Adding more recognition to his list of season accomplishments, sophomore defensive end Greg Middleton can now say that he is an All-American. He received the honor from both The Sporting News and CBSSports.com. Middleton became only the fourth Hoosier in history to record double-digit sacks in a season, with 16, a number that ranked him as the nation’s leader in sacks.
Middleton's monster season garnered plenty of recognition.
These honors come after Middleton was named one of six finalists for the Ted Hendricks Defensive End of the Year Award, a prestigious honor despite the fact that he lost out to Virginia’s Chris Long. Middleton’s outstanding season also earned him a place in the record books. He owns the highest single-season sack mark in IU history and the fourth highest in Big Ten history.
While some have said that Middleton’s sacks came against the easy pre-conference schedule, the record shows differently. Middleton had 2.5 at Iowa, one against a Minnesota squad that had only allowed three in five games before facing IU, one against Michigan State, and two against both Wisconsin and Ball State before matching his season best 2.5 against Purdue. His 17 tackles for a loss ranked 17th nationally as well.
While the sacks were impressive, Middleton also showed his speed in another way early on in the season. In a Hoosier victory at Western Michigan, he scored his first career touchdown on a 44 yard fumble return, the first defensive touchdown of the year for IU.
Middleton’s outstanding season was a big part of the reason the Hoosiers made a bowl this year for the first time since 1993. The Hoosiers will take on Oklahoma State on Dec. 31 in the
Insight Bowl in Tempe, Arizona.
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