Southland Announces 2018 All-Conference Football Teams
FRISCO, Texas - Nicholls' Chase Fourcade headlines the 2018 Southland Conference All-Conference Football teams, announced by the league Tuesday. The Colonels' quarterback is the Southland's Player of the Year and is joined on the two all-conference teams by 14 of his teammates. The league's yearly awards are presented by Ready Nutrition.
Fourcade paced the conference in passing efficiency (148.5), throwing the league's fewest interceptions (six) and completing 176 passes for 2,447 yards and 19 touchdowns to lead the Colonels to a conference co-championship. He added nine scores on the ground and rushed for 488 yards, which ranked second among quarterbacks in the league.
The Metairie, La., native is one of seven superlative award winners announced Tuesday, along with Coach of the Year Eric Morris (Incarnate Word), Offensive Player of the Year Jazz Ferguson (Northwestern State) and Defensive Player of the Year BJ Blunt (McNeese).
UIW quarterback Jon Copeland is the Freshman of the year, and Abilene Christian's Billy McCrary and Lamar's Jordan Hoy are co-Newcomers of the Year. Offensive Lineman of the Year is Lamar's Garrett Bowery.
A first-year head coach, Morris engineered an amazing turnaround in guiding the Cardinals to a regular-season co-championship after a 1-10 mark last season. UIW is in its second season of Division I competition and was picked to finish ninth in the conference preseason poll.
Ferguson led the Southland and ranked top-10 nationally with 1,117 receiving yards and 13 touchdown catches, and he topped 100 yards on six occasions, including a 138-yard performance against Sam Houston State. The St. Francisville, La., native scored the most points of any wideout in the conference (82).
A nightmare for opposing offenses, Blunt finished among the top-10 in the country in three categories: Sacks per game (1.1), solo tackles per game (6.0) and tackles for loss per game (2.0). He tallied 5.5 tackles for loss against Stephen F. Austin and compiled 20 total tackles against ACU, both of which are the third-most by an FCS player this season.
Copeland played a vital role in UIW's run to a share of the conference title and established himself as one of the top arms in the league, finishing as the conference leader in passing yards per game (298.4) and ranking third in total yards (2,984) and efficiency (137.3).
McCrary averaged the most yards per carry in the conference (8.2) and found pay dirt 10 times through the air and on the ground.
Hoy, a two-time Offensive Player of the Week, scored seven of his nine touchdowns and racked up 692 yards of total offense in two crucial road wins against SFA and UCA in place of Darrell Colbert Jr.
Bowery, a first-team pick in his final season, paved the way for a Lamar rushing attack that led the conference and ranked 12th nationally in yards per game (250.3).
Nicholls leads the way with 15 total all-conference selections, followed by Central Arkansas, UIW and Southeastern Louisiana each with seven. ACU, McNeese and SHSU each placed five on the all-league teams, and Lamar, NSU and SFA rounded out the list with three, two and one, respectively.
In total, 12 honorees are returning all-Southland selections, led by three-time selections Chandler Arceneaux, Sully Laiche and Allen Pittman of Nicholls and SHSU's Davion Davis and Nathan Stewart.
All-Southland Conference teams are voted on by the league's head coaches and sports information directors. Voting for one's own athletes is not permitted. To receive honorable mention, a player must appear on 25 percent of ballots.
2018 Southland Conference Football Individual Superlative Winners
Coach of the Year: Eric Morris, Incarnate Word
Player of the Year: Chase Fourcade, Nicholls
Offensive Player of the Year: Jazz Ferguson, Northwestern State
Defensive Player of the Year: BJ Blunt, McNeese
Freshman of the Year: Jon Copeland, Incarnate Word
Co-Newcomer of the Year: Jordan Hoy, Lamar
Co-Newcomer of the Year: Billy McCrary, Abilene Christian
Offensive Lineman of the Year: Garrett Bowery, Lamar
2018 Southland Conference Football First Team All-Conference Offense
| Pos. |
Name |
School |
Class |
Hometown |
| QB |
Chase Fourcade |
Nicholls |
Jr. |
Metairie, La. |
| RB |
Ra'Quanne Dickens |
Incarnate Word |
Sr. |
Seminole, La. |
| RB |
Carlos Blackman2 |
Central Arkansas |
Jr. |
Gosnell, Ark. |
| TE/HB |
Bransen Schwebel |
Southeastern Louisiana |
Jr. |
Amite, La. |
| WR |
Jazz Ferguson |
Northwestern State |
Jr. |
St. Francisville, La. |
| WR |
Davion Davis3 |
Sam Houston State |
Sr. |
Hutto, Texas |
| WR |
Phillip Baptist |
Incarnate Word |
Sr. |
Fort Worth, Texas |
| OL |
Garrett Bowery |
Lamar |
Sr. |
Union Grove, Texas |
| OL |
Hunter Watts |
Central Arkansas |
Jr. |
San Antonio, Texas |
| OL |
Ryan Hanley2 |
Nicholls |
Sr. |
Metairie, La. |
| OL |
Chandler Arceneaux |
Nicholls |
Sr. |
Bourg, La. |
| OL |
Brandon Floores |
Incarnate Word |
Jr. |
La Vernia, Texas |
| AP |
Juwan Petit-Frere2 |
Southeastern Louisiana |
Jr. |
Orlando, Fla. |
| PK |
Lorran Fonseca2 |
Nicholls |
Sr. |
Hercules, Calif. |
| P |
Alex Kjellsten |
McNeese |
Sr. |
Lake Charles, La. |
2018 Southland Conference Football First Team All-Conference Defense
| Pos. |
Name |
School |
Class |
Hometown |
| DL |
Sully Laiche3 |
Nicholls |
Jr. |
Grammercy, La. |
| DL |
Derick Roberson |
Sam Houston State |
Sr. |
San Antonio, Texas |
| DL |
Chris Terrell2 |
Central Arkansas |
Jr. |
Pensacola, Fla. |
| DL |
Justin Alexandre |
Incarnate Word |
Sr. |
Elmont, N.Y. |
| LB |
BJ Blunt |
McNeese |
Sr. |
New Orleans, La. |
| LB |
Jeremiah Chambers |
Abilene Christian |
Jr. |
Austin, Texas |
| LB |
Evan Veron |
Nicholls |
Jr. |
LaPlace, La. |
| DB |
Davon Jernigan |
Lamar |
Sr. |
Navasota, Texas |
| DB |
Hayden Bourgeois |
Northwestern State |
So. |
Church Point, La. |
| DB |
Zyon McCollum |
Sam Houston State |
So. |
Galveston, Texas |
| DB |
Colby Burton |
McNeese |
Jr. |
League City, Texas |
| DB |
Juan Jackson |
Central Arkansas |
Jr. |
Gardendale, Ala. |
| KR |
Juwan Petit-Frere |
Southeastern Louisiana |
Jr. |
Orlando, Fla. |
| PR |
Devonte Williams |
Southeastern Louisiana |
Jr. |
Columbia, Md. |
2018 Southland Conference Football Second Team All-Conference Offense
| Pos. |
Name |
School |
Class |
Hometown |
| QB |
Jon Copeland |
Incarnate Word |
Fr. |
Argyle, Texas |
| RB |
Billy McCrary |
Abilene Christian |
Jr. |
Austin, Texas |
| RB |
Dontrell Taylor |
Nicholls |
Jr |
White Castle, La. |
| TE/HB |
Cody Ennis |
Abilene Christian |
Sr. |
San Antonio, Texas |
| WR |
Nathan Stewart3 |
Sam Houston State |
Jr. |
Dallas, Texas |
| WR |
Dai'Jean Dixon |
Nicholls |
So. |
New Orleans, La. |
| WR |
Juwan Petit-Frere |
Southeastern Louisiana |
Jr. |
Orlando, Fla. |
| OL |
Eddie Houston |
Nicholls |
Sr. |
Newton, Miss. |
| OL |
Terence Hickman II |
Incarnate Word |
Jr. |
Converse, Texas |
| OL |
Grant Burguillos |
McNeese |
Jr. |
Mandeville, La. |
| OL |
Bill Weber |
Abilene Christian |
Sr. |
Coppell, Texas |
| OL |
Dakota Laws |
Abilene Christian |
Sr. |
Denton, Texas |
| AP |
Cedric Battle |
Central Arkansas |
Sr. |
Wichita Falls, Texas |
| PK |
Jonathan Tatum |
Southeastern Louisiana |
Sr. |
Alexandria, La. |
| P |
Winston Jones |
Nicholls |
Jr. |
Thibodaux, La. |
2018 Southland Conference Football Second Team All-Conference Defense
| Pos. |
Name |
School |
Class |
Hometown |
| DL |
Chris Livings |
McNeese |
Jr. |
Lake Charles, La. |
| DL |
Daniel Crosley |
Lamar |
Jr. |
DeRidder, La. |
| DL |
Eric Jackson2 |
Central Arkansas |
Sr. |
Apopka, Fla. |
| DL |
Erick Fowler |
Sam Houston State |
Jr. |
Austin, Texas |
| LB |
Silas Stewart |
Incarnate Word |
Sr. |
Wilmington, Del. |
| LB |
Allen Pittman3 |
Nicholls |
Jr. |
St. Rose, La. |
| LB |
Tamarcus Russell |
Southeastern Louisiana |
Sr. |
Dadeville, Ala. |
| DB |
Darren Evans |
Nicholls |
So. |
Baton Rouge, La. |
| DB |
Ahmani Martin2 |
Nicholls |
Sr. |
Reserve, La. |
| DB |
Khristian Mims |
Nicholls |
Jr. |
Baton Rouge, La. |
| DB |
Bolu Onifade |
Abilene Christian |
Jr. |
Oklahoma City, Okla. |
| DB |
Alize Ward2 |
Stephen F. Austin |
Jr. |
San Diego, Calif. |
| KR |
Cedric Battle |
Central Arkansas |
Sr. |
Wichita Falls, Texas |
| PR |
Damion Jeanpiere, Jr. |
Nicholls |
Sr. |
Kenner, La. |
Honorable Mention:
QB: Luke Anthony, Abilene Christian; Darrel Colbert Jr., Lamar; Shelton Eppler, Northwestern State; Bailey Zappe, Houston Baptist RB: Kierre Crossley, Central Arkansas; Darren Johnson, Southeastern Louisiana; Myles Wanza, Lamar. TE/HB: Case Robinson, Lamar. WR: Jakari Dillard, Central Arkansas; Kody Edwards, Incarnate Word; Damion Jeanpiere, Nicholls; Tamrick Pace, Stephen F. Austin; Jarreth Sterns, Houston Baptist; Cyron Sutton, McNeese; Jaylen Watson, Northwestern State. OL: Pat Allen, Southeastern Louisiana; Frank Boudreaux, Northwestern State; P.J. Burkhalter, Nicholls; Kade Parmelly, Abilene Christian; Tristan Wendt, Sam Houston State. AP: Ameer King, Incarnate Word. PK: Gunnar Raborn, McNeese. DL: Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund, Southeastern Louisiana; Cole Burgess, Abilene Christian; Brandon Fontenot, Nicholls; Dedrick Garner, Lamar; Dante Hibbert, Abilene Christian; Obi Iheoma, Northwestern State; Jon Miller, Southeastern Louisiana; Darrius Montgomery, Incarnate Word; Ronald Ollie, Nicholls; Cody Roscoe, McNeese. LB: Chaston Brooks, Lamar; Mar'kel Cooks, Incarnate Word; Raphael Garner, Central Arkansas; Jack Gibbens, Abilene Christian; West Lambert, Incarnate Word; Langston Tunson, Houston Baptist. DB: Adrian Contreras, Sam Houston State; Adonis Davis, Abilene Christian; Trenton Gordon, Stephen F. Austin; Jackie Harvell, Central Arkansas; Aretavious Hendrix, Stephen F. Austin; Xavier Lewis, Southeastern Louisiana; Louis Otis, Incarnate Word; Malick Phillips, Incarnate Word; Rodney Randle, Lamar; Robert Rochelle, Central Arkansas. KR: Myles Ward, Northwestern State.