UNH’s Silver adds preseason honor

DURHAM – Rising sophomore defensive end Josiah Silver (Hampton, Va.) of the University of New Hampshire football team was named to the 2022 Athlon Sports FCS Preseason All-America Team, which was relased Monday.

Silver, who was named to the Associated Press FCS All-America Second Team as a freshman, was also a Stats Perform and Phil Steele Third Team All-America selection in his freshman campaign with the Wildcats.

Silver was selected as CAA Defensive Rookie of the Year in addition to being named to the All-Conference First Team. He was also named one of 23 finalists for the Jerry Rice Award for the National Freshman of the Year Award and was an NEFWA All-New England Team honoree.

Silver amassed 80 tackles (42 solo), 20.5 TFL (88 yards), 12.5 sacks, six forced fumbles and one fumble recovery in 11 games. With those stats, Silver led UNH in solo tackles, assisted tackles, total tackles, tackles for loss, sacks and forced fumbles.

Silver’s 12.5 sacks led the CAA and ranked fourth among all FCS players. His six forced fumbles also led the CAA and tied for second in the FCS.

Silver finished the season strong by recording 9+ tackles each of the last five games. His totals down the stretch included 50 tackles (27 solo), 13.0 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, and five forced fumbles.

He was named CAA Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 15 following a game-high 11 tackles, career-best of 5.0 TFL’s and 4.0 sacks, and two forced fumbles at the University of Rhode Island on Nov. 13. One week later, Silver finished the 2021 season with a career-high 12 tackles, which included three tackles for loss and two sacks, as well as a forced fumble against the University of Maine.