Valparaiso University football redshirt junior linebacker Max Samuel (Edina, Minn. / Edina) was named to the FCS Midseason All-America Second Team by College Football Now.
 
Samuel ranks fourth nationally in FCS with 1.06 sacks per game and second nationally in FCS with 2.13 tackles for loss per game.
 
Samuel's two sacks in the Oct. 24 win over Presbyterian lifted his season total to 8.5 to go along with 17.0 tackles for loss. He has recorded a sack in five straight games and seven of eight overall this season. His blocked kick against the Blue Hose was the fourth of his career and first since 2023.
 
With three games remaining, Samuel is on the brink of cracking the program record book for sacks in a single season. He has 8.5 sacks this season, needing just ½ sack to move into a tie for fifth. The program record of 13 was set by Franco Francese in 1999.
 
Samuel already ranks third in program history for tackles for loss in a single season. He has the most TFL by a Valpo player in a single season since Mike Gluszewski's program-record 21.0 in 1991. Joel Bales' 1986 total of 20.0 ranks second all time.
 
The Beacons (4-4, 3-2 Pioneer Football League) begin the stretch run with an important matchup at first-place Dayton on Saturday at 11 a.m. CT / noon ET. The game will air on YouTube.