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The recipients of the 2024 Big South-OVC Football Association All-Academic Team have been released. In addition, Southeast Missouri senior quarterback Paxton DeLaurent was named the Big South-OVC Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Each school nominated one individual, with at least a 3.0 GPA, for inclusion on the All-Academic Team. To be considered for Scholar-Athlete of the Year, which was voted on by the Association communications directors, the nominees had to have at least a 3.30 GPA.
Eastern Illinois quarterback
Pierce Holley was selected to the list after the senior quarterback finished the year joining several elite school and career lists. In his final game of the season Holley became just the fourth quarterback in school history to pass for 3,000 yards in a single season joining Sean Payton, Tony Romo and Jimmy Garoppolo on that list. Including his time at Georgetown, Holley also closed his career with more than 10,000 yards passing in his collegiate career. He earned his undergraduate degree at Georgetown and played the last two seasons as a graduate student pursuing an MBA at EIU with a 3.55 GPA
DeLaurent has a 3.951 grade point average in three years at Southeast Missouri, where he is majoring in physical education. This season DeLaurent was named a finalist for the FedEx Doris Robinson Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award.
2024 BIG SOUTH-OVC ALL ACADEMIC TEAM
Trayson Fowler, DB, Grad., Charleston Southern
Pierce Holley, QB, Grad., Eastern Illinois
Cole Hoskyns, TE, Sr., Gardner-Webb
Abe Haerr, TE, Jr., Lindenwood
Paxton DeLaurent, QB, Sr., Southeast Missouri
Eriq George, DL, So., Tennessee State
Tim Coutras, DB, Sr., Tennessee Tech
Tevin Shipp, LB, Grad., UT Martin
Ryan Merklinger, OL, Sr., Western Illinois
2024 Big South-OVC Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Paxton DeLaurent, Southeast Missouri
