 3-of-3 passes for 40 yards and a pair of touchdowns — becoming just the second non-QB in league history to complete more than one TD pass in a season.
The speedster ran for a career-high 143 yards on 33 carries in the win at Coastal Carolina and posted touchdown runs of 20 and 50 yards against league-champion Stony Brook in November. Rhodes also caught 12 passes for 73 yards on the season, and totaled 711 kickoff return yards.
Rhodes is slated to return to his natural slot receiver position in 2012.
Gardner-Webb opens the 2012 season on Sept. 1 at 6 p.m. against preseason top-10 foe Wofford.
