University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Football Picked Second In Conference USA Coaches Preseason Poll
7/24/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
July 24, 2006
HATTIESBURG, Miss.-- Southern Miss was picked to finish second in the Eastern Division, five Golden Eagles were named preseason All-Conference USA and senior kicker Darren McCaleb was named the Special Teams Player of the Year, in the preseason league coaches poll released today.
Southern Miss got 52 votes in the preseason poll, the fourth most in the league. Senior offensive linemen George Batiste and Travis Cooley, senior defensive back Caleb Hendrix, McCaleb and sophomore tight end Shawn Nelson were all named preseason Conference USA, all for the first time in their careers.
Batiste, named to the 2006 Outland Trophy Preseason Watch List on June 19, has been tabbed preseason All-Conference USA by Athlon's, Street and Smiths and The Sporting News. He returns for the fourth-straight season as the starter at right guard on the offensive line. The Avondale, La., native was a 2005 first-team All-Conference USA selection, also earning the honor from collegefootballnews.com. He was also selected as the No. 2 offensive lineman and the No. 16 overall player in Conference USA by the web site. He did not allow a sack in 2005 and led the offensive line with 11 pancakes and 54 knockdowns.
McCaleb also earned preseason All-Conference USA honors from Athlon's, Street and Smiths and The Sporting News. He returns as the most prolific kicker in school history. Last season, he was named second-team All-Conference USA and was an honorable-mention All-American selection by SI.com. He is the school's all-time leading scorer (255 points), and set the school record with 23 field goals in a season in 2005. Last year, he also set the school record for most extra points in a season (38) and most kick scoring points in a season (107 - 2005), while he also holds the career records in field goals (53) and extra points (96).
The Biloxi, Miss., native tied a school record with four field goals against Tulane (34, 33 and twice from 41) against East Carolina, matching Chris Seroka against Memphis (1988) and Rex Banks against Georgia (1984), while also setting the school record for points by a kicker against East Carolina (15).
Cooley, who missed the final two games of the 2005 season due to a torn patella tendon, was a second-team All-Conference USA selection last season. He has earned preseason All-Conference USA honors from Athlon's, Street and Smiths and The Sporting News. He returns for the fourth consecutive season as the starter at left guard. The Waynesboro, Miss., native allowed only one sack last year.
Hendrix returns as a starter at the boundary cornerback position for the third consecutive year. In 2005, he finished with 21 tackles (15 solos, six assists), 1.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, an interception, six pass breakups and two fumble recoveries. In his career, Hendrix has 68 total tackles (45 solos, 23 assists), two tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, two interceptions, 11 pass breakups and two fumble recoveries.
Nelson has been tabbed preseason All-Conference USA by Athlon's, Street and Smiths and The Sporting News. In 2005, Nelson had the best season by a Golden Eagle tight end in school history, earning Freshman All-American honors from The Sporting News and collegefootballnews.com. He was named third-team All-Conference USA and selected to Conference USA's All-Freshman team, as he led the team with 35 catches for 540 yards, averaging 15.4 yards per catch, while scoring five touchdowns. He was named the MVP in the New Orleans Bowl after he finished with six catches for 121 yards and scored two touchdowns.
Southern Miss finished 7-5 in 2005 and open the 2006 season on Sept. 2 at Florida. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m.
2006 Conference USA Presesaon Coaches Poll
First-Team Offense Kevin Kolb, QB, Houston Ahmad Bradshaw, RB, Marshall Kevin Smith, RB, UCF George Batiste, OL, Southern Miss Travis Cooley, OL, Southern Miss Cedrick Gagne-Marcoux, UCF Eric Graham, OL, East Carolina Jeff Perrett, OL, Tulsa Julius Wilson, OL, UAB Aundrae Allison, WR, East Carolina Johnnie Lee Higgins, WR, UTEP Vincent Marshall, WR, Houston Shawn Nelson, TE, Southern Miss
First-Team Defense Antonio Harris, DL, Tulane Larry McSwain, DL, UAB Alex Obomese, DL, UTEP Zach West, DL, UTEP Nick Bunting, LB, Tulsa Nelson Coleman, LB, Tulsa Orlandus King, LB, UAB Bobby Blackshire, DB, Tulsa Joe Burnett, So., UCF Caleb Hendrix, DB, Southern Miss Wesley Smith, DB, Memphis
First-Team Special Teams Darren McCaleb, K, Southern Miss Michael Gibson, P, Memphis Jessie Henderson, KR, SMU Joe Burnett, PR, UCF
Offensive Player Of The Year: Kevin Kolb, QB, Houston
Defensive Player Of The Year: Larry McSwain, DE, UAB
Special Teams Player Of The Year: Darren McCaleb, K, Southern Miss
Predicted Order Of Finish
East 1. UCF - 65 2. Southern Miss - 52 3. Memphis - 43 4. Marshall - 35 5. UAB - 28 6. East Carolina -25
West 1. Tulsa -- 61 2. UTEP - 60 3. Houston - 55 4. SMU - 39 5. Tulane - 20 6. Rice -- 17
