Kansas State senior right tackle Dalton Risner, the 2018 Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year, led five Wildcats that were named to the Coaches’ All-Big 12 teams, the conference office announced Wednesday.
Risner was a first-team recipient for a third-straight season, while running back Alex Barnes and defensive back Duke Shelley were named to the second team. Punter Devin Anctil and defensive end Kyle Ball were both honorable mention selections. Shelley earned his second All-Big 12 honor from the league’s coaches as he was an honorable mention last year, while Barnes, Anctil and Ball picked up their first-career accolades.
A product of Wiggins, Colorado, Wiggins is the second Wildcat to earn Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year honors, the first being B.J. Finney in 2014. He was joined as an Offensive Lineman of the Year in 2018 by Oklahoma’s Dru Samia and West Virginia’s Yodny Cajuste.
Risner is the fourth offensive lineman in conference history to earn First Team All-Big 12 accolades in three-straight seasons, while he is the fourth player in school history to accomplish the feat, joining defensive tackle Will Geary (2015-17), Finney (2012-14) and linebacker Mark Simoneau (1997-99).
Risner led an offensive unit that finished third in the Big 12 by averaging 182.6 rushing yards per game, which included a 184.2-yard average in conference games to rank second. The Wildcat rushing attack averaged 208.6 yards and 2.3 rushing touchdowns per game in the final seven contests after averaging 146.2 yards and 0.8 rushing touchdowns in the first five.
A majority of that rushing yardage went to Barnes, the Big 12’s regular-season rushing champion at 112.9 yards per game with a league-high tying 12 touchdowns. The Pittsburg, Kansas, native was even better in conference play as he averaged 125.2 yards per game with 11 scores.
Barnes’ season rushing total of 1,355 yards ranked fourth in school history and seventh nationally at the end of the regular season. He topped the 100-yard rushing mark on seven occasions to tie for third in school history. His impressive junior campaign improved his career rushing total to 2,616 yards to rank fifth in K-State history, while his 12 career 100-yard games is tied for second.
Shelley concluded his senior campaign with a team-high three interceptions despite missing the final five games of the season due to injury. His interception total included two against Oklahoma State, while he had one the previous week at Baylor. The Tucker, Georgia, native finished his career with eight interceptions – just outside the school’s top-10 list – while his 39 career passes defended ranked seventh. He also had two pick-sixes in his career to tie for fourth in school history.
Anctil had a great finish to the season as he punted the final six games, averaging 43.6 yards per punt with 10 landing inside the opponent’s 20-yard line and six that traveled at least 50 yards. His average would lead the Big 12 if he met the required minimum amount of games played. His six punts of at least 50 yards are the most by a Wildcat since 2013, while his five punts downed inside the TCU 20-yard line were the most by a Wildcat in a single game since 2014.
Ball completed the 2018 season with 16 tackles, including 4.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks, while he also batted away two passes. The Prairie Village, Kansas, product carded a season-high seven tackles at Oklahoma, while his sacks came against UTSA and Oklahoma State.
