11 Wildcats earn Big Sky All-Conference honors

Following another winning season, Weber State had 11 players named to the Big Sky All-Conference teams. The league announced the all-conference teams Tuesday, which are selected by the league's head coaches.

The Wildcats had five players earn first-team honors, three named to the second, and three players that received honorable mention honors.

Weber State senior offensive lineman Noah Atagi was a unanimous selection to the first team on the offensive side. It's his fourth time receiving first-team All-Big Sky honors. Atagi is the fourth Wildcat in history to earn first-team honors four times in a career, joining Scott Shields, Trevyn Smith, and Rashid Shaheed.

Atagi started every game for the Wildcats over the last three seasons and played in 56 games in his Wildcat career. He was also a team captain for the last three seasons.

On defense, Weber State had three players earn first-team honors, Winston Reid, Maxwell Anderson, and Jack Kelly.

Winston Reid earned first-team honors for the second-straight season as he helped anchor the Wildcat defense. Reid led the Big Sky and is 11th in the nation in tackles at 10.5 per game. He is sixth in the country in solo tackles and recorded 68 solo tackles, tied for the fifth-most in a season in WSU history. He also finished fifth in the conference in tackles for loss with 12, and had two forced fumbles, an interception return for a touchdown, and six pass breakups. He was named the National Player of the Week after the win over Idaho after a career-high 17 tackles.

He finished his career, which began in 2017, playing in 46 games at Weber State. He finished his career second in WSU history in career solo tackles with 170. He has 281 career total tackles with 28.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks. He also finished in a tie for first in school history with nine forced fumbles. Reid was a captain for the Wildcats the last two seasons.

Maxwell Anderson also earned first-team honors for the second-straight season and also served as a team captain this year. He finished third in the conference in passes defended and had 10 pass breakups with two interceptions. He also had a forced fumble and had two sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss.

WSU sophomore linebacker Jack Kelly earned All-Big Sky honors for the first time in his career after a strong season. He led the Big Sky and is third in the nation in sacks with 10.5, tied for the fourth-most in a season in WSU history. He also led the conference and is fifth in the country in forced fumbles with four, tied for the fifth-most ever in a season. He is fifth in the Big Sky in tackles for loss with 12 and also had two fumble recoveries and an interception, to go along with 56 total tackles. He twice earned Big Sky Player of the Week honors.

Wildcat junior kick returner Abraham Williams earned first-team honors for the second straight season. He ended the season ranked fifth in the country in kickoff return average at 29.7 yards per return. Williams had 10 returns for 1,433 yards and had a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown in the first game of the season.

He is Weber State's all-time leader in kick return average at 57.3 yards per return and has five career 100-yard kickoff return touchdowns.

Three Wildcats earned second-team honors in Hayden Meacham, Jordan Lutui, and Brayden Wilson.

Meacham earned All-Big Sky honors for the second time in his career as he had 18 receptions for 181 yards and two touchdowns as a tight end.

Jordan Lutui earned second-team honors for the second straight season as he started all 11 games for the Wildcats on the offensive line. Lutui finished his career playing in 49 career games over six seasons at Weber State.

Sophomore Brayden Wilson earned All-Big Sky honors for the first time in his career. He led the Big Sky and ranks 11th in the nation in tackles for loss with 16.5, which is the 10th-most in a season in school history. He also had 7.5 sacks on the year and was fourth in the team in total tackles with 52. He had three sacks in WSU's season-ending win at Cal Poly.

Three Wildcats also earned honorable mention All-Big Sky honors, Jack Burgess, Naseme Colvin, and Haze Hadley.

Burgess led the Big Sky and is second in the nation in punting. He had an average of 47.2 yards per punt, which is the second-best average in a season in Weber State history. He had 54 total punts and had a long punt of 70 yards and 20 punts of 50 or more yards. He also had 21 punts inside the 20-yard line.

Naseme Colvin earned All-Big Sky honors for the first time in his career. He started all 11 games for the Wildcats and was second on the team in tackles with 71 for an average of 6.5 per game. He also had one interception, a pass breakup, and a quarterback hurry.

Haze Hadley earned All-Big Sky honors for the second straight season. He is second in the Big Sky and 14th in the nation in punt returns at 11.3 yards per return. He had 23 punt returns on the season and had a long return of 71 yards in WSU's win over Idaho. Hadley played in 42 games in his Wildcat career over the last five years and finished his career second in WSU history in total punt return yards.

Weber State was under the direction of first-year head coach Mickey Mental.

The Wildcats won their final three games of the season, including a win over fourth-ranked Idaho.

2023 Weber State All-Big Sky Conference honors

FIRST TEAM

Maxwell Anderson	Defensive Back	Senior
Noah Atagi	Offensive Line	Senior
Jack Kelly	Linebacker	Sophomore
Winston Reid	Linebacker	Senior
Abraham Williams	Kick returner	Junior

SECOND TEAM

Jordan Lutui	Offensive Line	Senior
Hayden Meacham	Tight End	Senior
Brayden Wilson	Defensive Line	Sophomore

HONORABLE MENTION

Jack Burgess	Punter	Junior
Naseme Colvin	Defensive Back	Senior
Haze Hadley	Punt returner	Senior

Weber State University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Maxwell Anderson

Noah Atagi

Jack Burgess

Naseme Colvin

Haze Hadley

Jack Kelly

Jordan Lutui

Hayden Meacham

Winston Reid

Abraham Williams

Brayden Wilson

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