Safety Deone Bucannon of Washington State was named Tuesday to the first team of the Associated Press All-America selections, Washington running back Bishop Sankey was on the second team and and tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins went third team.
Bucannon is the fourth Cougar in the last 13 seasons to make the AP first team (DB Lamont Thompson in 2001, DT Rien Long in 2002 and RB Jerome Harrison in 2005). Nine Cougars have made the annual elite list since 1930.
A 6-1, 215-pound senior, Bucannon led the Pac-12 with 109 tackles, ranked near the top of the league with five interceptions, forced three fumbles and made 4.5 tackles for loss.
Last week, Seferian-Jenkins earned the John Mackey Award, the honor given to college football’s best tight end. As a junior, Seferian-Jenkins caught 33 passes for 413 yards and seven touchdowns. Sankey was one of three finalists for the Doak Walker Award won by Boston College running back Andre Williams.
WSU (6-6, 4-5 Pac-12) kicks off the 35-game bowl season Saturday against Colorado State (7-6, 5-4 MWC), a team that earlier in the year lost to Pac-12 doormat Colorado, in the Gildan New Mexico Bowl. The Huskies (8-4, 5-4) play BYU (8-4) at San Francisco’s AT&T Park Dec. 27 in the Fight Hunger Bowl.