Chris Ganious

Vermillion, S.D. – South Dakota football’s Chris Ganious has been named to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-America second-team, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) on Tuesday.

Ganious, a sophomore psychology major, is the first Coyote student-athlete to earn the prestigious accolade in the University Division (44th overall), which includes all NCAA Division I schools, and the first USD football player to earn the honor since Frank Leibfarth in 2007. Ganious has earned a 3.816 cumulative grade-point average through the 2009 spring semester, and also represented USD at the NCAA National Student-Athlete Leadership Conference in May 2009.

A running back on the field, Ganious led the Coyotes in rushing yards the last two seasons. This fall he posted 828 yards and four touchdowns on 148 attempts to earn All-Great West Conference first-team honors. He also earned Great West Offensive Player-of-the-Week honors after posting a career-high 193 rushing yards on 25 carries in USD’s 45-21 win over Southern Utah. He also caught 23 passes for 266 yards and one touchdown to help the Coyotes post a 5-5 overall record during the season.