Valparaiso University football redshirt freshman return specialist Ryan Ricketti (Rocky River, Ohio / Rocky River) joined elite company on Wednesday as he was named a First Team FCS All-American by Pro Football & Sports Network (PFSN). Also on Wednesday, Ricketti and redshirt freshman linebacker Anthony Feltrinelli (Westfield, Ind. / Westfield) added to their growing list of honors as they were named Freshman All-Americans by Stats Perform FCS.
 
Valpo boasts an overall All-American for the second straight year after punter Sam Johnson was selected to the Stats Perform All-America Second Team last season. Ricketti and Johnson are the only Valpo All-Americans since 2003. Ricketti becomes the first Valpo player to be named a First Team All-American since Eric Kenesnie in 1999.
 
The Beacons were one of just seven teams nationally in FCS to have two selections on the Stats Perform FCS Freshman All-America Team, joining Houston Christian, Mercer, Northern Arizona, Tarleton State, UTRGV and Villanova.
 
In addition, PFSN announced its all-conference squads for the Pioneer Football League on Wednesday. Ricketti and redshirt sophomore defensive back Nic Lendino (Naperville, Ill. / Neuqua Valley) were named to the First Team, while redshirt junior offensive lineman Niko Paic (Crown Point, Ind. / Crown Point) earned Second Team honors and Isaiah Fowler (Gary, Ind. / Chesterton) received a Third Team nod.
 
Also named a Freshman All-American by FCS Football Central, Ricketti earned First Team All-PFL honors as a return specialist and was named to the Academic All-PFL First Team as well.  Ricketti, who was one of only two freshmen in the league to receive First Team All-PFL honors and the first Valpo rookie to do so since Spring 2021, finished the season with 711 kick return yards on 25 returns, an average of 28.44 yards per return that ranked seventh nationally. He was the only player in the FCS nation with two 100-yard kickoff return touchdowns in 2025. He had 198 kickoff return yards in a single game vs. San Diego, the most in a single game by any FCS player nationally this season.
 
Ricketti ranked fourth in the FCS nation in total kickoff return yards with 711 and seventh nationally in combined kick return yards with 729. He was named the PFL Special Teams Player of the Week on Nov. 8 and was a nominee for national Freshman of the Week and named Honorable Mention STATS Perform FCS Special Teams Player of the Week following Week 3 at Western Illinois, when he had his first of two 100-yard kick return touchdowns. 


 
An All-PFL Honorable Mention choice and a Freshman All-American by FCS Football Central, Feltrinelli finished with 102 tackles on the season, the second-most in the PFL. He had 8.5 tackles for loss as a linebacker, tied for the 13th most overall in the league. Feltrinelli had two fumble recoveries, one of 11 players in the league with multiple. He posted double-figure tackle totals on four occasions including 14 vs. Adrian. Feltrinelli had nine tackles or more in each of his final four games of the season and finished in the top 50 nationally in tackles with 102.