Conference USA Announces Football All-Conferene Awards
Nov. 29, 2005 Conference USA announced its 2005 All-Conference football teams today, as selected by the league's 12 head coaches and media members in each conference city. C-USA concluded its 10th regular season this past weekend and first under the new alignment that will feature the league's inaugural championship game on Dec. 3 between UCF and Tulsa at the Florida Citrus Bowl. Memphis and Southern Miss led the league by placing five members on the All-C-USA first team. Memphis senior DeAngelo Williams found his name in a familiar spot as he earned first-team running back honors for a league record third-consecutive season. Williams leads the nation in rushing yards per game at 172.6 and is second nationally with 1,726 yards. For his career, Williams sits fourth on the NCAA list with 5,788 yards and holds the NCAA record for career all-purpose yardage at 7,337. Joining Williams from the Tigers on the first-team offensive unit was senior OL Andrew Handy. Defensively, Memphis placed two players on the first team as junior Wesley Smith made it a perfect three-for-three in earning All-C-USA first-team defensive back honors. He was joined on the squad by DE Marcus West, who improved from second-team honors a year ago. Place kicker Stephen Gostkowski, the league's all-time leader in field goals made with 67, earned his second-consecutive first-team honor. Southern Miss had a pair of first-team defensive and special teams' honorees along with offensive lineman George Batiste. Senior LB Kevis Coley led the league in tackles with 144, including a league-high 78 solo stops and was joined on the defensive unit by his twin brother Trevis, a defensive back who was sixth in the league with 99 tackles. Senior John Eubanks shared first-team kick returner honors with Tulsa's Ashlan Davis. Eubanks' first-team honor is his third consecutive. Davis tied a 31-year old NCAA record with his sixth kickoff return for a touchdown this season. Senior Luke Johnson was the first-team punter after leading the league with a 46.5 yards per punt average. Division champions Tulsa (West) and UCF (East) each had four first-team selections along with UAB. Joining Davis on the first-team from the Golden Hurricane were senior TE Garrett Mills, senior OL Jesse Stoneman and junior DB Bobby Blackshire. Mills became the first tight end in league history to register a 1,000-yard receiving season. Mills led all tight ends nationally with 75 catches, 1,031 yards and eight touchdowns. Blackshire was second on the Golden Hurricane in tackles with 90 this season. Tulsa and Southern Miss each placed 10 players on the three all-conference teams, which was the second-most among league schools. For UCF, freshman Joe Burnett found his name in two spots on the All-C-USA first team as the rookie earned defensive back and punt returner honors. Burnett tied for the league-lead with five interceptions and led C-USA with a 14.7 punt return average, which included a 60-yard return for a score against Rice on Nov. 19. Joining Burnett from the Golden Knights on the first-team unit were junior OL Cedric Gagne-Marcoux and senior DE Paul Carrington, who tied for the league-lead with seven sacks. After earning third-team honors in 2004, UAB senior Darrell Hackney collected the first-team quarterback spot this season after passing for 3,180 yards and 22 touchdowns. Both totals were second in the league as the four-year starter for the Blazers finished his career fourth on the C-USA charts with 9,886 yards and sixth with 71 touchdown passes. Hackney's favorite target WR Reggie Lindsey joined him on the first team. Lindsey led C-USA with 11 touchdown receptions, including a C-USA best 89-yard touchdown vs. SMU on Oct. 8. Helping protect Hackney on the offensive front for the Blazers was fellow first-team member Matt Batusic. For the Blazers defensively, junior Larry McSwain collected first-team defensive line honors. Houston and East Carolina each had two players on the first team, while Rice and Tulane were both represented by one member. UTEP led the league with 11 selections on the three-team squad, placing eight on the second team and three on the third team. East Carolina junior WR Aundrae Allison led the league with 83 receptions and was one of just two C-USA players to crack the 1,000-yard mark in receiving yards. Allison finished his first season as a Pirate with 1,024 yards. Allison was joined on the first team by senior LB Chris Moore, who capped off his four-year career in Greenville with 96 tackles to move into sixth place on the C-USA career list with 415 stops. Three spots ahead of Moore on that list is Tulane senior Anthony Cannon, who was third in the league with 114 tackles and finished his career ranked third on the all-time C-USA list with 437 stops. Rice senior John Syptak was the lone Owl on the first team as the defensive end led his team with 72 tackles and 3.5 sacks. Representing Houston on the first team were senior RB Ryan Gilbert and junior WR Vincent Marshall. Gilbert was the only C-USA running back besides Williams to run for 1,000 yards this season as he finished his final campaign at UH with 1,030 yards and nine touchdowns - also the second best total in the league. Marshall was third in the league with 69 receptions and 927 yards. Conference USA will announce its Offensive, Defensive, and Special Teams Players of the Year, as well as the Freshman of the Year and Coach of the Year on Wednesday, November 30. 2005 C-USA FOOTBALL ALL-CONFERENCE TEAMS
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