Jay Gaskins tackles a ball carrier during his senior season at Albany State.

Albany State University linebacker Jay Gaskins has been named to the 2011 Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Super Region Two football team and selected as the region’s Defensive Player of the Year. Gaskins helped the Rams to an 8-4 record and an appearance in the football playoffs.

The 6-2, 200-pound senior from Tiftob, who is also the SIAC Defensive Player of the Year, was the top vote-getter at the linebacker position. A key anchor of the Golden Rams’ “Dirty Blue” defense, Gaskins recorded 73 tackles (42 solo), with 17.5 for a loss of 75 yards in 12 games for the Rams. He led the team and the SIAC with 11 sacks and is ranked 20th in the nation in the category. He also had five pass breakups, three fumble recoveries for 67 yards, two quarterback hurries and a forced fumble.

Two other Golden Rams, running back Nathan Hoyte and defensive back Rashad McRae, were named to the second team. Hoyte, a  5-10, 195-pound junior from Waldorf, Md., rushed for 774 yards on 165 carries for seven touchdowns for the Golden Rams. He averaged 64.5 yards per game. A 5-10, 195 pound senior from Douglas, McRae was second on the team with 85 tackles (53 solo) with 10.5 tackles for losses. He also had nine pass breakups, five interceptions, three forced fumbles and a sack for the Rams. McRae joined Gaskins on the 2011 All-SIAC Football Team, while Hoyte was named to the second team.

Other SIAC players named to the second team were offensive lineman Marlon Jones and running back David Carter of Morehouse College; offensive lineman Jessie Mitchell, return specialist Keith Massey and linebacker JacQuan Persley of Kentucky State University; linebacker Cory Jones and safety Tyren Futch of Lane College; and defensive lineman Darel Strong of Clark Atlanta University.

Jonas Randolph, a senior running back at Mars Hill College, was selected as the region’s Offensive Player of the Year.

The team is sponsored by Daktronics, Inc., an acknowledged world leader in scoring, timing and programmable display systems for virtually every sport at every level of competition. The team is voted on by the NCAA Division II members of the College Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA), with the online nomination and voting process powered by ATHLETICSITE.COM.

Gaskins is the second straight former Tift County Blue Devil to be named Super Region Two Defensive Player of the Year. Last season, Valdosta State’s Larry Dean received the honor. Dean is now playing for the  Minnesota Vikings.