TROY, N.Y. – Rensselaer head football coach Joe King and his staff recently presented the team's awards for the 2009 season at the season-ending banquet, which was held at the Franklin Plaza in Troy. Highlighting the awards, which recognized nine student-athletes, were the Offensive and Defensive Most Valuable Player Awards, presented to offensive lineman Brian Hall and defensive back/return specialist Tim Acker, respectively.

Also receiving awards were Mike Grubbs (Special Teams Performer of the Year), Hall (Offensive Lineman of the Year), Mike Hermann (Offensive Rookie of the Year), Matthew Lauro (Defensive Rookie of the Year), Joe Stenz (Most Improved Offensive Player), David Schepperly (Most Improved Defensive Player), Acker (JYD Award) and Mike Fil & Joe Albano (Bode Coaches Award).

Hall (Penn Yan, NY/Pen Yan Academy), a senior, was an All-Liberty League Second Team selection, anchoring an offensive line that rushed for 155.0 yards per game. He started every game since arriving at RPI, including all nine this season and was a Liberty League All-Academic honoree.

A senior, Acker (Arlington, WA/Arlington) was second on the team with 69 tackles, including 44 solo stops and 2.5 for lost yardage. He also recorded one sack, forced a fumble and recovered another. The All-Liberty League First Team defensive back, also returned 10 kick-offs for 203 yards and four punts for 26 yards.

Grubbs (Hampton, NJ/North Hunterden), a sophomore, punted 50 times for 1,781 yards (35.6 average). He dropped 20% of his kicks (10) inside the opposition's 20-yard line and had a long of 61 yards.

A freshman quarterback, Hermann (Hardeeville, SC/Avon Old Farms) completed 51.2% (106 for 207) of his passes for 1,276 yards and nine touchdowns. He was also the team's second leading rusher, carrying the ball 94 times for 376 yards (4.0 yard/carry average) and a club-best six touchdowns.

Lauro (Longmeadow, MA/Avon Old Farms), a freshman defensive lineman, made 23 tackles, including 11 solo, and three for lost yardage (18). He also recorded two sacks, while playing in seven games.

Stenz (Gulfstream, FL/Cardinal Newman) played in seven games this season, including six as a starter on the offensive line. A sophomore, he helped the offense to 1,395 rushing and 1,461 passing yards on the year.

Schepperly (Hopewell Junction, NY/Carmel), a senior, played in all nine games for the Engineers at linebacker. He recorded 41 tackles, including 20 solo and 7.0 for lost yardage. He also had two sacks and team-best seven pass break-ups, while earning Liberty League All-Academic honors.

A senior, Fil (Sr., WR, Wynantskill, NY/Averill Park) played in all nine games at wide receiver. He totaled eight receptions for 186 yards, averaging 23.2 yards per catch. Fil also hauled in two touchdowns and returned a team-high eight punts for 15 yards.

Albano (Sr., DB, Dalton, MA/Wahconah Regional), also a senior, played in all nine games at defensive back and led the Engineers with 70 tackles, including 31 solo and 1.5 for lost yardage. He also led the club with four pass break-ups, while recovering a fumble and blocking a team-best two kicks. Albano was also awarded Liberty League Special Teams Performer of the Week once.

Rensselaer posted a 5-4 record in 2009, including a victory in the Transit Trophy game over WPI (42-33) for the 13th consecutive season.

Below is a list of the honorees:
Offensive Most Valuable Player: Brian Hall (Sr., OL, Penn Yan, NY/Penn Yan Academy)
Defensive Most Valuable Player: Tim Acker (Sr., DB, Arlington, WA/Arlington)
Special Teams Player of the Year: Mike Grubbs (So., P, Hampton, NJ/North Hunterden)
Offensive Lineman of the Year: Hall
Offensive Rookie of the Year: Mike Hermann (Fr., QB, Hardeeville, SC/Avon Old Farms)
Defensive Rookie of the Year: Matthew Lauro (Fr., DL, Longmeadow, MA/Avon Old Farms)
Offensive Most Improved Player: Joe Stenz (So., OL, Gulfstream, FL/Cardinal Newman)
Defensive Most Improved Player: David Schepperly (Sr., LB, Hopewell Junction, NY/Carmel)
George Bode Coaches Awards: Mike Fil (Sr., WR, Wynantskill, NY/Averill Park) & Joe Albano (Sr., DB, Dalton, MA/Wahconah Regional)
JYD Awards: Acker