Whale Branch's Delaney, HHCA's Weaver named All-SoCon for The Citadel

The Citadel football team is having a stellar season. The 18th-ranked Bulldogs, co-Southern Conference champions, are 8-3 and headed into an NCAA FCS playoff game this weekend.

And on Saturday, The Citadel beat South Carolina 23-22 in Columbia, the school's first win over the FBS Gamecocks since the Bulldogs stunned them in 1990.

Now two local players who played a big part in The Citadel's success this season -- Whale Branch's Dee Delaney and Hilton Head Christian Academy's Kyle Weaver -- have earned All-Southern Conference honors as a result of their contributions.

Delaney, a sophomore defensive back, was named to the first team by the coaches and the media. He leads the Southern Conference with five interceptions and 13 passes defended.

A winner of a SoCon Player of the Week award and the SoCon Player of the Month award for September, he has 41 tackles, eight pass breakups, two forced fumbles a fumble recovery and a blocked kick.

Delaney's seven career interceptions are ninth on The Citadel's all-time list.

Weaver, voted to the second team by the coaches and the media, has blocked all season for one of the nation's best offenses. The Bulldogs are second in the country with 344.3 rushing yards per game, and Weaver is a big reason.

The Citadel is third with 37 rushing touchdowns and fourth with an average of 5.76 yards per carry. Weaver has started every game this season, a part of his 23 consecutive starts.

Weaver, a junior, has already been honored this month, named CoSIDA first-team Academic All-District. The business administration major with a concentration in supply chain management has a 3.58 GPA and will be included on the Academic All-America team.

The Citadel opens the NCAA playoffs at 2 p.m. Saturday at Coastal Carolina. The game will be available on ESPN3.

This story was originally published November 24, 2015 at 7:06 PM with the headline "Whale Branch's Delaney, HHCA's Weaver named All-SoCon for The Citadel."