FRISCO, Texas – Player of the Year Chase Fourcade headlined a league-high 15 all-conference selections for the Nicholls State University football team, as the league office announced its 2018 All-Southland Teams Tuesday afternoon.

In a season of firsts for the Colonels, including back-to-back FCS playoff appearances and a win over a Power 5 team, Fourcade added another as the program's first player of the year. He was joined on first team by offensive linemen Chandler Arceneaux and Ryan Hanley, kicker Lorran Fonseca, defensive lineman Sully Laiche, and linebacker Evan Veron. The six first-team SLC nods are the second-most in team history, trailing only the 2005 championship team's seven.
 

History, made.

For the first time in school history, the @SouthlandSports Player of the Year is a Colonel. QB Chase Fourcade takes the top honor and is one of 1️⃣5️⃣ Colonels to be named All-Southland #GeauxColonels #oNeway pic.twitter.com/JtCeIAfskJ

— No. 13/14 Nicholls 🏈 (@Nicholls_FB) November 20, 2018

A total of nine players earned second-team honors. Offensive selections were running back Dontrell Taylor, wide receiver Dai'Jean Dixon, offensive lineman Eddie Houston, and punter Winston Jones. The defensive honorees included linebacker Allen Pittman, cornerback Darren Evans, nickel Ahmani Martin, safety Khristian Mims, and punt returner Damion Jeanpiere Jr.

There were also four Colonels named honorable mention - Jeanpiere (WR), offensive lineman P.J. Burkhalter, and defensive linemen Ronald Ollie and Brandon Fontenot.

Fourcade earned the league's highest honor after leading Nicholls to an 8-3 overall record and the program's second Southland Conference title at 7-2 in SLC play. He has thrown for 2,447 yards, and 19 touchdown passes with only six interceptions and ranks 12th in the FCS in efficiency with a 148.5 rating. The Rummel graduate is also a vital component of the Colonels' No.1 rushing offense in conference play, totaling 488 yards on the year and a team-high nine touchdowns, which is tied for third in the Southland.

The Colonels feature the Southland's No. 3 scoring offense at 31.8 points per game while ranking second in total yards and rushing. A big reason for the success was the play of the offensive line, highlighted by three-time honoree Arceneaux and two-time selection Hanley. Houston, who made the preseason team, earned his first award as a second-team member. As a unit, the offensive line blocked for six 100-yard rushing efforts and allowed just 21 sacks, which ranks third in the league.

Juniors Laiche and Veron headed the Southland's top-rated defense, which ranks second in the FCS in sacks (40), third in tackles for loss (94.0), and ninth in points allowed (19.3) and rushing defense (102.2). Laiche, who has earned All-Southland in each of his three seasons, is tied for 11th in the Southland with 8.5 sacks and is 19th in the nation with 16.5 tackles for loss.  Veron also ranks among the nation's best with 20.5 TFL (6th) and is 11th in the Southland with 7.0 sacks.

Fonseca earned his second all-league in as many seasons after kicking a Southland-best 16 field goals. He leads the SLC in points scored by kicking with 86 and also had a program-record 56-yard field goal in the win at HBU. The field goal is the second longest in the FCS this season.

Jones, a native of Thibodaux,  landed on second team in his first season at punter after averaging 40.2 yards per punt, highlighted by a career-long 75-yarder in the win over Lamar. He also had a 70-yard punt that was downed at the 1 at Northwestern State.

Taylor and Dixon have been two of the Colonels' top playmakers this season on offense. Taylor was second in the Southland with 75.4 rushing yards per game, finishing the regular season with 754 yards and six rushing touchdowns with an impressive 7.3 yards per carry. Taylor had three 100-yard rushing performances in conference play, needing only six, nine, and 11 carries in the games to reach the mark.

Dixon has put together a strong sophomore campaign, leading Nicholls with seven touchdown catches and 47 receptions. He, along with senior Jeanpiere, both totaled 685 yards receiving for a 62.3 average. Jeanpiere was also recognized as honorable mention at wide receiver and second-team punt returner. With just 35 receptions, he averages 19.6 yards per catch to rank 12th in the country. The senior, who ranks fourth all-time in receiving yards, has two touchdown catches for the season.

Four defensive players round out the All-Southland honorees. Pittman was named All-Southland for the third straight season after finishing fourth on the team with 40 tackles. Martin also earned his second-straight All-Southland nod despite moving into the nickel position from safety. He led the team with four forced fumbles and added 2.5 sacks. In their first season as starters, Evans proved to be one of the top cover corners in the league and recorded two interceptions, while Mims led Nicholls with 60 tackles as a safety.

Rounding out the honorees are Burkhalter, Ollie, and Fontenot. Burkhalter started every game at left guard for the nation's 13th-ranked rushing offense. Ollie totaled 11.5 tackles for loss with 5.0 sacks, and Fontenot helped stuff the opposition with 14 stops at nose tackle.

Nicholls' 15 total all-conference selections were followed by Central Arkansas, UIW and Southeastern Louisiana each with seven. ACU, McNeese, and SHSU each placed five on the all-league teams, and Lamar, NSU, and SFA rounded out the list with three, two and one, respectively. 

In total, 12 honorees are returning all-Southland picks, led by three-time selections Arceneaux, Laiche, and Pittman of Nicholls and SHSU's Davion Davis and Nathan Stewart.

All-Southland Conference teams are voted on by the league's head coaches and sports information directors. Voting for one's own athletes is not permitted. To receive honorable mention, a player must appear on 25 percent of ballots.


2018 Southland Conference Football Individual Superlative Winners
Coach of the Year: Eric Morris, Incarnate Word
Player of the Year: Chase Fourcade, Nicholls
Offensive Player of the Year: Jazz Ferguson, Northwestern State
Defensive Player of the Year: BJ Blunt, McNeese
Freshman of the Year: Jon Copeland, Incarnate Word
Co-Newcomer of the Year: Jordan Hoy, Lamar
Co-Newcomer of the Year: Billy McCrary, Abilene Christian
Offensive Lineman of the Year: Garrett Bowery, Lamar

2018 Southland Conference Football First Team All-Conference Offense

Pos.	Name	School	Class	Hometown
QB	Chase Fourcade	Nicholls	Jr.	Metairie, La.
RB	Ra'Quanne Dickens	Incarnate Word	Sr.	Seminole, La.
RB	Carlos Blackman2	Central Arkansas	Jr.	Gosnell, Ark.
TE/HB	Bransen Schwebel	Southeastern Louisiana	Jr.	Amite, La.
WR	Jazz Ferguson	Northwestern State	Jr.	St. Francisville, La.
WR	Davion Davis3	Sam Houston State	Sr.	Hutto, Texas
WR	Phillip Baptist	Incarnate Word	Sr.	Fort Worth, Texas
OL	Garrett Bowery	Lamar	Sr.	Union Grove, Texas
OL	Hunter Watts	Central Arkansas	Jr.	San Antonio, Texas
OL	Ryan Hanley2	Nicholls	Sr.	Metairie, La.
OL	Chandler Arceneaux	Nicholls	Sr.	Bourg, La.
OL	Brandon Floores	Incarnate Word	Jr.	La Vernia, Texas
AP	Juwan Petit-Frere2	Southeastern Louisiana	Jr.	Orlando, Fla.
PK	Lorran Fonseca2	Nicholls	Sr.	Hercules, Calif.
P	Alex Kjellsten	McNeese	Sr.	Lake Charles, La.

 
2018 Southland Conference Football First Team All-Conference Defense

Pos.	Name	School	Class	Hometown
DL	Sully Laiche3	Nicholls	Jr.	Grammercy, La.
DL	Derick Roberson	Sam Houston State	Sr.	San Antonio, Texas
DL	Chris Terrell2	Central Arkansas	Jr.	Pensacola, Fla.
DL	Justin Alexandre	Incarnate Word	Sr.	Elmont, N.Y.
LB	BJ Blunt	McNeese	Sr.	New Orleans, La.
LB	Jeremiah Chambers	Abilene Christian	Jr.	Austin, Texas
LB	Evan Veron	Nicholls	Jr.	LaPlace, La.
DB	Davon Jernigan	Lamar	Sr.	Navasota, Texas
DB	Hayden Bourgeois	Northwestern State	So.	Church Point, La.
DB	Zyon McCollum	Sam Houston State	So.	Galveston, Texas
DB	Colby Burton	McNeese	Jr.	League City, Texas
DB	Juan Jackson	Central Arkansas	Jr.	Gardendale, Ala.
KR	Juwan Petit-Frere	Southeastern Louisiana	Jr.	Orlando, Fla.
PR	Devonte Williams	Southeastern Louisiana	Jr.	Columbia, Md.

 
2018 Southland Conference Football Second Team All-Conference Offense

Pos.	Name	School	Class	Hometown
QB	Jon Copeland	Incarnate Word	Fr.	Argyle, Texas
RB	Billy McCrary	Abilene Christian	Jr.	Austin, Texas
RB	Dontrell Taylor	Nicholls	Jr	White Castle, La.
TE/HB	Cody Ennis	Abilene Christian	Sr.	San Antonio, Texas
WR	Nathan Stewart3	Sam Houston State	Jr.	Dallas, Texas
WR	Dai'Jean Dixon	Nicholls	So.	New Orleans, La.
WR	Juwan Petit-Frere	Southeastern Louisiana	Jr.	Orlando, Fla.
OL	Eddie Houston	Nicholls	Sr.	Newton, Miss.
OL	Terence Hickman II	Incarnate Word	Jr.	Converse, Texas
OL	Grant Burguillos	McNeese	Jr.	Mandeville, La.
OL	Bill Weber	Abilene Christian	Sr.	Coppell, Texas
OL	Dakota Laws	Abilene Christian	Sr.	Denton, Texas
AP	Cedric Battle	Central Arkansas	Sr.	Wichita Falls, Texas
PK	Jonathan Tatum	Southeastern Louisiana	Sr.	Alexandria, La.
P	Winston Jones	Nicholls	Jr.	Thibodaux, La.

 
2018 Southland Conference Football Second Team All-Conference Defense

Pos.	Name	School	Class	Hometown
DL	Chris Livings	McNeese	Jr.	Lake Charles, La.
DL	Daniel Crosley	Lamar	Jr.	DeRidder, La.
DL	Eric Jackson2	Central Arkansas	Sr.	Apopka, Fla.
DL	Erick Fowler	Sam Houston State	Jr.	Austin, Texas
LB	Silas Stewart	Incarnate Word	Sr.	Wilmington, Del.
LB	Allen Pittman3	Nicholls	Jr.	St. Rose, La.
LB	Tamarcus Russell	Southeastern Louisiana	Sr.	Dadeville, Ala.
DB	Darren Evans	Nicholls	So.	Baton Rouge, La.
DB	Ahmani Martin2	Nicholls	Sr.	Reserve, La.
DB	Khristian Mims	Nicholls	Jr.	Baton Rouge, La.
DB	Bolu Onifade	Abilene Christian	Jr.	Oklahoma City, Okla.
DB	Alize Ward2	Stephen F. Austin	Jr.	San Diego, Calif.
KR	Cedric Battle	Central Arkansas	Sr.	Wichita Falls, Texas
PR	Damion Jeanpiere Jr.	Nicholls	Sr.	Kenner, La.

Honorable Mention: QB: Luke Anthony, Abilene Christian; Darrel Colbert Jr., Lamar; Shelton Eppler, Northwestern State; Bailey Zappe, Houston Baptist RB: Kierre Crossley, Central Arkansas; Darren Johnson, Southeastern Louisiana; Myles Wanza, Lamar. TE/HB: Case Robinson, Lamar. WR: Jakari Dillard, Central Arkansas; Kody Edwards, Incarnate Word; Damion Jeanpiere Jr. Nicholls; Tamrick Pace, Stephen F. Austin; Jarreth Sterns, Houston Baptist; Cyron Sutton, McNeese; Jaylen Watson, Northwestern State. OL: Pat Allen, Southeastern Louisiana; Frank Boudreaux, Northwestern State; P.J. Burkhalter, Nicholls; Kade Parmelly, Abilene Christian; Tristan Wendt, Sam Houston State. AP: Ameer King, Incarnate Word. PK: Gunnar Raborn, McNeese. DL: Isaac Adeyemi-Berglund, Southeastern Louisiana; Cole Burgess, Abilene Christian; Brandon Fontenot, Nicholls; Dedrick Garner, Lamar; Dante Hibbert, Abilene Christian; Obi Iheoma, Northwestern State; Jon Miller, Southeastern Louisiana; Darrius Montgomery, Incarnate Word; Ronald Ollie, Nicholls; Cody Roscoe, McNeese. LB: Chaston Brooks, Lamar; Mar'kel Cooks, Incarnate Word; Raphael Garner, Central Arkansas; Jack Gibbens, Abilene Christian; West Lambert, Incarnate Word; Langston Tunson, Houston Baptist. DB: Adrian Contreras, Sam Houston State; Adonis Davis, Abilene Christian; Trenton Gordon, Stephen F. Austin; Jackie Harvell, Central Arkansas; Aretavious Hendrix, Stephen F. Austin; Xavier Lewis, Southeastern Louisiana; Louis Otis, Incarnate Word; Malick Phillips, Incarnate Word; Rodney Randle, Lamar; Robert Rochelle, Central Arkansas. KR: Myles Ward, Northwestern State.