Two Football Players Named Capital One Academic All-America

(TOWSON, Md.) – Senior defensive lineman Andrew Medenbach (Muskegon, Mich./Mona Shores) and junior cornerback Sam Thompson (Alcoa, Tenn.) of the Carnegie Mellon University football team were named a Capital One Academic All-American by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Tuesday, December 6. Mendenbach and Thompson were both honored as second-team members.

Medenbach has a 3.56 GPA and is a biological sciences major.  He led the team with 4.5 sacks and was fourth in the University Athletic Association (UAA) in that category.  The senior also recovered two fumbles and totaled 36 tackles.  Against Catholic, Medenbach recorded career highs with seven tackles, including three solo. The senior is a two-time All-UAA Academic member and had made the dean's list with high honors three semesters.  He is member of the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) where he has received many academic honors – Military Excellence Medal, Academic Excellence Award and Academic Star Award. In 2011, Medenbach was the recipient of the Andrew Carnegie Society Scholarship.  The senior is also the co-founder and secretary of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes at Carnegie Mellon and recently was accepted to medical school.

Thompson is a mechanical engineering major with a 3.93 GPA.   He led the UAA with seven interceptions.  His seven takeaways tied a Tartan single-season record as well as tied him for second in Division III.  Four of Thompson's picks came in back-to-back UAA contests where he had two each against Washington and Chicago.   Against Catholic, he returned an interception 71 yards for a touchdown, marking the first score of his career.  He tied for the UAA lead with 12 passes defended with fellow teammate, Dan Miller.  Thompson is a two-time All-UAA Academic member and has made the dean's list for three semesters.   He is a member of the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) where he has been the #1 ranked Midshipmen in his class the past two years.  Thompson is also a co-founder of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes at Carnegie Mellon.

This marks the seventh straight year that Carnegie Mellon has had at least two or more student-athletes named Academic All-America.