By Stampeders.com staff

Seven members of the Calgary Stampeders have been voted to the 2014 West Division all-star team.

The group consists of running back Jon Cornish, offensive linemen Stanley Bryant and Brett Jones, defensive backs Fred Bennett, Jamar Wall and Brandon Smith and punter Rob Maver.

It’s the fourth division all-star nod for Cornish, the third for Maver and the second for both Bryant and Jones. Bennett, Wall and Smith are all first-time honourees.

All-stars are determined through a vote by the Football Reporters of Canada and CFL head coaches.

Here is a closer look at Calgary’s all-stars:

Jon Cornish (running back): Despite playing just nine games, Cornish won his third consecutive league rushing title. He had 1,082 yards on 139 rushes, an average of 7.8 yards per carry. Cornish cracked the 100-yard mark in six of his nine games and has surpassed the 150-yard mark on four occasions including a season-high 174 yards against Toronto on Sept. 13. In nine games (with three of those being partial games) he has averaged 120.2 yards per contest. By comparison, when Mike Pringle set the CFL single-season rushing record in 1998, he averaged 114.7 yards per game. Cornish had five rushing touchdowns this season as well as 18 receptions for 133 yards and one score. He is the Stampeders’ nominee for the Most Outstanding Player and Most Outstanding Canadian awards. He received eight CFL player of the week awards in 2014 — offensive player of the week five times and top Canadian on three occasions — and was the league’s offensive player and Canadian of the month for September. Cornish won the rushing title in the fewest games since the CFL adopted an 18-game schedule in 1986 and joined Johnny Bright (three in a row from 1957-59), George Reed (five straight from 1965-69) and Pringle (four in a row from 1997-2000) as the only CFLers to win at least three straight rushing titles.

Stanley Bryant (offensive tackle) and Brett Jones (centre): Bryant and Jones were two of the pillars of an offensive line that helped Cornish win the rushing title and allowed Calgary to lead the CFL with an average of 143.9 rushing yards per game. The Stamps’ o-line also allowed just 26 sacks, a league low. While injuries forced some shuffling elsewhere on the line, the two Calgary all-star were reliable presences as Bryant played every game but the season-opener while Jones, who is Calgary’s nominee for the Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman award, suited up for all 18 contests.

Fred Bennett (cornerback): Bennett started all 18 games at cornerback and registered 44 tackles, including two tackles for a loss, three pass knockdowns, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and four interceptions for 14 yards.

Jamar Wall (halfback): Wall started all 18 games at halfback and shared the league lead in interceptions with six. He returned the picks a total of 130 yards including his first career pick-six — a 50-yarder against Saskatchewan on Oct. 24. Wall also had 62 tackles, including a tackle for a loss of three yards, five knockdowns — which tied him for the best total on the Stamps — and two special-teams tackles.

Brandon Smith (halfback): The veteran defensive back completed the Stampeders’ sweep of the two halfback positions on the all-star roster. Smith played all 18 games and finished first on the Stampeders and third in the CFL with 85 tackles. He had three tackles for loss, one pass knockdown, three forced fumbles, two special-teams tackles and two interceptions that he returned for a total of 26 yards. Smith had a season high of 10 tackles on Sept. 13 against Toronto and recorded at least five tackles in seven games. 

Rob Maver (punter): Maver averaged 45.4 yards on his 123 punts and he ranked second in the all-important category of net punting with an average of 37.8 yards. On June 28 against the Montreal Alouettes, Maver launched the longest punt of his career, an 88-yarder. He was second in the CFL with 38 punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line and he had 10 punts inside the 10. Maver is Calgary’s nominee for the CFL’s Most Outstanding Special Teams Player award.