Iowa State football: Jeremiah George, E.J. Bibbs make AP All-Big 12 team

Nov 30, 2013; Morgantown, WV, USA; Iowa State Cyclones linebacker Jeremiah George (52) dives to tackle West Virginia Mountaineers running back Dreamius Smith (2) during the second quarter at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Two Iowa State football players were awarded with their outstanding seasons making the Associated Press All-Big 12 Team.

Cyclones tight end E.J. Bibbs made the second-team offense and linebacker Jeremiah George made the first-team defense. Bibbs was beat out by Jace Amaro from Texas Tech on the first-team, which was a unanimous selection. Other linebackers that joined George were Eddie Lackey from Baylor, Caleb Lavey from Oklahoma State, and Will Smith from Texas Tech.

Bibbs, who was a junior this season, played in all 12 ISU games. He finished second on the team in receiving with 38.5 yards per game. He had a total of 39 catches for 462 yards and two touchdowns. While he wasn’t getting touchdowns late in the season, he still became a factor on offense.

Nov 30, 2013; Morgantown, WV, USA; Iowa State Cyclones tight end E.J. Bibbs (11) runs past West Virginia Mountaineers linebacker Isaiah Bruce (31) with the ball during the second half at Milan Puskar Stadium. Iowa State Cyclones defeated West Virginia Mountaineers 52-44 in the third overtime. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Three of Bibbs’ highest yard game totals came in the final four games; he had 63 yards on seven catches against TCU, 71 yards on two catches against Kansas, and a season-high 75 yards on three catches against West Virginia.

Obviously, you can’t say enough about George on defense. He led the Cyclones in tackles and finished fifth nationally with 133 total tackles (83 solo). That’s an average of 11.08 tackles per game. 12 of those tackles came as a loss for the other team, and he also had 3.5 sacks.

George also broke up six passes, forced three fumbles, and picked the ball off twice on the season. He never gave up on defense when the unit struggled in the middle of the season, and he could be looked upon as a leader and likely one of the reasons the unit got better over time.