Moon Township, Pa. – Senior forward
Kahliel Spear of the RMU men's basketball team was named to the 2021-22 Academic All-America® Second Team Tuesday, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
Spear is the first basketball student-athlete in RMU's NCAA Division I history, in either gender, to earn Academic All-America® status as well as the ninth male student-athlete in athletic department history. The selection of Spear to the 2021-22 Academic All-America® Men's Basketball Second Team also marks the fifth consecutive year that RMU has had at least one CoSIDA Academic All-American.
One of two Colonials to start each of RMU's 32 games during the 2021-22 season, Spear led the team in both scoring and rebounding, producing averages of 14.7 points and 7.7 rebounds per contest. An economics major and a native of The Colony, Texas, Spear has compiled a cumulative grade point (GPA) of 3.92. In addition to his honor from CoSIDA, Spear was also
named to the Horizon League All-Academic Team.
Spear converted 55.1 percent (188-for-341) of his shots from the field during the 2021-22 season, which leads the Horizon League. He also ranks fourth in the circuit in rebounding, fifth in blocks (1.09 per game), 10th in scoring and 13th in free-throw percentage (.726) as the 2022 NCAA Tournament commences tonight in Dayton, Ohio. For his efforts throughout his second season with the Colonials, Spear
earned a spot on the 2022 #HLMBB Third Team.
RELATED: CoSIDA 2021-22 Men's Basketball Academic All-America® Teams
In the RMU single-season record book, Spear's 35 rejections during the 2021-22 campaign is tied for third with former forward Rob Robinson (2008-10), who posted 35 blocks during the 2008-09 campaign. In two seasons with the Colonials, Spear owns 58 blocks and has converted 55 percent (258-for-469) of his shots from the field, which ranks fourth all-time in the career record book.
Spear concluded the 2021-22 season by reaching double figures in scoring in each of RMU's final 11 games, the longest streak of his career. During that span he averaged 17.4 points and 8.5 rebounds while converting 59.2 percent (74-for-125) of his shots from the field and 73.1 percent (38-for-52) at the free-throw line. Included in that stretch was a career-high 27 points and seven rebounds in a 73-68 win @ Youngstown State (2/13/22).
Overall in RMU athletic department history, a total of 15 student-athletes have been named to a CoSIDA Academic All-America® team dating back to 2004, including four that were honored on multiple occasions. For more information on the CoSIDA Academic All-America® program, please visit
AcademicAllAmerica.com.
CoSIDA Academic All-America® First Team (6)
| Name |
Year(s) |
Sport |
| Annie Dubovec |
2011 |
Softball |
| Nick Faraci |
2015 |
Football |
| Ray Gensler |
2006 |
Football |
| Jonathan LeDonne |
2004 |
Football |
| Nolan Nearhoof |
2012 |
Football |
| Adam Wollet |
2018 |
Football |
CoSIDA Academic All-America® Second Team (10)
| Name |
Year(s) |
Sport |
| Brad Banas |
2012 |
Football |
| Whitney Brown |
2019 |
Volleyball |
| Nick Faraci |
2014 |
Football |
| Jaycee Gebhard * |
2020 |
Ice Hockey |
| Ray Gensler |
2005 |
Football |
| Amanda Graham |
2010 |
Volleyball |
| Christian Lemke |
2004 |
Track & Field |
| Nolan Nearhoof |
2010, 2011 |
Football |
| Kahliel Spear |
2022 |
Basketball |
| Adam Wollet |
2017 |
Football |
CoSIDA Academic All-America® Third Team (3)
| Name |
Year(s) |
Sport |
| Emilie Harley * |
2021 |
Ice Hockey |
| Zac Lynch * |
2014 |
Ice Hockey |
| Lexi Templeman * |
2021 |
Ice Hockey |
* At-large program
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