Eight SWAC Players Named to SBN All America Team
SWAC.org
Birmingham, Ala. - Eight players from the Southwestern Athletic Conference were selected to the 2012 SBN Sports Black College All-America Team. The announcement was made by the American Urban Radio Networks.
The players from the SWAC include: Vernon Marshall (Alabama A&M - DB), Terren Jones (Alabama State - OL), Kejaun Riley (Alabama State - DB), Bobby Wenzig (Alabama State - P), Rico Richardson (Jackson State - WR), Joseph LeBeau (Jackson State - DE) and Bill Ross (Arkansas-Pine Bluff - LB) and Brandon Thurmond (Arkansas-Pine Bluff - DE).
UAPB defensive end, Brandon Thurmond, was named Mel Blount Defensive Player of the Year by the SBN BCAA. Thurmond continues to add to his post season honors after being named the SWAC, AFCA, and BoxtoRow Defensive Player of the Year.
In addition, the eight players from the SWAC are the most from any HBCU conference. It's the second time this year; the SWAC had more players on an All-America Team than any other HBCU conference. Nine players highlighted the SWAC on this year's BoxtoRow All-America Team.
The players will be honored at the 39th Annual BCAA Awards Brunch and during the Black College Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony, Feb. 16, 2013, in Atlanta, Georgia.
Thurmond and Ross helped lead UAPB to its first SWAC Football Championship game title and second league crown since 1966. Thurmond led the FCS in sacks with 17.5 averaging nearly two per game. Ross finished with a league best 127 (70 solo) tackles while scoring three defensive touchdowns.
Richardson and LeBeau's play through the course of the season landed JSU in the SWAC Football Championship game.
Richardson, the SWAC Offensive Player of the Year, led the SWAC in receiving yards (1,153) and receiving yards per game (96.1). He caught 60 passes, averaged 19.2 yards per receptions and had 11 receiving touchdowns.
LeBeau ranked third in the nation in tackles for a loss with 23.5 and finished second in the conference with 10.5 sacks.
Jones was the anchor of an ASU offense that led the conference in scoring (32.0 ppg) and red zone offense (92 percent). Riley concluded his career with four interceptions, including 21 for his career, to become ASU's all-time leader. Wenzig finished fourth in the FCS in punting with 45.6 yards per punt while posting 20 punts of 50 yards or more. He recorded a longest of 67 yards with 24 punts inside the 20-yard line.
Marshall led AAMU in stops from the secondary with 101 tackles, including 11 tackles for a loss of 36 yards. He also recorded two sacks. His tackles finished second in the nation from his position and were the most by any defensive back in the SWAC this season.
The SBN Black College All-American Awards (BCAA) recognizes and celebrates the academic and athletic achievements of student athletes who play football at America's Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
| POS |
Name |
School |
HT |
WT |
CL |
Hometown |
|
QB |
Kameron Smith |
Winston-Salem State |
5-11 |
190 |
Sr. |
Garner, NC |
|
RB |
Daronte McNeil |
Elizabeth City State |
6-2 |
220 |
Sr. |
Elizabeth City, NC |
|
RB |
Trabis Ward |
Tennessee State |
5-10 |
200 |
Jr. |
Ft. Lauderdale, FL |
|
WR |
Rico Richardson |
Jackson State |
6-1 |
185 |
Sr. |
Natchez, MS |
|
WR |
Travis Tarpley |
Delaware State |
5-7 |
175 |
Sr. |
Danville, VA |
|
TE |
A.C. Leonard |
Tennessee State |
6-4 |
245 |
So. |
Jacksonville, FL |
|
OL |
Sherman Carter |
Tennessee State |
6-3 |
300 |
Sr. |
La Vergne,TN |
|
OL |
Terrance Hackney |
Bethune-Cookman |
6-6 |
310 |
So |
Chapel Hill, NC |
|
OL |
Terren Jones |
Alabama State |
6-7 |
320 |
Sr. |
Ft. Walton Beach, FL |
|
OL |
Markus Lawrence |
Winston-Salem State |
6-4 |
290 |
Sr. |
Charlotte, NC |
|
OL |
Christopher Tolbert |
Tuskegee |
6-5 |
290 |
Jr. |
Birmingham, AL |
|
PK |
Chase Varnadore |
Florida A&M |
5-11 |
170 |
So. |
Tallahassee, FL |
|
DL |
Brad Davis |
Elizabeth City State |
6-1 |
245 |
Sr. |
Charlotte, NC |
|
DL |
Joseph LeBeau |
Jackson State |
6-1 |
245 |
Sr. |
New Orleans, LA |
|
DL |
LeBrandon Richardson |
Bethune-Cookman |
6-2 |
255 |
So. |
Miami, FL |
|
DL |
Brandon Thurmond |
Arkansas- Pine Bluff |
6-2 |
260 |
Sr. |
Augusta, GA |
|
LB |
Carlos Fields, Jr. |
Winston-Salem State |
6-2 |
220 |
Jr. |
Henderson, NC |
|
LB |
Keith Pough |
Howard |
6-3 |
225 |
Sr. |
Orangeburg, SC |
|
LB |
Bill Ross |
Arkansas-Pine Bluff |
6-2 |
240 |
Sr. |
Wetumpka, AL |
|
DB |
Vernon Marshall |
Alabama A&M |
5-11 |
188 |
Sr. |
Birmingham, AL |
|
DB |
Steven Godbolt III |
Tennessee State |
6-1 |
180 |
So. |
Cross City, FL |
|
DB |
Kejuan Riley |
Alabama State |
6-1 |
208 |
Sr. |
Wetumpka, AL |
|
DB |
Malcolm Rowe |
Winston-Salem State |
6-2 |
200 |
Sr. |
Fayetteville, NC |
|
P |
Bobby Wenzig |
Alabama State |
6-2 |
180 |
Jr. |
San Diego, CA |
|
RS |
Tyron Laughinghouse |
St. Augustine's |
6-3 |
175 |
Sr. |
Greenville, NC |
SBN COACH OF THE YEAR - Connell Maynor, Winston-Salem State University