Jackson, Johnson's awards highlight All-Southland
11/24/2015 12:48:00 PM | Football
Junior quarterback Jared Johnson and senior offensive tackle Donald Jackson III won two major awards to highlight the selection of 14 Sam Houston Bearkats to the 2015 All-Southland Conference football team announced Tuesday.
Johnson, a dual-threat signal-caller from Grand Prairie, Texas, has been voted as Southland Conference "Offensive Player of the Year."
He has thrown for 2,176 yards on 162 of 268 passing this season and has only thrown a league-high 18 touchdowns on the season. Johnson also leads the league in passing efficiency (150.1), passing yards, passing yards per completions (13.43) and passing yards per game (17.8), and is second in completions per game (14.73) and points responsible for per game (12.7) and third in completion percentage (60.4).
Johnson also keeps defenses off balanced with his ability to run, as he has 433 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns on the season. He tops the conference with his 237.2 yards of total offense per game. Johnson ranks second all-time in Sam Houston history total offense (6,876) and third in passing yards (5,312) in only two years as a starter.
Jackson was voted as the league's "Offensive Lineman of the Year."
The three-time all-conference selection is a key part to the Sam Houston offense that is second in the nation in total offense with 544.5 yards per game, fourth in scoring offense (43.8) and ninth in rushing offense (266.8). The senior from Kilgore, Texas, is a four-year starter for the Bearkats and has started every game for the Bearkats on the offensive line this season.
Jackson and Johnson are two of Sam Houston's five first-team all-league honorees. Also voted to the first team are running back Corey Avery from Dallas, defensive end P. J. Hall of Seguin and cornerback Trenier Orr from Orlando, Florida.
Second team selections from Sam Houston include wide receivers Gerald Thomas from The Colony and Yedidiah Louis from New Orleans, La.; cornerback Mikell Everette from Kent, Washington and punter Lachlan Edwards from Hastings, Victoria in Australia. Louis also was named second team all-purpose player.
Honorable mention selections from Sam Houston include offensive linemen Zach Stevens and Bridge Blount, defensive linemen James DeLaRosa and Jacobi Hunter and linebacker Myke Chatman.
“Since the second half of the Stephen F. Austin game at NRG Stadium, with the exception of a hiccup at McNeese, this team has dominated opponents,” Sam Houston head coach K C. Keeler said. “All these players are extremely deserving of their honors.”
Hall, Orr and Edwards all three earned All-Southland first or second team honors for the second time in their careers.
Hall leads the Kat defense with 13 tackles for loss and seven sacks. He also has 48 tackles, an interception and a blocked kick to his credit. Orr is a leader in the secondary with 36 tackles, six pass breakups and an interception. Edwards is Sam Houston's all-time leader in punting. He owns a 41.3 average this season with 11 punts of more than 50 yards.
Avery is Sam Houston's leading rusher this year with 120 carries for 981 yards and 11 touchdowns. He has posted 100-yard performances in each of Sam Houston's last four games. Thomas and Louis rank as the Bearkats' top two receivers, both with 40 catches. Louis also sports a 22.0 average per kickoff return. Everett leads the team in interceptions with three this season.
The all-conference team is comprised of 29 first-team and second-team members. Each coach nominates players from his own team. The teams are selected by vote of the league's head coaches and sports information directors, who cannot vote for their own players.
Sam Houston plays host to Southern Utah Saturday at 2 p.m. in the NCAA Division I Championships opening round. Tickets are on sale now at www.gobearkats.com .
2015 Southland Conference Individual Superlative Winners
Player of the Year: Kade Harrington, Lamar (RB)
Offensive Player of the Year: Jared Johnson, Sam Houston (QB)
Defensive Player of the Year: Wallace Scott, McNeese State (DB)
Offensive Lineman of the Year: Donald Jackson III, Sam Houston (OT)
Freshman of the Year: Jabari Butler, Abilene Christian (CB)
Newcomer of the Year: Myke Tavarres, UIW (LB)
Coach of the Year: Matt Viator, McNeese State
2015 All-Southland Conference Football Team
First-Team Offense
|
Pos. |
Name |
University |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Cl. |
|
QB |
Sam Houston |
6-1 |
215 |
Jr. |
|
|
RB |
Kade Harrington |
Lamar |
5-9 |
190 |
Jr. |
|
RB |
Sam Houston |
5-10 |
190 |
So. |
|
|
TE |
Cole Wick |
Incarnate Word |
6-7 |
255 |
Sr. |
|
WR |
Ed Eagan |
Northwestern State |
5-10 |
193 |
Sr. |
|
WR |
Desmond Smith |
Central Arkansas |
6-1 |
201 |
Jr. |
|
WR |
Reggie Begelton3 |
Lamar |
6-2 |
200 |
Sr. |
|
OL |
Donald Jackson III |
Sam Houston |
6-2 |
290 |
Sr. |
|
OL |
Quinton Marsh |
McNeese State |
6-3 |
310 |
Sr. |
|
OL |
Kyle Stouffer |
Central Arkansas |
6-7 |
316 |
Sr. |
|
OL |
Cody Elenz |
Lamar |
6-4 |
290 |
Sr. |
|
OL |
Bret Treadway |
Lamar |
6-3 |
280 |
Jr. |
|
AP |
Ed Eagan |
Northwestern State |
5-10 |
193 |
Sr. |
|
PK |
Chris Moore |
Northwestern State |
6-0 |
215 |
Sr. |
First-Team Defense
|
Pos. |
Name |
University |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Cl. |
|
DL |
Jonathan Woodard |
Central Arkansas |
6-6 |
271 |
Sr. |
|
DL |
Sam Houston |
6-1 |
280 |
So. |
|
|
DL |
Isaiah Golden |
McNeese State |
6-2 |
335 |
So. |
|
DL |
Larance Hale |
Lamar |
6-2 |
280 |
Jr. |
|
LB |
Myke Tavarres |
UIW |
6-2 |
220 |
Sr. |
|
LB |
Bo Brown |
McNeese State |
6-1 |
216 |
Sr. |
|
LB |
Sam Denmark |
Abilene Christian |
6-1 |
230 |
So. |
|
DB |
Wallace Scott |
McNeese State |
6-1 |
211 |
Sr. |
|
DB |
Harlan Miller |
Southeastern La. |
6-1 |
180 |
Sr. |
|
DB |
Sam Houston |
5-11 |
180 |
Sr. |
|
|
DB |
Tremon Smith |
Central Arkansas |
6-0 |
185 |
So. |
|
DB |
Jabari Butler |
Abilene Christian |
5-11 |
180 |
Fr. |
|
P |
Jean Breaux |
McNeese State |
5-10 |
172 |
Sr. |
|
KR |
Ed Eagan |
Northwestern State |
5-10 |
193 |
Sr. |
|
PR |
Harlan Miller |
Southeastern La. |
6-1 |
180 |
Sr. |
Second-Team Offense
|
Pos. |
Name |
University |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Cl. |
|
QB |
Daniel Sams |
McNeese State |
6-2 |
198 |
Sr. |
|
RB |
Blake Veasley |
Central Arkansas |
6-0 |
205 |
Sr. |
|
RB |
Ryan Ross |
McNeese State |
5-9 |
205 |
So. |
|
TE |
Zach Hetrick |
McNeese State |
6-3 |
250 |
Jr. |
|
WR |
Kent Shelby |
McNeese State |
6-3 |
194 |
So. |
|
WR |
Sam Houston |
5-10 |
183 |
Sr. |
|
|
WR |
Sam Houston |
5-8 |
187 |
So. |
|
|
OL |
Codey Funk |
Abilene Christian |
6-6 |
325 |
Sr. |
|
OL |
Ben Jones |
McNeese State |
6-5 |
283 |
Sr. |
|
OL |
Pace Murphy |
Northwestern State |
6-6 |
296 |
Sr. |
|
OL |
Joe Graves |
Southeastern La. |
6-3 |
320 |
Sr. |
|
OL |
Byron Williams |
Stephen F. Austin |
6-4 |
302 |
Sr. |
|
AP |
Sam Houston |
5-8 |
187 |
So. |
|
|
PK |
Jace Denker |
Central Arkansas |
6-1 |
188 |
Sr. |
Second-Team Defense
|
Pos. |
Name |
University |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Cl. |
|
DL |
Derek Floyd |
Central Arkansas |
6-2 |
248 |
Sr. |
|
DL |
Cameron Smith |
McNeese State |
6-3 |
238 |
Sr. |
|
DL |
Ashton Henderson |
Southeastern La. |
6-1 |
320 |
Sr. |
|
DL |
Jon Franklin |
Stephen F. Austin |
6-4 |
284 |
So. |
|
LB |
Ricky Wyatt |
Central Arkansas |
5-11 |
222 |
Sr. |
|
LB |
Herbert Harris |
Southeastern La. |
6-1 |
225 |
Sr. |
|
LB |
Ashari Goins |
McNeese State |
5-10 |
200 |
So. |
|
DB |
Sam Houston |
5-11 |
185 |
Sr. |
|
|
DB |
Dominique Hill |
McNeese State |
5-10 |
177 |
So. |
|
DB |
Jordan Batiste |
Southeastern La. |
5-10 |
185 |
Sr. |
|
DB |
Kobie Douglas |
UIW |
5-9 |
162 |
Sr. |
|
DB |
B.T. Sanders |
Nicholls |
6-0 |
190 |
Jr. |
|
P |
Sam Houston |
6-5 |
215 |
Sr. |
|
|
KR |
Rodney Randle |
Lamar |
5-10 |
200 |
Fr. |
|
PR |
Jonathan Epps |
Abilene Christian |
5-9 |
170 |
Sr. |
Honorable Mention Bearkats:
Linemen: Zach Stevens, Bridge Blount
Defensive Linemen: James DeLaRosa, Jacobi Hunter
Linebackers: Myke Chatman
