MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Rhodes lands an impressive seven student-athletes on the USA Football Network Pre-Season All-American list for the 2014 season.
 
Linebacker Michael Shield was named to the first team for defense. The junior had a stellar 2013 campaign, where he accounted for 43 solo and 48 assisted tackles for a season average of 9.1 tackles per game. The Kildeer, Ill. native also had three sacks for a loss of 17 yards. Shield grabbed four interceptions, a 2013 conference best, one of which he returned for a touchdown. Shield was named the Southern Athletic Association's Player of the Week on two different occasions last season.
 
Justin Toliver was named to the defensive Second Team as a defensive back for the Lynx.
Toliver accounted for 21 solo and seven assisted tackles in 2013. He averaged 3.1 tackles per game. The Canton, Ga. native also had three interceptions, the second best number in the SAA.
 
Senior Ben Primes and junior Patrick Knight were Third Team selections. Primes, an offensive pick for his work on the offensive line, was instrumental in leading the Lynx to their first conference championship in 18 years.
 
Knight was selected to the defensive team as a punter. Knight led the Lynx in punting, kicking 43 times for 1,773 yards. The Atlanta, Ga. native averaged 41.2 yards a punt and had a long punt of 60 yards. Knight kicked 16 punts inside the 20 yard mark last year for Rhodes.
 
Three strong offensive players were nabbed to the Honorable Mention list in Blake Box, Kevin Vieira and Jonathan Weiner for the 2014 season.
 
Box was at the helm of the Rhodes offense a year ago, where in his sophomore campaign, he threw 155 completions out of 250 attempts for a completion percentage of 62 percent. The Austin, Texas native threw for 1,896 total yards in 2013 for an average of 189.6 yards per game. Box was first in the league with 21 touchdowns and also had four rushing touchdowns. He also had 65 rushes for 299 yards with an average of 29.9 yards per game. Box was named the SAA Player of the Week on two separate occasions and led the Lynx to a conference championship behind his strong arm and smart play.
 
Vieira ran over his opponents in 2013 picking up 660 yards on just 152 rushes. The Brooklyn, N.Y. native averaged 66 yards per game and 4.3 yards per rush. Vieira picked up seven touchdowns this season for the Lynx and was named the SAA's Offensive Player of the Week for the week of Oct. 12.
 
Wiener had a breakout sophomore season with 33 receptions for 581 yards in 2013. The Woodstock, Ga. native averaged 17.6 yards per catch and 58.1 yards per game. Wiener had three touchdown receptions this season for the Lynx.
 
The Pre-Season All-American's and the rest of the Lynx will kick off the season on Sept. 6 at Austin College. Rhodes will open play at home on Sept. 13 in the Lynx first-ever night game at 6 p.m. against Washington University in St. Louis.