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Football: UL’s Green named first-team pick

Joshua Parrott • jparrott@theadvertiser.com • December 25, 2010

Mark Hudspeth, recently hired as UL’s new head football coach, has yet to work with junior tight end Ladarius Green.

 

Hudspeth eagerly awaits the opportunity to coach Green, who was voted the first-team All-Louisiana tight end by a panel of 26 Louisiana Sports Writers Association members. The LSWA announced its All-Louisiana team late Friday night.

"What an honor for Ladarius and UL," Hudspeth said. "He is going to be a weapon in our offense."

Green earned a slew of honors as UL’s top offensive weapon this year.

The native of Pensacola, Fla., led all tight ends nationally in receiving yards (794), yards per catch (18) and 80-yard receiving games (seven) despite being double-teamed more than 90 percent of the time and missing two games due to injury. Green topped the Sun Belt Conference with four 100-yard receiving games and yards per reception and was second in receiving yards per game (79.4) and touchdown catches (seven).

Green was named an All-American by CBSSports.com (second team), Heisman Pundit (third team) and Phil Steele (fourth team), a semifinalist for the John Mackey Award and first-team all-conference.

Hudspeth has even bigger plans for Green as a senior next season in his spread offense.

"I can’t wait to work with him," Hudspeth said. "He is going to be a perfect fit for our offense. His athletic ability will allow him to line up at numerous positions on the field to create matchup problems for the defense. I am also going to be counting on him to be a leader."

Three other players with local ties — Louisiana College senior receiver Jordan Rideaux, Tulane sophomore linebacker Trent Mackey and UL senior center Ian Burks — were recognized by the LSWA.

Rideaux, a Carencro High grad, was named first-team All-Louisiana after being honored as the American Southwest Conference Special Teams Player of the Year and first-team all-conference. He led the ASC with a kick return average of 22.8 yards, was second in the conference in all-purpose yards (1,628) and added 80 catches for 946 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Mackey, a Port Sulphur native who played his final three prep seasons at Carencro High after being relocated due to Hurricane Katrina, was a first-team All-Louisiana linebacker and the state’s Newcomer of the Year. The Duke transfer was third in Conference USA and 17th nationally with 124 tackles and had three forced fumbles to garner second-team all-conference honors.

Burks, named second-team all-conference last week, was a second-team All-Louisiana pick. He helped the Cajuns rank third in the Sun Belt in passing offense and commit the fewest penalties in the league this season after starting the previous three years at right guard.

"You’re talking about a guy that started at center for only one year," former UL head coach Rickey Bustle said after Burks earned second-team all-conference honors. "I think he could have been a first-team all-conference center or a first-team all-conference guard."

LSU junior cornerback Patrick Peterson was a unanimous pick as the state’s Defensive Player of the Year and a first-team selection on defense. He grabbed four interceptions, broke up six passes and scored on two punt returns. Peterson was a unanimous All-American and won the Jim Thorpe (nation’s top defensive back) and Chuck Bednarik (nation’s top defensive player) Awards.

Louisiana College senior quarterback Ben McLaughlin edged out Grambling senior tailback Frank Warren by one vote for state Offensive Player of the Year. McLaughlin led NCAA Division III passers with 3,770 passing yards to earn third-team Associated Press Little All-America honors. He also threw for 42 touchdown passes and was one of four finalists for the Gagliardi Trophy (top individual D-III honor) while pursuing a master’s degree and working full-time as a math teacher at Alexandria’s Bolton High School.

Mackey got one more vote than Louisiana Tech junior tailback Lennon Creer to win Newcomer of the Year honors for first-year non-freshman players in Louisiana.

The state’s Freshman of the Year award went to ULM redshirt freshman quarterback Kolton Browning, who threw for 2,552 yards and 18 touchdowns and rushed for four scores despite playing the final five games with a lower-body injury. His 244.8 yards of total offense per game ranked third among NCAA freshmen this season.

LSU’s Les Miles was voted the state’s top coach after leading the program to a 10-2 record and its sixth straight bowl appearance. Miles posted his fourth 10-win season — the most in school history — with victories over four top-25 teams. The Tigers play Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 7.

The All-Louisiana team was selected based on nominations submitted by the sports information directors from the state’s football-playing schools. LSWA members then voted on the nominations to choose the team.

Louisiana Sports Writers Association All-Louisiana Team

First Team Offense
Pos. Name, School Cl. Hometown Notes
OL Sanford Banks Grambling State So. Columbus, Ga. First Team All-SWAC
OL Joseph Barksdale LSU Sr. Detroit, Mich. Second Team All-SEC
OL Michael Booker Northwestern State Sr. Paris, Texas Second Team AP A-A (FCS)
OL Miguel Gauthreaux McNeese State Jr. Plaquemine First Team All-SLC
OL Rod McGill Louisiana Tech Sr. Metairie First Team All-WAC
RB Stevan Ridley LSU Jr. Natchez, Miss. First Team All-SEC, 14 TDs
RB Frank Warren Grambling State Sr. Pleasantville, Ala. Third Team AP A-A (FCS), 19 TDs
WR Jordan Rideaux Louisiana College Sr. Carencro First Team All-ASC; ASC Special Team POY
WR Simmie Yarborough Southeastern La. Jr. Brookhaven, Miss. Second-Team All-SLC, 9 TDs
TE Ladarius Green UL Jr. Pensacola, Fla. First Team All-SBC, 7 TD
QB Ben McLaughlin Louisiana College Sr. Dierks, Ark. ASC Offensive POY, 3,770 yds (1st nation), 42 TD
First Team Defense
POS NAME SCHOOL CL. HOMETOWN NOTES
DL Matt Broha Louisiana Tech Jr. Baton Rouge Second Team All-WAC, 44 tackles, 9 sacks
DL Ken Dorsey UL-Monroe Jr. Homewood, Ala. 13.0 TFL, 5.0 sacks
DL Desmund Lighten McNeese State Jr. Monroe First Team All-SLC, 65 tackles, 4 sacks
DL Drake Nevis LSU Sr. Marrero Second Team A-A, 56 tackles, 6.0 sacks
LB Trent Mackey Tulane So. Port Sulphur First Team All-C-USA, 124 tackles, 75. TFL
LB Derek Rose Northwestern State So. New Orleans First Team All-SLC, 142 tackles, 2 sacks
LB Kelvin Sheppard LSU Sr. Stone Mountain, Ga. First Team All-SEC,108 tackles, 4.0 sacks
DB Morris Claiborne LSU So. Shreveport Second Team All-SEC, 5 INT, 6 PBU
DB Tommy Connors Southeastern La. Sr. Marrero First Team All-SLC, 3 INT, 7 PBU
DB Phillip Davis Tulane Sr. Suwanee, Ga. First Team All-C-USA, 3 INT, 12 PBU
DB *Patrick Peterson LSU Jr. Pompano, Fla. Thorpe, Bednarik Winner, First-Team A-A
First Team Special Teams
POS NAME SCHOOL CL. HOMETOWN NOTES
P Derek Helton LSU Sr. Hoyt, Kan. 45.4 avg., 42% downed inside 20
PK Josh Jasper LSU Sr. Memphis, Tenn. First Team All-SEC, 26-31 FG, 31-32 PAT
RS Patrick Peterson LSU Pompano Beach, Fla. SEC Special Team POY, 2 PR TDs
*unanimous selection

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR "” Ben McLaughlin, Louisiana College
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR "” Patrick Peterson, LSU
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR "” Kolton Browning, ULM
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR "” Trent Mackey, Tulane
COACH OF THE YEAR "” Les Miles, LSU

Second Team Offense
OL "” Ian Burks, UL (Sr., Baton Rouge); Pete Hendrickson, Tulane (Sr., Tampa, Fla.), Kevin Hughes, Southeastern La. (Sr., New Orleans), P. J. Lonergan, LSU (So., New Orleans), Ryan McCaul, ULM (Jr., Moore, Okla.).
RB "” Lennon Creer, Louisiana Tech (Jr., Tatum, Texas); Orleans Darkwa, Tulane (Fr., Nashville, Tenn.).
WR "” Luther Ambrose, ULM (Jr., St. James), Casey Robottom, Tulane (Sr., LaPlace).
TE "” Cody Sparks, Tulane (Sr., Bridge City, Texas)
QB "” Kolton Browning, ULM (Fr., Mabank, Texas)
Second Team Defense
DL "” Justin Adams, Tulane (Sr., Missouri City, Texas), Nathan Clophus, Southeastern La. (Sr., Sulphur), Jordan Miller, Southern (Sr., Upper Marlboro, Md.), Dezman Moses, Tulane (Jr., Willingboro, N.J.)
LB "” Ryan Baker, LSU (Jr., Grand Ridge, Fla.), Nate Jansen, Louisiana College (So., Pottsboro, Texas), Mark Newbill, Southeastern La. (Sr., Monroe)
DB "” Chad Boyd, Louisiana Tech (So., Westwego), Malcolm Bronson, McNeese (So., Jasper, Texas), Bobby Felder, Nicholls (Jr., McComb, Miss.), Tyrann Mathieu, LSU (Fr., New Orleans).
Second Team Special Teams
P "” Patrick Dolan, Nicholls (Grad, Mobile, Ala.)
PK "” Josh Lewis, McNeese (So., Denham Springs)
RS "” Phillip Livas, Louisiana Tech (Sr., Houma)
Honorable Mention
Offense "” OL: Andrew Neirman, Tulane. WR: Terrence Toliver, LSU. Defense "” DL: Antonio Leonard, Grambling; Ledell Love, Northwestern State. LB: Cliff Exama, Grambling. DB: Reggie Calhoun, Louisiana College.