CHARLOTTE – Gardner-Webb football had eight men selected to the 2019 All-Big South Conference teams on Monday afternoon, headlined by a pair of first-team standouts.

Receiver Izaiah Gathings (Statesville, N.C. / Statesville HS) and kick return specialist Devron Harper (Conyers, Ga. / Heritage HS) each earned first-team All-Big South honors, with Harper also the runner up for Big South Offensive Freshman of the Year.

Gathings, a 6-foot-4, 216-pound sophomore, dominated the league in 2019, catching 71 passes for 1,046 yards and 11 touchdowns. He led the league in four different categories overall and led the league with 103.3 yards per game against conference foes. Gathings caught a touchdown in seven consecutive games to end the season and set a new Big South mark with four-straight games with 10+ catches and 100+ yards.

A legitimate All-America candidate, Gathings ranks in the top-25 nationally in catches, yardage and touchdowns through the air.

One of the most electric freshmen in the country, Harper posted 1,600 all-purpose yards in 2019 and announced his arrival on the college football scene very early with a 99-yard touchdown return at Charlotte in August.

Harper finished with 928 combined return yards, which ranks third nationally, and caught 51 passes for 653 yards and four touchdowns at receiver. He is the first man in league history to catch two passes of 70 yards or longer – doing so when he caught a 70-yard touchdown and broke a school record with a 90-yard reception in the Homecoming win over Hampton.

A 5-foot-10, 170-pound speedster, Harper is a candidate for freshman All-America honors in the FCS ranks.

Gardner-Webb saw running back Jayln Cagle (Kannapolis, N.C. / A.L. Brown HS) and tight end A.J. Alexander (Burke, Va. / Lake Braddock HS) earn second-team All-Big South honors on the offensive side of the ball.

Nose guard Josh Ramseur (Kingstown, N.C. / Burns HS), linebacker Cade Hamilton (Forest City, N.C. / East Rutherford HS) and linebacker Darien Reynolds (Charlotte, N.C. / Vance HS) each earned second-team honors on defense.

Cagle enjoyed a career year, carrying for 934 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground. He finished sixth in the Big South with 1,169 all-purpose yards and had four 100-yard games. He finished his four-year career eighth in the school's rushing history with 2,065 yards.

Alexander was strong in his lone season as a graduate transfer, catching a career-high 16 passes for 155 yards and a score. The 6-foot-3, 255-pounder was also a powerful blocking force, playing a key role in Cagle's success on the ground. 

Ramseur returned to the All-Conference squad after missing last season with an injury, and was at his best in 2019. The 5-foot-11, 292-pound graduate student had a career-high 66 total tackles and 9.5 tackles for loss in his return. He posted double figures tackles in two different games, including a high of 11 hits in the season finale at No. 9 Kennesaw State.

Hamilton proved to be a major comeback story for Gardner-Webb, missing 13 quarters over the season's first four games due to injuries. He returned with a bang, leading Gardner-Webb to a key win at Western Carolina with nine stops and posting a career-high 19 total tackles in the win over Hampton one week later.

The 6-foot-1, 223-pound sophomore posted 87 total stops and ranked No. 4 in the Big South with 8.7 hits per game.

Reynolds led Gardner-Webb and ranked No. 7 nationally with 128 total tackles in 2019, nearly doubling his previous best season (75 hits in 2018). He is now a two-time All-Big South selection. The 6-0, 223-pounder has 225 career hits and made a season-high 13 total tackles five different times in 2019.

Cameron McCutcheon (Seneca, S.C. / Seneca HS) earned a spot on the Big South's All-Academic Team and is a strong student with a 3.33 cumulative GPA in biology. The 6-foot-3, 185-pound sophomore cornerback also had 54 total tackles and was a solid cover man in 11 starts this season.