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Football: Quartet Share Football MVP Honors At Annual Awards Banquet + Team AwardsApril 22, 2012 For Immediate Release Quartet Share Football MVP Honors LAFAYETTE, La. — Blane Gautier, Ladarius Green, Lance Kelley, Dwight Bentley and Brett Baer were honored as the team co-MVPs and the members of the 2011 New Orleans Bowl victors were presented with their championship rings at the annual football awards banquet, which was held on Sunday in the Cajundome. The event drew a crowd of over 500 people and featured the presentation of a concurrent resolution from the Louisiana House of Representatives sponsored by State Representative Stuart Bishop, honoring the Ragin’ Cajuns for the outstanding performance in 2011. “We came together tonight to celebrate 16 months of hard work and dedication by the members of the Ragin’ Cajuns football team and staff,” head coach Mark Hudspeth said. “We wanted to make this day special because this was a special team and a special year. There is a bond between these players that will survive both time and distance. Years from now, whenever they get together, they will be known as the New Orleans Bowl champions. ”This group of seniors deserve our respect because 16 months ago, they lost their coach and they could have coasted and went through the motions during their senior year, but they didn’t. They bought in to what we were doing as a staff and committed to their teammates. Our success is a by-product of that commitment,” Hudspeth added. The presentation of the team MVP awards, which were each presented by notable Cajun alumni, culminated an evening of honors for the members of the 2011 UL football team. Gautier, a junior quarterback from Paulina, La., earned the honor after throwing for a school-record 2,958 yards and 23 touchdowns to earn Offensive Player of the Year accolades from the Louisiana Sport’s Writers Association. Green, a senior tight end from Pensacola, Fla., earned first team All-Sun Belt honors last fall after catching 51 passes for 606 yards and eight touchdowns. A December graduate with a degree in finance, he is considered one of the top tight ends available in the this week’s NFL Draft (April 26-28). Kelley, a senior from Lafayette, made the move from playing in the secondary as a junior and thrived, earning first team All-Sun Belt honors after leading the team with 118 tackles, the sixth-highest total in school history. Bentley was the leader in the UL secondary, making 71 tackles while starting in every game. A first team All-Sun Belt choice, he intercepted three passes, returning two for touchdowns. Baer, a junior from Brandon, Miss., was a second team All-Sun Belt choice as both a punter and placekicker. He led the nation in field goal percentage, making 18 of 20 kicks, including two game-winning kicks as time expired during the year. The presentation of the New Orleans Bowl rings closed out the evening. “This banquet is usually over at this point,but we have one more step,” emcee Scott Prather said. Hudspeth had the rings passed out to the players, coaches and staff in attendance and, following a countdown by university president Dr. Joseph Savoie, everybody opened their rings together and saw them for the first time as a team. “This ring looks a lot like a link in a chain,” Hudspeth noted. “It is a bond, one that will carry forward for the rest of our lives.” A complete listing of the team awards follows: 2011 Football Awards MVP (Offense): Blane Gautier & Ladarius Green Brian McCann
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