GREENWOOD, Ind. -- Four Montana Tech football players earned spots on the 2025 College Sports Communicators Academic All-America team, CSC announced Tuesday morning. 

Graduate student Derek Pearse, seniors Levi Torgerson and Tel Arthur, and junior Casey Kautzman represented the Orediggers on the team, occupying four of the 25 spots on the roster. Montana Tech's four honorees were the most in the NAIA.

Arthur, a business major from Missoula, carried a 3.62 grade-point average while anchoring one of the top defensive units in the NAIA. The senior linebacker ranked seventh in the country with 105 tackles and added 7.5 tackles-for-loss and two sacks to his tally. He broke up three passes and forced a fumble as well.

Arthur, the Frontier Conference East Division defensive player of the year, was an All-America selection by the American Football Coaches Association, Victory Sports Network, and Walter Camp Football Foundation.

Kautzman, a civil engineering major from Butte, held a 3.67 GPA and excelled as the Orediggers' placekicker and punter in his first season with the program. The Montana State transfer ranked 29th in the NAIA with 88 points, and his 10 field goals were the 15th-most in the country. As a punter, the junior averaged 39.3 yards over 39 punts. His 22 punts inside the opponent's 20-yard line were sixth in the NAIA, and only three of his kicks resulted in touchbacks.

Kautzman was a first-team all-conference pick at kicker and a second-team honoree at punter.

Pearse, a general engineering student from Post Falls, Idaho, boasted a perfect 4.0 GPA in his graduate coursework. He finished his bachelor's in mechanical engineering last fall with a 3.91 GPA. The tight end wrapped up his career with 10 touchdown catches, the eighth-most in Montana Tech history.

In his senior campaign, Pearse was an honorable mention Victory Sports Network All-American and first-team All-Frontier East performer after catching 27 passes for 345 yards and four scores. Also an Academic All-American in 2024, Pearse was one of four repeat honorees on the 2025 NAIA list.

Torgerson, an exercise and health science major from Great Falls, worked toward a 3.58 GPA while posting one of the best all-purpose seasons in NAIA history. The senior wide receiver led the country in receptions (103) and receiving yards (1,370), and his 14 touchdowns ranked fifth in the NAIA. All three were program records, contributing to the 10 game, season, or career records Torgerson broke during the year. As a return specialist, Torgerson's 444 punt return yards led the NAIA, and he was 13th in the nation with 602 yards on kick returns. He took one of each back for a touchdown.

Torgerson was also a four-year member of the Montana Tech men's basketball team, helping the Orediggers to conference titles in each of those seasons. A consensus All-American, Torgerson was the Frontier East's player of the year.

All four student-athletes participated heavily in the program's ongoing community service initiatives, including volunteering at the Butte Furniture Bank, Walk to School with a Digger Day, and summer youth camps.

The honors come in the wake of one of Montana Tech's most successful football seasons in the 121-year history of the program. The Orediggers capped off a perfect 11-0 regular season and garnered the No. 3 seed in the NAIA's Football Championship Series, reaching the quarterfinal round before finishing the year with a 12-1 record.

Montana Tech's football program has seen seven players voted Academic All-Americans over the past two seasons, the most in the NAIA.

The Academic All-District and Academic All-America football teams, selected by College Sports Communicators, recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances on the court and in the classroom. Started in 1952, the CSC Academic All-America program separately recognizes honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, and NAIA. The NAIA CSC Academic All-America program is partially financially supported through the NAIA governance structure. Honorees are nominated and voted upon by athletics communications professionals at NAIA and CSC member institutions.

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