Bearkat Safety Earns Another National Award
by Cheval John
The awards keep piling up for SHSU’s safety Darnell Taylor.
Today, Taylor earned a spot in the 2012 Walter Camp All-America Squad.
The senior from Mesquite, TX led the team in tackles this year with 100.
He was named the Southland Conference (SLC) “Defensive Player of the Year” for the second year in a row.
Defensively, he played a critical role when the Bearkats won their second consecutive SLC title this year that allowed them to be selected for the NCAA FCS playoffs.
In the playoffs, the Bearkats went through three Big Sky Co-Champions in Cal Poly, Montana State and Eastern Washington to make it to the FCS National Championship Game in Frisco, TX for the second year in row.
It was the first time that the Bearkats have ever made consecutive appearances in the FCS playoffs and the title game.
They will have a second go-around with defending champion North Dakota State Bison on January 5 at 1 p.m eastern time on ESPN2.
Both teams played last year in the championship game with the Bison coming on top with 17-6 win.
The Walter Camp All-America squad honors players who made a significant impact for their respective teams from nine conferences and 24 institutions in the FCS.
The honor is named after Walter Camp, who is considered the “Father of American Football” because he developed the present game as we know it.
Here are the list of the Camp All-America Squad
2012 Walter Camp Football Championship Subdivision All-America Team
OFFENSE
Pos. Name, School Hgt Wgt Class Hometown
WR Erik Lora, Eastern Illinois 5-10 181 Jr. Miami, FL
WR Aaron Melette, Elon 6-2 220 Sr. Sanford, NC
TE A.C. Leonard, Tennessee State 6-4 245 Soph. Jacksonville, FL
OL Earl Watford, James Madison 6-4 295 Sr. Philadelphia, PA
OL Mike Sellers, The Citadel 6-0 290 Jr. Summerville, SC
OL Billy Turner, North Dakota State 6-6 300 Jr. Shoreview, MN
OL Chris Howley, Maine 6-3 295 Sr. Runnemede, NJ
C Corey Howard, Central Arkansas 6-1 290 Sr. Wichita Falls, TX
QB Taylor Heinicke, Old Dominion 6-1 295 Soph. Atlanta, GA
RB Miguel Maysonet, Stony Brook 5-10 205 Sr. Riverhead, NY
RB Zach Zenner, South Dakota State 6-0 215 Soph. Eagan, MN
PK Patrick Murray, Fordham 5-7 182 Sr. Mahwah, NJ
DEFENSE
Pos. Name, School Hgt Wgt Class Hometown
DL Caleb Schreibeis, Montana State 6-3 252 Sr. Billings, MT
DL Colton Underwood, Illinois State 6-4 255 Jr. Washington, IL
DL Brandon Thurmond, Arkansas Pine Bluff 6-2 260 Sr. Augusta, GA
DL Davis Tull, UT-Chattanooga 6-3 230 Soph. Knoxville, TN
DL Joseph LeBeau, Jackson State 6-1 245 Sr. New Orleans, LA
LB Jeremy Kimbrough, Appalachian State 5-11 240 Sr. Decatur, GA
LB Matt Evans, New Hampshire # 6-0 228 Sr. Hanover, MA
LB Stephon Robertson, James Madison 5-11 225 Jr. Alexandria, VA
DB Marcus Williams, North Dakota State 5-11 194 Jr. Minneapolis, MN
DB Darnell Taylor, Sam Houston 6-0 195 Sr. Mesquite, TX
DB Cooper Taylor, Richmond 6-5 235 Sr. Atlanta, GA
DB Jaquiski Tartt, Samford 6-1 220 Soph. Mobile, AL
P Andy Wilder, Northern Arizona 6-3 205 Jr. Scottsdale, AZ
KR Jerodis Williams, Furman 5-11 208 Sr. Prattville, AL
Bearkats Welcomes Oral Roberts With A Win
by Cheval John
Oral Roberts Eagles volleyball team didn’t know what to expect when they played Sam Houston State Bearkats on Thursday night.
During their 15 year history in the Summit League, the Eagles posted a 155-31 record, winning seven regular season titles, seven post-season tournament title, and made seven NCAA tournament appearances.
ORU joined the Southland Conference on July 1 and were looking to make a statement in their first game as a member.
Though they got off to a great start in the first set by scoring the first five out of eight points, the Bearkats settled down and dismantled the Eagles in straight sets 25-17, 25-21, 25-18.
Senior outside hitter Kendall Cleveland led the Kats with 16 kills, 5 blocks and three digs.
She produced 11 out of the teams 25 points in the third set alone with her dominant play and overwhelmed ORU.
“I just said to her (Cleveland), ‘My wish for us this weekend is for you to have a great match tonight’ and she did,” head coach Brenda Gray said.
“We wanted to show them that just because you are new. … Doesn’t mean that you will walk all over us,” Cleveland said.
“I think we got out there and proved that tonight.”
After being down 8-6, theBearkats scored the next six out of eleven points to take a 14-11 on a pair of kills by sophomore Devene Wells-Gibson, Kaylee Hawkins, and blocks by Cleveland and fifth-year senior Kim Black.
They went on to win the first set 25-17.
The Bearkats started the second set by scoring the first six out of nine points to make it 6-3.
The Eagles fought back as they went on a 11-8 run to tie the set at 14.
The Bearkats scored the next three points to take a 17-14 lead on a error by ORU, a kill by Cleveland and a block by Hawkins.
They finished them off in the second set 25-21 and went on to win the game to secure a 1-0 record in league play.
Wells-Gibson concluded the match with 11 kills and 10 digs while Black had 7 kills, 7 blocks, 6 digs and an ace.
Tatum Fredeen led the Eagles with 9 kills and Joana Gruber contributed with six.
They are now 0-1 in league play (4-8) overall.
The Bearkats host Central Arkansas on Saturday at Bernard G. Johnson Coliseum at 2 p.m.
Bearkats Opens 2012 Season With Win Over Cardinals
by Cheval John
In front of a crowd of 11,061 at Elliot T. Bowers Stadium, the Sam Houston State Bearkat football team dismantled the University of the Incarnate Word Cardinals 54-7.
The win gives them a 1-0 record for the season and increase their win streak to 10 games at Bowers stadium.
Running back Tim Flanders carried the ball 15 times for 117 yards and two touchdowns.
In the process, he became SHSU’s All-Time leader in career rushing yards (2,709), breaking the career mark held by Charles Harris (2,688).
The Bearkats started the route in the first quarter when Flanders broke a few tackles and went 41 yards for the touchdown that made it 6-0.
The Cardinals made things interesting early on when corner back Chavis Barron intercepted a pass from ‘utility’ player Richard Sincere and returned it 20 yards to the Bearkat 36.
Three plays later, quarterback Zach Rhodes connected with running back Trent Rios for an 18 yard score that tied it at 6.
The extra point gave them a 7-6 lead.
The Bearkats regrouped as Flanders rushed 8 yards for the score to regain the lead 13-7.
They added another score when wide reciever Trey Diller took a shovel pass from quarterback Brian Bell and went 21 yards for a touchdown to increase the lead to 20-7 by halftime.
The Bearkats picked up from where they left off when running back Keshawn Hill rushed 11 yards for the score that made it 27-7.
Their defense played their part as they held the Cardinals offense to 88 total yards for the night.
One of their playmakers, Robert Shaw intercepted a pass from Rhodes on the Bearkat 47 and took it 19 yards all the way to the Cardinal 19.
Several plays later, Bell threw a 3 yard strike to tight end J.D. Stanley to increase the lead and put the game out of reach for the Bearkats.
Linebacker Darius Taylor led the Bearkat defense with 9 tackles while defensive lineman J.T. Cleveland and line backer Jesse Beauchamp each had five tackles.
The Bearkats face their first test of the season when they play Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) member, Baylor Bears on Saturday in Waco, Texas at 6 p.m.
The game will be televised on Fox College Sports.
“Honey Badger” Cooked At LSU
by Cheval John
It looks like Tyrann Mathieu will not have a chance to return to the LSU football team.
The junior from New Orleans, nicknamed “The Honey Badger,” was kicked off the team last Friday after violating team rules.
He finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy race and was a key element in LSU’s run at the national championship last year.
He returned two punts for touchdowns and forced six fumbles that allowed him to score two more touchdowns as a result.
There was speculation that Mathieu could still take classes at the university and possibly be reinstated to the team in 2013.
But Bo Bahnsen, LSU senior associate athletic director for NCAA compliance told USA Today: “He (Mathieu) is permanently ineligible to play football at LSU.”
Mathieu paid a visits to McNeese State University and Jackson State University since being dismissed.
He would not have to sit out a year since both programs are at the FCS level.
He will hold a press conference later today on where he is going to play.
Playoff Fever Spreading In Huntsville, TX
by Cheval John
NCAA FCS playoff fever has spread throughout the nation.
It’s not more evident than in the city of Huntsville, TX.
Huntsville, home of Sam Houston State University with a population of about 39,000, have been in a frenzy since the Bearkat football team have made the FCS playoffs for the second consecutive year after finishing the season at 8-3 overall and claimed a share of the Southland Conference title.
Now, they are one game away from returning to the FCS national championship game after they slaughtered Montana State Bobcats 34-15 in Bozeman, Montana last Friday.
Bearkat fans gathered either in Huntsville area bars or across the country (in the case of SHSU’s alumni base) to watch the matchup between the Bearkats and Bobcats that was televised nationally on ESPN2.
Many people who have lived in Huntsville and have been around to see the Bearkat athletic teams have said that they have not seen anything like this.
They have good reason to say that because before, the Bearkat football team have made the playoffs a total of four times since becoming a member of the NCAA Division I in 1986.
Those four playoff appearances happened in 1986, 1991, 2001, and 2004 under Ron Randleman.
After Randleman’s retirement in 2004, Todd Whitten served as head coach from 2005-2009 without much success and was fired.
When SHSU’s athletic director, Bobby Williams hired Willie Fritz, many were hoping for a renaissance of the football program.
After a 6-5 campaign in 2010, people started to believe that great things was going to happen in his second year.
Before the 2011 season began, the SLC’s pre-season polls expected the Bearkats to finished fourth in the conference because they only had 12 seniors on the team.
The Bearkats did the opposite: finished the regular season at 11-0, won their fourth SLC title (first undisputed), were the No.1 seed in the FCS playoffs and brought the Bearkat nation together.
From there, they defeated No. 7 Stony Brook, Montana State and Montana to reach the title game in Frisco, TX where they fell short against North Dakota State.
With the playoff fever amidst in Huntsville, the Bearkats know that they have to play extremely well against No.2 seeded Eastern Washington on Saturday at 3 p.m. if they want to make it back to Frisco.
What they also know is that playoff fever is amdst in Huntsville with a loyal fan base with who will be watching them on ESPNU and cheering them on to victory.
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