Dec. 14, 2015 DALLAS -- Baylor football had three players, junior nose tackle Andrew Billings (second team), junior wide receiver Corey Coleman (first team) and senior offensive tackle Spencer Drango (first team) named to the 2015 AutoNation FWAA All-America Team announced Monday by the Football Writers Association of America.
With Monday's selections, Baylor has now had at least one All-America on FWAA team in each of the last five years.
Baylor's three selections are the most for a single-season in program history. The two first-team picks for the Bears tie a program record as BU also had two first teamers in 1951 (Stanley Williams, E, and Larry Isbell, QB) and 1963 (Don Trull, QB, and Lawrence Elkins, E). This is just the third season in the modern era (post-1950) that the FWAA has named a second team.
It is the second consecutive season that Drango has been honored by the FWAA, after also being a first-team selection a year ago. Billings and Coleman earned their first career recognitions from the organization.
Drango was one of four offensive lineman and Coleman was one of two receivers on the first team, while Billings was one of three defensive lineman on the second team. Baylor is tied for the second-most first team selections in the country with top-ranked Clemson and Rose Bowl-bound Stanford.
With the trio's selection, Baylor has now had a total of eight FWAA selections in eight years under Art Briles. Baylor has a total of 22 FWAA selections (19 players) and 21 first-team honorees (18 players) in its history.
Coleman, an All-Big 12 first-team receiver, racked up historic numbers in his junior season. In starting all 12 games, he has 74 catches for 1,363 yards and won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation's top receiver last week. The Richardson, Texas, native leads the country in touchdown receptions (20) and is third in receiving yards per game (113.6). The junior's 20 TD grabs are currently ranked tied for third-most for in a single season in Big 12 history and ninth-most in NCAA history.
Coleman has also been named a first-team All-American by the Associated Press, Walter Camp, Sports Illustrated, ESPN.com, USA Today, CBS Sports and SportsOnEarth.
Drango is only the third back-to-back FWAA All-America selection in program history, joining Lawrence Elkins (1963 & '64) and Mike Singletary (1979 & '80).
In 2015, he was named the Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year and a unanimous All-Big 12 first team selection for a second-straight year. The senior Outland Trophy finalist led all BU blockers with a 90.3 percent coaches grade and 48 knockdowns as a starter in all 12 games. The Cedar Park, Texas, product blocks for an offense that leads the country in points (48.0) and yards (604.6) per game. Drango has helped Baylor's rushing attack rank fourth in the country with 300.2 yards per contest. He is also a key component in helping the Bears give up only 1.25 sacks per game, which ranks 19th-best nationally and leads the Big 12.
Drango has also earned first-team All-America honors from the Associated Press, Walter Camp, Sports Illustrated, ESPN.com, USA Today, CBS Sports and second-team recognition from SportsOnEarth.
Billings, the 2015 Big 12 co-Defensive Player of the Year and Defensive Lineman of the Year, was a unanimous first-team All-Big 12 selection. The Waco, Texas, product started in 11 games, after missing the Iowa State game due to injury. Billings leads the Bears with 15 tackles for loss, including a team-best 5.5 sacks. He has 38 tackles with 31 of those being solo stops. Billings' 1.27 TFL per game ranks fourth in the Big 12 and 34th in the country. He was a major reason for BU boasting the conference's second-best rush defense (156.3 ypg).
Billings has also been named a first-team All-American by the Associated Press, ESPN.com and SportsOnEarth and a second-team pick by USA Today and CBS Sports. He was honorable mention All-America by Sports Illustrated.
The FWAA All-America team is one of five teams recognized by the NCAA that a player must be on to earn unanimous All-American status. The other four teams, include the Associated Press, Sporting News, American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and Walter Camp teams.
Baylor finished the regular season at 9-3 and 6-3 in Big 12 play. BU will now play in the 2015 Russell Athletic Bowl against No. 10 North Carolina in Orlando, Fla., on Dec. 29. The Bears will be appearing in a bowl game for a sixth-straight season for the first time in program history. For more information, visit www.baylorbears.com/bowlcentral.
Keep up with the Bears all season long by following @BUFootball on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat.
BAYLOR FWAA ALL-AMERICANS
1951 - Stanley Williams, E (1st Team)
1951 - Larry Isbell, QB (1st Team)
1956 - Bill Glass, OG (1st Team)
1963 - Don Trull, QB (1st Team)
1963 - Lawrence Elkins, E (1st Team)
1964 - Lawrence Elkins, E (1st Team)
1972 - Roger Goree, DT (1st Team)
1974 - Aubrey Schulz, C (1st Team)
1976 - Gary Green, DB (1st Team)
1979 - Mike Singletary, LB (1st Team)
1980 - Mike Singletary, LB (1st Team)
1986 - Thomas Everett, FS (1st Team)
1991 - Santana Dotson, DT (1st Team)
2006 - Daniel Sepulveda, P (1st Team)
2008 - Jason Smith, OT (1st Team)
2011 - Robert Griffin III, QB (1st Team)
2012 - Terrance Williams, WR (1st Team)
2013 - Cyril Richardson, OG (1st Team)
2014 - Spencer Drango, OT (1st Team)
2015 - Corey Coleman, WR (1st Team)
2015 - Spencer Drango, OT (1st Team)
2015 - Andrew Billings, DT (2nd Team)