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Football: Cajuns Tabbed As Sun Belt Co-FavoritesCajuns Tabbed As Sun Belt Co-Favorites
NEW ORLEANS, La. — With the start of preseason football camp less than three weeks away, honors continue to come in for the Ragin Cajuns football team as Louisiana has been tabbed as the co-favorites of the Sun Belt Conference this year in a poll of the league s eight head coaches.
In addition, senior center Andre Huval, senior linebacker Justin Anderson and junior defensive lineman Christian Ringo have each been named to the 2013 Preseason All-Sun Belt team in a poll of the head coaches and select media from around the Sun Belt.
With the Cajuns losings as many starters as we did on defense, I wasn t sure what to expect, third-year head coach Mark Hudspeth said. The league is very talented and deep.
I am proud that our young men s hard work is being noticed, but trust me, they know its not where you are in the beginning, but rather where you are at the end, Hudspeth added.
With 14 starters returning from last year s team that went 9-4, finished second in the Sun Belt with a 6-2 mark and won its second consecutive New Orleans Bowl title, the Cajuns received four first place and 57 total points to share first place ULM. The WarHawks received two first place votes and 57 votes total.
Defending Sun Belt champion Arkansas received the other two first place votes to finish third with 45 points, one point ahead of fourth place WKU (44 points).
Troy was ranked fifth (35) followed by Sun Belt newcomer Texas State in sixth (23), South Alabama seventh (19) and Georgia State in eighth (8).
The preseason All-Sun Belt honors come to three Cajuns who were deserving of recognition at the end of last season but were left off the all-league squad.
Anderson, a 6-2, 232-pound linebacker from Foley, Ala., led Louisiana and ranked seventh in the Sun Belt with 105 tackles last year (70 solo). He had six games of 10 or more tackles, finishing the season with 8.5 TFL, two quarterback sacks and an interception.
Huval, a 6-2, 285-pound center from Scott, La., was named to the Rimington Award watch list for the second straight year. He earned first team Capital One Academic All-District honors in 2012 after playing all but 12 snaps on offense. He led the Louisiana offensive line that ranked 13th in the nation allowing just 13 quarterback sacks.
Ringo, a 6-1, 288-pound defensive lineman from Jackson, Miss., ranked second in the Sun Belt in 2012 with seven quarterback sacks and 11th with 10.5 TFL. He made 29 tackles for the season (18 solo), making multiple stops in seven of the last eight games.
Louisiana players report for the start of preseason practice on Monday, Aug. 5.
2013 Preseason Sun Belt Football Poll
1. Louisiana (4 First Place) 57
2013 Preseason All-Sun
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year
Offense
Defense
Special Teams
Brian McCann
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