KATS HAVE 8 PLAYERS NAMED FIRST TEAM ALL-AF1; 3 MORE MAKE SECOND TEAM

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Eight Nashville Kats have been named to the Arena Football One (AF1) all-league first team, while three other Kats landed spots on the All-AF1 second team.

Named All-AF1 offense first team were quarterback Tyler Kulka, wide receiver Malik Honeycutt, fullback Desmond Maxwell, offensive lineman Derrick Zieger and kicker Kyle Kaplan. Kats named first-team all-defense were defensive back Omari Alexander and defensive linemen Jaquan Artis and Roderick Perry.

Named second-team All-AF1 were offensive lineman Payton Muljo, defensive lineman Pika Leota and defensive back Derrick Jones.

Individual and team honors for league players and coaches will be announced Friday at the annual AF1 Awards Banquet being held at Doubletree Hotel in downtown Clarksville. Also to be named will be various other team and administrative honors.

The Kats (12-1) will host the Albany Firebirds (10-3) in the Arena Crown championship game on Saturday at 3 p.m. at F&M Bank Arena. The No. 1 top-seeded Kats advanced to the title game with a 92-76 semifinal win Saturday over the visiting Michigan Arsenal.

The Kats swept the season series versus the Firebirds, winning at home 78-69 on June 20 and 57-54 on the road on July 11. The Nashville Kats closed the regular season by winning nine games in a row to claim the No. 1 seed in the upcoming Arena Football One (AF1) playoffs.

The Kats had four different players ranked first or tied for first during the regular season in several individual statistical categories. Plus, another five Kats finished in the top five in individual categories as well.

AF1 most valuable player candidate Kulka, a Lawrence Tech product, led the league in two categories -- total passing yards (2,835) and total offensive yards (2,817). The quarterback finished second in three categories – touchdown passes (56), passing yards per game (236.3) and offensive yards per game (234.8).

Honeycutt, a Murray State alum, led the league in two categories -- total receiving yards (1,047) and receiving yards per game (95.2). He was third in touchdowns (19) and fourth in points scored (114).

Maxwell, a Western Kentucky product, was first in AF1 in rushing touchdowns (12) and fifth in total rushing yards (121). Fullback Austin Collier was fourth in rushing TDs (4).

Kaplan, a Notre Dame College alum, was second in points scored (131) and fourth in points per game (10.9). He was the only kicker in the league to be ranked in the top five in either category.

Fellow receiver Kendyl Williams, also a Lawrence Tech alum, tied for the league lead in two categories -- points scored per game (12) and TDs per game (2). He was fourth in points scored per game (10.9).

Alexander, also a WKU alum, was tied for second in interceptions (7). He was named the AF1 Defensive Player of the Week in consecutive weeks to close the regular season.

Jones, a product of Ole Miss, was second in solo tackles (65), while Artis, a Lenoir-Rhyne product, was second in sacks (10).

For the regular season, the Kats finished 7-0 at home during the regular season with wins April 14 versus the Michigan Arsenal (78-40), April 27 over the Washington Wolfpack (45-3), May 9 against the Oregon Lightning (64-21), May 16 versus the Oceanside Bombers (63-49), June 13 versus the Minnesota Monsters (48-32), June 20 against the Albany Firebirds (78- 69) and June 27 versus the Beaumont Renegades (72-20).

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