HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – Alabama A&M football, and specifically senior quarterback Aqeel Glass (St. Louis, Mo.), continue to rack up the awards as the Bulldogs have earned six BoxToRow All-Americans, headlined by their 6-5 signal caller earning the first Player of the Year honor from that organization as announced on Thursday, April 29.
 
Already the program's first ever Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Player of the Year and a First-Team selection, Glass was chosen as the top player in Historically Black College and University (HBCU) football in addition to being a First-Team All-American.
 
He was joined on the First-Team by sophomore offensive lineman Jonathan Williams (Mobile, Ala.), sophomore wide receiver Abdul-Fatai Ibrahim (Miramar, Fla.) and junior defensive lineman Marcus Cushnie (Broward County, Fla.) while junior running back Gary Quarles (Cottondale, Ala.) and senior wide receiver Zabrian Moore (Tuscaloosa, Ala.) landed on the All-American Honorable Mention Team.
 
FIRST-TEAM
AQEEL GLASS
Glass has delivered a season that has seen him go go 67-of-113 for 1,084 yards passing and 13 touchdowns with just three interceptions in as many games. All three came in the first quarter of his first game in 468 days and none since.
 
One of 16 finalists for the prestigious Walter Payton Award as the nation's top FCS player, Glass has also been named SWAC Player of the Week on two occasions. On top of that, he picked up one of those awards on April 12 but immediately topped it with National Player of the Week recognition from Stats Perform FCS and BoxToRow.
 
Those honors came after a 52-43 victory at Jackson State (4/10), which came after 35 days without a game due to opponent COVID-19 protocols. In that one he put up NCAA Division I Era program records of 440 yards passing and six passing touchdowns and tacked on a seventh score on the ground. The 52 points were only the ninth time the team had hit the 50-point mark since moving to DI in 1998 and was the most against a DI opponent since 2008.
 
In addition to that incredible performance he also went 25-of-40 for 372 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions in a 38-14 rout of rival Alabama State (4/17) in the Magic City Classic and was 15-of-33 for 272 yards and four TDs and three picks in the season opener at South Carolina State (3/6).
 
In large part due to his performance, the Bulldogs have delivered the first undefeated regular season for the program since 1966, have won the SWAC East Division for the first time since 2011 and earned a spot in the league championship game. They also closed the regular season with back-to-back weeks in the FCS Coaches Poll where they currently sit at No. 22.
 
JONATHAN WILLIAMS
Helping to make all that offense possible, Williams has been part of an offensive line that has cleared the way for one of the most explosive offenses in the country, as is shown by 10 of their 11 Top-10 entries coming on that side of the ball in the NCAA National Stats.
 
Those include leading the nation in red zone offense (1.000) and fumbles lost (0), second in passing efficiency and (171.01) and yards per completion (16.18), fourth in sacks allowed (0.33), fifth in passing offense (361.3) and tackles for loss allowed (4.0), sixth in turnovers lost (3), seventh in scoring offense (40.3 ppg.) and ninth in total offense (479.3). For good measure they are also eighth in red zone defense (.667).
 
ABDUL-FATAI IBRAHIM
While Williams is one of the grinders making the engine go, Ibrahim is the shiny exterior that you see flash by you if you're a defensive back.
 
A player that opposing defenses have had to be aware of all season long, the former walk-on has compiled 277 yards on 18 catches (15.4 ypc) and three touchdowns. On the year he is averaging 92.3 yards per game.
 
He opened the season on the road with six grabs for 81 yards and a score in a 31-7 rout of South Carolina State and followed that up with five catches for 94 yards and two scores in that 52-43 shootout at Jackson State that aired live on ESPN. He then snagged seven balls for 102 yards against rival Alabama State under the bright lights of the Magic City Classic.
 
MARCUS CUSHNIE
A one-man wrecking crew, Cushnie has registered five sacks, eight total tackles (seven solo) and a quarterback hurry in helping to fuel one of the best seasons in program history for A&M.
 
After seeing their season opener postponed and then a game at S.C. State scheduled within a matter of days, the D-lineman, produced a pair of sacks and a QB hurry before notching a sack and three tackles, one for loss at Jackson State. He would follow that with two more sacks, two TFLs and a pair of tackles in a 38-14 victory over rival Alabama State in Birmingham.
 
HONORABLE MENTION
GARY QUARLES
Not to be out done on offense, Quarles has been a threat in both the run and pass attack for one of the most prolific offenses in the country.
 
In three games he has averaged 83.0 yards per game while toting the rock 53 times for 249 yards (4.7) and a pair of touchdowns. As a receiver he has five catches for 88 yards (17.6) with a long of 43 that went for a score at JSU. That game would also see him rush 16 times for 86 yards on national television.
 
He opened the season at South Carolina State with 21 carries and 92 yards along with a 38-yard grab. Most recently he found the endzone on a pair of occasions against rival ASU as he rushed 16 times for 71 yards.
 
ZABRIAN MOORE
Defining taking the lid off the defense, Moore has been one of the best wideouts in the nation as he has recorded eight catches for 252 yards for an incredible 31.5 yards per catch in his two games this season.
 
A impressive deep threat, he is always a threat to beat his man, as he did on a season-long grab of 61-yards, in stride for a score, in that 52-43 victory at JSU on his way to 114 yards on four catches.
 
In the de facto SWAC East Championship Game, and A&M's rivalry showdown with Alabama State, he caught four balls, half of those for touchdowns, and racked up 138 yards. Two of those catches went for 44- and 38-yards, respectively.
 
UP NEXT
No. 22 Alabama A&M returns to action as they look to close out Spring 2021 with another title as they face No. 25 Arkansas-Pine Bluff in the SWAC Championship Game on Saturday, May 1. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Jackson, Mississippi with live coverage on ESPN2.
 
SPRING 2021 BOXTOROW POSTSEASON HONORS
Player of the Year – Aqeel Glass, QB, Alabama A&M
Defensive Player of the Year – Jordan Lewis, Southern
Coach of the Year – Doc Gamble, Arkansas-Pine Bluff

SPRING 2021 BOXTOROW ALL-AMERICAN TEAMS
OFFENSE
QB: Aqeel Glass, Alabama A&M
RB: Ezra Gray, Alabama State
RB: Devon Starling, Tennessee State
OL: Mark Evans, II, Arkansas-Pine Bluff
OL: Danny Garza, Prairie View A&M
OL: Johnathan Bishop, Southern
OL: Jonathan Williams, Alabama A&M
OL: Trayvon Taylor, Alabama State
TE: Terrance Ellis, Alabama State
WR: Daylen Baldwin, Jackson State
WR: Abdul-Fatai Ibrahim, Alabama A&M
 
 
DEFENSE
DL: Jordan Lewis, Southern
DL: Marcus Cushnie, Alabama A&M
DL: Jason Dumas, Prairie View A&M
DL: Christian Clark, Alabama State
DL: Davoan Hawkins, Tennessee State
LB: Keonte Hampton, Jackson State
LB: Storey Jackson, Prairie View A&M
LB: Aubrey Miller, Jr., Jackson State
LB: Isaac Peppers, Arkansas-Pine Bluff
DB: Jalon Thigpen, Arkansas-Pine Bluff
DB: Decobie Durant, South Carolina State
DB: Naytron Culpeppper, Alabama State
DB: Irshaad Davis, Alabama State
DB: Jaylen Harris, Prairie View A&M
DB: De'Jahn Warren, Jackson State
 
SPECIALISTS
P: Cesar Barajas, Southern, Sr., Arcadia, Fla.
PK: Antonio Zita, Tennessee State, Jr., Fayetteville, Tenn.
RS: Tyrin Ralph, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, r-Sr., New Orleans, La.
 
HONORABLE MENTION
QB: Jalon Jones, Jackson State
RB: Tyson Alexander, Jackson State, Gary Quarles, Alabama A&M
OL: J'Atyre Carter, Southern, Cam Durley, Tennessee State, Tony Gray, Jackson State
TE: Jeremy Brown, Arkansas-Pine Bluff
WR: Zabrian Moore, Alabama A&M, Josh Wilkes, Arkansas-Pine Bluff
DL: Kendell Robinson, West Virginia State, Isaiah Williams, Delaware State
LB: Dustin Crouser, West Virginia State, BJ Davis, South Carolina State
DB: Chase Foster, Southern
P: Aubrey Grace, Alabama State
K: Cesar Barajas, Southern
PR: Warren Newman, Jackson State