D3football.com released its 2017 Preseason All-American Teams on Tuesday and Lake Forest College's Joey Valdivia was a First Team selection.
Valdivia, a tailback, enters his final season having rushed for 2,361 yards and a team record 38 touchdowns during his career. He was a Third Team All-American selection by D3football.com after breaking school records with 1,535 yards and a NCAA Division III-leading 29 rushing touchdowns in 2016. Valdivia has averaged 7.1 yards per carry during each of the last two seasons and a program record 6.9 yards per attempt for his career.
Valdivia scored in every game last season and ran for at least 100 yards in all but one contest. He surpassed 200 yards three times and is now 1,029 yards shy of becoming the Foresters' all-time leading rusher. He is also just eight points shy of the program record in that category as well.
In addition to his All-American honors in 2016, Valdivia was also named First Team All-West Region by D3football.com, First Team All-Midwest Conference, and Lake Forest's Most Valuable Player.
The Foresters finished 8-2 overall and tied-for-third in the MWC standings with a league mark of 6-2 a year ago. Valdivia will be one of seven starters returning on offense, a list that includes four members of the offensive line.