Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Colorado School of Mines’ John Matocha, Colorado State University Pueblo’s Trey Botts and New Mexico Highlands’ CJ Sims headline the 2022 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Football All-Conference rosters as the Offensive, Defensive and Special Teams Players of the Year, respectively, the league announced Thursday. In addition to the conference’s individual awards and all-conference rosters, the league also announced its honorable mention honorees. RMAC individual awards and all-conference rosters are nominated and voted on by the league’s 10 head coaches. Coaches are not permitted to vote for themselves or their student-athletes.
 
After closing out a prolific regular season for the No. 7/10 Orediggers, Matocha is the RMAC Offensive Player of the Year ahead of the 2022 NCAA Division II postseason. The senior quarterback ranks among the nation’s best in multiple categories but stands No. 1 overall with a 188.4 passing-efficiency rating. Throughout 11 regular-season appearances for Mines, the Magnolia, Texas, native has dished out 33 touchdown passes and completed 71.5 percent of his passing attempts (238-of-333) for an average of 310.5 passing yards per game. He has compiled 3,415 passing yards on the year in addition to 214 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown this season. Matocha orchestrates a potent Mines offense that ranks first in the nation for total offense (509.1) and red zone offense (.939). In addition to being named the league’s Offensive Player of the Year, Matocha was also named a first-team all-conference selection.
 
Botts secures the RMAC Defensive Player of the Year for the ThunderWolves after pushing his team into the NCAA DII postseason with 64 total tackles, 16 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks on the year. The defensive tackle was also named a first-team all-conference selection with his 21 solo tackles and seven quarterback hurries this season, headlining a CSU Pueblo defense that ranks second in an offensively explosive RMAC by allowing just 19.8 points per game. Botts and the Pack defense also rank second in the league for total defense by allowing 311.5 yards per game. Additionally, Botts leads the charge at the defensive line for a program that stands first in the RMAC for team passing efficiency (108.5), which stems from the senior’s ability to wreak havoc in the backfield for opposing teams.
 
Sims secures RMAC Special Teams Player of the Year after closing the season with 340 yards on kickoff returns, a mark that ranks 27th in the nation, for an average of 26.2 yards per return. His longest return of the year came in the form of a 99-yard kickoff against a feisty Black Hills State program (Oct. 8), when he traversed the length of the field with 24 seconds remaining in the opening half. Sims has compiled 478 return yards on the season for an average of 17.1 yards and pairs that with his powerful presence on the offensive side of the ball as a wide receiver.
 
Colorado School of Mines’ Landon Walker is the RMAC Offensive Freshman of the Year after his season debut for the Orediggers where he stamped five touchdowns while accumulating 267 all-purpose yards. The redshirt freshman running back has appeared in eight games and stacked up 28 rushes for an average of 7.9 yards per carry. While averaging 27.5 rushing yards per game, Walker found the endzone three times on the ground and twice more through the air, helping the Orediggers to a perfect 9-0 mark in conference play.
 
Black Hills State’s Cooper Brown is the RMAC Defensive Freshman of the Year following his redshirt freshman season with the Yellow Jackets where he converted 45 tackles over 11 appearances. Of his 45 tackles, 25 were unassisted and 10.5 were deemed tackles for loss. He also registered 7.5 sacks for 56 yards, five quarterback hurries, two pass breakups, two fumble recoveries and one forced fumble. The defensive end’s impressive season pushed the Yellow Jackets to a 7-4 overall record and a 5-4 mark in conference play, marking Black Hills State’s first winning season since 2016.
 
In his first season at the helm for the Orediggers, head coach Brandon Moore continued the program’s winning ways, leading Mines to a 9-2 overall record and a 9-0 mark in RMAC play. Under Moore’s guidance, the Orediggers enter the postseason ranked 10th in the nation in the latest American Football Coaches Association poll, seventh in the latest D2 Football poll and were named the No. 2 seed in the upcoming NCAA DII playoffs. The Orediggers enter the NCAA playoffs ranked first in the nation for scoring offense after putting up 47.4 points per game and 14th nationally for scoring defense after allowing just 15.3 points per game throughout the regular season.
 
Colorado School of Mines leads the way with 17 all-conference selections, eight of which were named to the first team. CSU Pueblo and Western Colorado check in next with nine all-conference honorees apiece, followed by Chadron State’s seven selections. Black Hills State, Colorado Mesa and South Dakota Mines each account for five roster positions. New Mexico Highlands secures a trio of honorees, while Adams State rounds out the 2022 all-conference roster with one selection.