CLEVELAND – The Mid-American Conference announced its 2017 Football Academic All-MAC team as a total of 144 students from the conference were named to the 2017 Academic All-MAC team.

Western Michigan had the second most selections in the league with 16, just behind Eastern Michigan with 18 honorees. Ohio was third with 14 recognitions.

Those honored from Western Michigan include: Lucas Bezerra, Mark Brooks, Mike Caliendo, Stefan Claiborne, Jaret Curtis, Ra'Sean Davie, Mitch Heimbuch, Luke Juriga, Spencer Kanz, John Keenoy, Nick Matich, Odell Miller, Derrick Mitchell, Zach Novoselsky, Giovanni Ricci and Jon Wassink.

WMU's Bezerra, Mitchell and Novoselsky were part of a group of 16 student-athletes from the conference that are earning Academic All-MAC status for the third time in their career. Juriga, Keenoy, Miller and Ricci are second-time selections.

All 16 Broncos will now be eligible to be voted as Distinguished Scholar-Athletes by the league's Faculty Athletic Representatives (FARs), an award which began in 2015. Distinguished Scholar-Athletes will be announced later this year.

The Academic All-MAC honor is for a student-athlete who has excelled in athletics and academics. To qualify, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA and have participated in at least 50 percent of the contests for that particular sport and are not of freshman or first-year transfer status. All student-athletes that meet this criteria earn Academic All-MAC honors, a change from in years past when only a select few were named Academic All-MAC but all eligible student-athletes were named honorable mentions. Voting for the Distinguished Scholar-Athlete team will follow the old criteria used to select Academic All-MAC.

Western Michigan (16):
+^Lucas Bezerra, Western Michigan, Senior, 3.73 GPA, Biomedical Sciences (Troy, Mich.)
Mark Brooks, Western Michigan, R-Freshman, 3.66 GPA, Pre-Integrated Supply Management (Portland, Mich.)
Mike Caliendo, Western Michigan, R-Freshman, 3.85 GPA, Biomedical Sciences (Brookfield, Wis.)
Stefan Claiborne, Western Michigan, Sophomore, 3.64 GPA, Pre-Business (Clinton Township, Mich.)
Jaret Curtis, Western Michigan, R-Freshman, 4.00 GPA, Political Science (Green Bay, Wis.)
Ra'Sean Davie, Western Michigan, R-Freshman, 3.23 GPA, Pre-Entrepreneurship (Indianapolis, Ind.)
Mitch Heimbuch, Western Michigan, R-Freshman, 3.29 GPA, Pre-Business (Romeo, Mich.)
+Luke Juriga, Western Michigan, Sophomore, 3.48 GPA, Pre-Manufacturing Engineering Tech. (Aurora, Ill.)
Spencer Kanz, Western Michigan, R-Freshman, 3.89 GPA, Pre-Finance (Luxemburg, Wis.)
+John Keenoy, Western Michigan, Junior, 3.77 GPA, Finance (Kentwood, Mich.)
Nick Matich, Western Michigan, Junior, 3.21 GPA, Sales & Business Marketing (Clarkson, Mich.)
+Odell Miller, Western Michigan, Junior, 3.58 GPA, Exercise Science (Kalamazoo, Mich.)
+^Derrick Mitchell, Western Michigan, Junior, 3.41 GPA, Finance (Paw Paw, Mich.)
+^Zach Novoselsky, Western Michigan, Junior, 3.62 GPA, Management (Lincolnshire, Ill.)
+Giovanni Ricci, Western Michigan, Sophomore, 3.42 GPA, Pre-Business (Loveland, Ohio)
Jon Wassink, Western Michigan, Sophomore, 4.00 GPA, Accountancy (Grand Rapids, Mich.)

+2016 Academic All-MAC selection
^2015 Academic All-MAC selection