Orange City, Iowa — Following an outstanding 2015 season that concluded with being named the GPAC Defensive Player of the Year, defensive end Sam Van Ginkel has been named a preseason All-American by the Sporting News.
Van Ginkel is one of just three Great Plains Athletic Conference players honored by the Sporting News, which selected 11 players on both offense and defense, along with two specialists for its preseason list.
The senior from Rock Valley earned multiple honors after the 2015 season, including the GPAC’s top defensive honor along with both NAIA and AFCA first team All-American accolades. Van Ginkel ranked seventh in the NAIA with 9.5 sacks and totaled 45 tackles last season. The three-year starter, now with 28.5 career sacks, is just a half a sack away from tying the GPAC record and 1.5 sacks shy of matching the Northwestern career sack record. Van Ginkel also forced two fumbles and blocked three kicks.
