Eight Golden Eagles Earn All-Conference Honors
12/4/2002 12:00:00 AM | Football
Eight Golden Eagles Earn All-Conference Honors
HATTIESBURG, Miss. ? Eight Southern Miss football players earned all-conference honors when Conference USA announced its 2002 All-Conference football team, Wednesday, as selected by the league's 10 head coaches and media members in each conference city.
Southern Miss placed five players on the All-C-USA First Team for the first time since 1999. Senior running back Derrick Nix and senior offensive lineman Torrin Tucker made the first team offense, while sophomore linebacker Michael Boley, junior linebacker Rod Davis and junior defensive back Etric Pruitt were named to the defensive first team.
Offensive lineman Jason Jimenez and defensive lineman Terrell Paul made the All-Conference USA Second team on offense and defense, respectively, while freshman defensive back John Eubanks made the All-Freshman Defense team.
The Golden Eagles' five first team selections is tied with TCU for second-most behind Louisville's six first team players.
Nix highlights the group as a three-time all-conference selection, as he was a first team member in 1998 and a second team member in 1999. This season, Nix became the first Southern Miss player and Conference USA player to rush for more than 1,000 yards in three different seasons, as he has 1,194 yards in 11 regular-season games. Nix also scored a team-high 11 touchdowns, leading the team in overall points (66) as well. The redshirt-senior needs just 12 yards to become the all-time rushing leader in Southern Miss history, and needs 53 yards to become the all-time rushing leader in conference history. Nix also was an all-freshman selection and the Freshman of the Year in 1998.
Tucker earned his first all-conference selection since being named to the all-freshman team in 1999. As a guard, Tucker was part of an offensive line that paved the way for a 1,000-yard rusher in Nix and an offense that amassed just under 4,000 yards this season.
Davis made his second straight all-conference first team, as he was one of three defenders chosen last season. The junior linebacker had a league-best 157 tackles and 10.5 sacks, leading a Southern Miss defense that was one of the best in the conference. Davis registered double-digit tackles in 11 games this season, including a season-best 19 tackles against South Florida, and averaged 12.9 tackles per game.
Pruitt had a team-high six interceptions and finished third on the team in tackles (124) as he made his first all-conference team. Pruitt also had 12 pass breakups this season and had a season-high 19 tackles against Tulane.
Boley earned his first all-conference honor as he finished second on the team with 132 tackles and nine sacks in 12 games played. Boley registered a season-high 15 tackles twice against Alabama and TCU and also had an interception return for a touchdown.
As the strong-side tackle, Jimenez also was part of an offensive line that produced a 1,000-yard rusher and just under 4,000 yards of total offense.
Paul made his second straight all-conference second team, as he finished the season with 65 tackles and six sacks. He had a season-best eight tackles in two separate games, against UAB and Louisville.
Eubanks was the lone Golden Eagle on the all-freshman team. He started one game at defensive back, but saw action in 11 games this season. Eubanks finished with one interception and one pass breakup. As a return specialist, he fielded 17 kickoff returns for 400 yards, an average of 23.5 yards per return.
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 Thursday, Dec. 5.