NEW ORLEANS ? Led by first team selections Cardia
Jackson and Zeek Zacharie, seven ULM players were named to the All-Sun Belt Team, the league announced Tuesday.
Defensive end Aaron Morgan, offensive lineman
Larry Shappley and defensive back Josh Thompson were named to the second team,
while quarterback Kinsmon Lancaster and wide receiver Anthony McCall were
honorable mention selections.
The all-conference team is voted on by the
eight Sun Belt head coaches and a media representative from each school.
"This is a great honor for these players and I am very proud of all of them ," ULM head coach Charlie Weatherbie said. "This is a good league with very talented players and to make it on the all-conference team is an outstanding accomplishment. The individual players are only as good as their teammates and those teammates should take pride in these awards as well."
Jackson
terrorized opposing offenses to finish the season with 127 tackles. The linebacker's 10.6 tackles per game ranks eighth in the NCAA and second in the Sun Belt Conference. Also, it is
the most tackles by a Warhawk since Chris Harris recorded the same number in
2002 and no player has recorded more tackles since Brian Taylor's 144 in 1998.
The
Monroe, La., native also had a pair of interceptions and recovered a pair of
fumbles. Jackson finished second on the team with 4.0 sacks and 8.0 tackles for
loss. He recorded 14 solo tackles at Tulane, which is the fourth most in school
history. His 18 total tackles at Ole Miss were the second most in the Sun Belt
this season.
After
two consecutive second team honors, Zacharie earned his way on the first team
this season after finishing the year ranked first in receptions, second in
yards and second in touchdowns among Sun Belt tight ends. He finished his ULM career
ranked 10th all-time in career touchdown receptions with 12 and 10th
in career receptions with 112.
His
46 catches and 510 yards receiving this year were both second best on the ULM
team. The Cade, La., native caught all four of his touchdown passes during Sun
Belt play, while 30 of his 46 receptions came against conference foes.
Morgan had a breakout season recording a
team-high 6.0 sacks, which was the most by a Warhawk player since 2005 and
second most in nine seasons. The Amite, La., native's sack total ranked third
in the Sun Belt and his 13.0 tackles for loss ranked sixth in the league.
Shappley
started
45 of a possible 47 games in his career ? missing two to injury ? and finished his career with 24 consecutive
starts at right tackle. The West Monroe, La., native was a veteran leader on a
young offensive line this year and graded out at over 86 percent for the season
with 41 knockdowns. During his career,
Shappley helped pave the way for two-time Sun Belt rushing champion Calvin
Dawson.
His best game of the
season came in the Warhawks thrilling 31-30 upset of conference champion
Troy. Shappley graded out at 97 percent in the
game as the Warhawks became the only conference team to defeat the league champion for the second straight season ? ULM handed Florida Atlantic its only
Sun Belt loss of the season in 2007.
Thompson
joined Jackson in the century club this past season to make the pair the first
Warhawk duo since Harris and Carlos Hughes in 2002 to record over 100 tackles
in the same season. The Lafayette, La., native's 108 tackles were the most by a
defensive back in the conference this season.
He
ranked second in the Sun Belt with eight pass breakups and had the most tackles
in the league with his 20 against North Texas.
Lancaster
will go down as one of the most prolific signal callers in ULM history. He is ranked
in the top five of five single-season and career records.
The
Shreveport, La., native threw 18 touchdown passes this past season, the second most in the
Sun Belt. His 18 scoring strikes are the most since Raymond Philyaw
threw 22 in 1995 and ties him with Super Bowl quarterback Stan Humphries for
the fourth most in school history. He also cracked the top 10 in pass
completions in 2008 with 186.
Lancaster
attempted a remarkable 173 consecutive passes over a seven-game period without
an interception setting the ULM record in the process. His streak ranked second
best in the nation at the time.
He
finishes his career ranked fourth in completions (509), fourth in touchdown
passes (38), fifth in pass attempts (881) and fifth in passing yards
(5,769).
What
made Lancaster an even more remarkable quarterback, was his ability to run the
football. He finishes his career with 1,557 rushing yards, a mere 22 outside
the ULM all-time top 10 and the most by a quarterback in school history. His
74-yard run at Middle Tennessee this year was the 13th longest in
school history.
One
of Lancaster's favorite targets was McCall. The Montgomery, Ala., native caught
a ULM freshman record six touchdown passes. McCall is tied
for ninth nation?ally among freshman wide receivers in the NCAA with his six
touchdowns.
He led the Warhawks
in touchdown receptions and was second on team among wide receivers in catches
and yards. McCall jumped into the spotlight with his six catches for 125 yards
and two touchdowns against Arkansas in the second week of the season.
2008 Sun Belt All-Conference Team
Player of the Year
Tyrell Fenroy (ULL, Sr., RB #32)
Offensive Player of the Year
Michael Desormeaux (ULL, Sr., QB, #6)
Defensive Player of the Year
Alex Carrington (ASU, Jr., DE, #98)
Newcomer of the Year
Levi Brown (Troy, Jr., QB, #12)
Freshman of the Year
T.Y. Hilton (FIU, Fr., WR/KR/PR, #4)
Coach of the Year
Larry Blakeney (Troy)
First Team All-Conference Offense
Michael Desormeaux (ULL, Sr., QB, #6)
Reggie Arnold (ASU, Jr., RB, #2)
Tyrell Fenroy (ULL, Sr., RB #32)
Casey Fitzgerald (North Texas, Sr., WR, #87)
Jerrel Jernigan (Troy, So., WR, #3)
Zeek Zacharie (ULM, Sr., TE, #15)
Matt Mandich (ASU, Sr., OL, #63)
Brad Bustle (ULL, Jr., OL #75)
Chris Fisher (ULL, Jr., OL #79)
Chris Jamison (Troy, Sr., OT, #65)
Dion Small (Troy, Sr., OT, #74)
First Team All-Conference Defense
Alex Carrington (ASU, Jr., DE, #98)
Jervonte Jackson (FAU, R-Sr, DL, #92)
Brandon Lang (Troy, Jr., DE, #91)
Cameron Sheffield (Troy, Jr., DE, #90)
Frantz Joseph (FAU, R-Sr., LB, #56)
Cardia Jackson (ULM, Jr., LB, #51)
Boris Lee (Troy, Jr., LB, #2)
Corey Small (FAU, R-Sr., DB, #26)
Anthony Gaitor (FIU, SO., DB, #7)
Terence Moore (Troy, Sr., DB, #20)
Sherrod Martin (Troy, Sr., DB, #6)
First Team All-Conference Specialists
Josh Arauco (ASU, Jr., K, #89)
Truman Spencer (North Texas, Sr., P, #25)
T.Y. Hilton (FIU, Fr., Return Specialist, #4)
T.Y. Hilton (FIU, Fr., All Purpose, #4)
Second Team All-Conference Offense
Corey Leonard (ASU, Jr., QB, #1)
Charles Pierre (FAU, R-Sr., RB, #20)
DuJuan Harris (Troy, So., RB, #32)
T.Y. Hilton (FIU, FR., WR, #4)
Jason Chery (ULL, Sr., WR, #5)
David Johnson (ASU, Sr., TE, #85)
Jamari Grant (FAU, R-Jr, TE, #87)
Mark Clemons (ASU, Sr., OL, #64)
Nick Paris (FAU, R-Sr, C, #68)
John Rizzo (FAU, Sr, RT, #71)
Brad Serini (FIU, SO., C, #76)
Larry Shappley (ULM, Sr., OL, #76)
Second Team All-Conference Defense
Quentin Newman (FIU, SR., DE, #54)
Trevor Jenkins (MT, Sr., DT, #97)
Aaron Morgan (ULM, Jr., DE, #9)
Dion Gales (Troy, Sr., DT, #98)
Ben Owens (ASU, Sr., LB, #40)
Bear Woods (Troy, Jr., LB, #48)
Tobe Nwigwe (North Texas, Jr., LB, #44)
Derik Keyes (ULL, Sr., DB, #20)
Josh Thompson (ULM, Jr., DB, #28)
Jeremy Kellem (MT, So., S, #20)
Tavares Williams (Troy, Sr., DB, #15)
Second Team All-Conference Specialists
Sam Glusman (Troy, Jr., PK, #38)
Carlos Munera (FIU, JR., P, #34)
Kevin Jones (ASU, Sr., Return Specialist, #6)
Jason Chery (ULL, Sr., All Purpose #5)
Honorable Mention Selections:
J.T. Jordan (ASU, Jr.,
TE, #87), Dominique Williams (ASU, Sr., CB, #8), Scott Bryant (FIU, JR., LB,
#44), Paul McCall (FIU, JR., QB, #12), Jonathan Decoster (ULL, So., OL #73),
Antwyne Zanders (ULL, Sr., LB #41), Kinsmon Lancaster (ULM, Sr., QB, #7),
Anthony McCall (ULM,
Fr., WR, #83), Joe Craddock (MT, Sr., QB, #12), Ivon Hickmon (MT, Sr., LB, #27),
Cam Montgomery (North Texas, Jr., RB, #26), Craig Robertson (North
Texas, So., LB, #42), Kennard Burton (Troy, Sr., WR, #9), Steve
McLendon (Troy,
Sr., DT, #92)
