TROY, N.Y. - The Academic All-America® Division III football team, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), has been announced and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) student-athletes George Marinopoulos and Zac Montrief are among those who have earned the prestigious honor. Both were selected to the Second Team and become the 19th and 20th Academic All-America® honorees in program history.

A graduate student, Marinopoulos (Slingerlands, NY / Guilderland) is working toward a Master's in supply chain management after graduating in less than four years from the Lally School of Management. He had a 3.84 cumulative grade point average as a business and management undergraduate and currently has a 3.86 GPA as a grad student. He has experience in operations management with both Callanan Industries and the Target Corporation, with whom he has been offered a full-time position. Marinopoulos, a quarterback, is a member of the National Society of Leadership and Success who has earned multiple Dean's Honor List, Liberty League All-Academic and CoSIDA Academic All-District recognitions. He is also active on campus and within the community, volunteering throughout the Capital Region. 

A three-year starter, he has led the Engineers to a 21-8 record in his tenure and the team has played in the post-season every year, including a pair of NCAA Tournament berths. He has thrown for 5,900 yards and 51 touchdowns. Marinopoulos, a captain, holds the school's top two spots for single season completion percentage (64.5% in 2019, 64.2% in 2017) and has a career percentage of 60% (520 of 866). In the record-setting season of 2019, he connected on 232 of 361 passes for 2,356 yards in 11 games. He also had 23 touchdown passes that year, the most recent with competition for the Engineers due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Montrief (Sewanee, GA / Mountain View), a punter, has been All-Liberty League three times, including First Team in 2018 when he averaged 37.3 yards per attempt (61 punts for 2.275 yards). He had three touchbacks, 14 fair catches and 21 that landed inside the 20 yard line. He was also All-ECAC First Team and on the D3football.com All-Region Third Team that year, which saw Rensselaer go 10-2 and advance to the NCAA Quarterfinals. In 34 career games, Montrief has punted 164 times for 5,903 yards for an average of 36.0 yards per. He has had only five touchbacks, 49 fair catches and 56 kicks that landed inside the 20 yard line.

An aeronautical engineering major with a 3.43 GPA who is working toward a Master's in mechanical engineering, Montrief is an intern for MIT Lincoln Lab this summer. He also has experience with Optikos Corporation and has been involved in Rensselaer's Professional Leadership Program. A multiple Academic All-District honoree, he is involved with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Flight Club.

The Engineers, who are coached by Ralph Isernia, are scheduled to return to campus on August 11 with their first game set for Saturday, September 4 against Montclair State University at East Campus Stadium.