LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – The UNLV football program saw five of its players earn spots on the 2023 Academic All‐District® Football Team, marking the first time more than four Rebels have made the prestigious team in the same season. 
 
Selected by the newly renamed organization College Sports Communicators (formerly CoSIDA), the list recognizes the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances on the field and in the classroom. To be eligible, players must hold at least a 3.50 cumulative grade point average in at least their second year and be a starter or key reserve for their teams.
 
Junior tight end Kaleo Ballungay (kah-LAY-oh BAL-in-guy) earned a spot on the team for the second straight year with a 3.56 GPA in management. The Tracy, California, native has appeared in every game and ranks third on the team with a career-high 16 receptions for 297 yards and two touchdowns.
 
Senior long snapper Walker Hardan (Bothell, WA) is also a repeat honoree with a 3.68 GPA in marketing. The team's full-time snapper is a four-time Dean's Honor List member and a three-time MW Scholar-Athlete.
 
Junior linebacker Jackson Woodard (Little Rock, AK) makes his debut on the Academic All-District team after joining UNLV and becoming a team leader on defense, earning First Team All-Mountain West. Boasting a 4.0 GPA in kinesiology, the team captain ranks fifth in the league with 113 total tackles.
 
All-America wide receiver Ricky White III makes his debut on the list as he earned a 3.51 GPA in human services. Sitting fourth in the nation with 1,386 yards on 81 receptions and seven touchdowns, White (Marietta, GA), who is also a team captain, set multiple school records on the field in this his junior season, including most receiving yards and consecutive 100-yard games with five.
 
Rounding out the Rebel contingent is senior defensive lineman Tatuo Martinson with a 3.53 in sociology. A former junior college transfer, Martinson (Loomis, CA) was a 2023 Mountain West Scholar-Athlete and became a starter on the field this fall, posting 29 total tackles and recovering a fumble.
 
White and Woodard are finalists who are part of the CSC Academic All-America® ballot. First- and second-team Academic All-America® honorees will be announced in January. The CSC Academic All-America® program separately recognizes football honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA.
 
2023 College Sports Communicators All-District Football Team

POS  PLAYER                    SCHOOL     YR      GPA          MAJOR
TE       Kaleo Ballungay       UNLV          Jr.        3.56          Management
LS       Walker Hardan         UNLV           Sr.       3.68          Marketing
DL       Tatuo Martinson       UNLV           Sr.       3.53          Sociology
WR      Ricky White III*        UNLV           Jr.       3.51          Human Services
LB       Jackson Woodard*   UNLV           Jr.       4.00          Kinesiology