Southwestern Oklahoma quarterback Steve Day and Midwestern State
quarterback Zack Eskridge topped the 2009 Lone Star Conference
football academic awards, which were announced by league officials
on Thursday.
Day, a senior from Edmond, Okla., picked up his
second-straight LSC North Academic Player of the Year award with a
3.67 grade point average in Exercise Science. This year, he broke
his own single-season school records for passes attempted and
completed. He also owns the Bulldogs' career passing records for
completions, attempts, yards and touchdowns.
Eskridge, a junior from Rowlett, Texas, has a 3.61
GPA in Radiology and is a 2009 CoSIDA/ESPN the Magazine Academic
All-District first team member. He is the NCAA Division II pass
efficiency leader this season at 184.85 and set a NCAA Division II
single-game record when he completed 24 of 25 passes in MSU's 38-7
win over Texas A&M-Kingsville on October 17. He set the
Mustangs' single-season records in passing yards, completions,
efficiency rating, touchdown passes and completion percentage this
year, in addition to holding the school's career marks for TD
passes and completion percentage.
The two lead the list of 22 players named to the
LSC All-Academic Teams, which recognize both academic and athletic
achievement.
The All-Academic Teams are voted upon by the
league's sports information directors. To be eligible for LSC
academic honors, student-athletes need at least a 3.30 GPA and must
be at least a sophomore. All qualifying student-athletes not voted
to the All-Academic Team are then placed on the Commissioner's
Honor Roll.
A total of 50 players were honored for their
academic achievements, and all 13 of the LSC's football teams were
represented.
Five schools, Northeastern State, Southeastern
Oklahoma, Central Oklahoma, East Central and Texas A&M-Commerce
each placed two players on the North Division All-Academic team, in
addition to SWOSU's one.
League and division co-champion MSU led the South
Division team with three selections, while Eastern New Mexico,
Angelo State and Abilene Christian each earned two, and Tarleton
State and Texas A&M-Kingsville rounded out the squad with one
apiece.
In addition to Day, the North Division All-Academic
team was comprised of SOSU's Jerrod Temple and Welton Johnson,
NSU's Jared Homer and Joe Kok, UCO's Tucker Cason and Matt Jackson,
ECU's Trevor Suffal and Joshua Maldanado and A&M-C's Blake
Patton and T.J. Nielsen.
With Eskridge on the South Division All-Academic
team were teammates J.J. Ford and Tyler Maner, ENMU's Nathan Uland
and Karlton Graves, ASU's Josh Neiswander and Ian Ritchey, ACU's
Eric Edwards and Emery Dudensing, TSU's Dustin Washburn and TAMUK's
Jorge Guerra.
2009 Lone Star Conference Football
All-Academic Awards
North Division All-Academic
Team
Player,
Pos.
Team
Year
Major
Hometown
Steve Day,
QB
Southwestern Oklahoma
Sr. Exercise
Science
Edmond, Okla.
Jared Homer,
K
Northeastern
State
Sr. Elementary
Education
Mustang, Okla.
Joe Kok,
P
Northeastern
State
Sr. Mathematics
Education
Broken Arrow, Okla.
Jerrod Temple,
TE
Southeastern Oklahoma
Sr. Occupational
Safety
Carrollton, Texas
Tucker Cason,
LB
Central
Oklahoma
So.
Undecided
Oklahoma City, Okla.
Welton Johnson, DB Southeastern
Oklahoma
Jr.
HPER
Ashdown, Ark.
Matt Jackson,
WR
Central
Oklahoma
So.
Kinesiology
Edmond, Okla.
Blake Patton,
WR
Texas A&M-Commerce
Jr.
Environmental
Science
Baytown, Texas
Trevor Suffal,
OL
East
Central
Jr.
Kinesiology
Duncan, Okla.
Joshua Maldanado, RB East
Central
Jr. Political
Science
Sachse, Texas
T.J. Nielsen,
TE
Texas A&M-Commerce
So.
Kinesiology
San Antonio,
Texas
North Division Special
Recognition
Academic Player of the Year:
Steve Day, Southwestern Oklahoma
North Division Commissioner's Honor
Roll
East Central: Josh Pulattie,
Sr.;
Northeastern State: Beau
Beathard, So.; McCoy Campbell, Sr.; Colton Ables, So.; Kaelin
Woods, Sr.;
Southeastern Oklahoma State:
Hunter Phelan, So.; Ronnie Willrich, So.;
Southwestern Oklahoma State:
Cody Gragg, Jr.; Stephen Speer, So.
South Division All-Academic
Team
Player,
Pos.
Team
Year
Major
Hometown
Zack Eskridge,
QB Midwestern
State
Jr.
Radiology
Rowlett, Texas
Nathan Uland,
LB
Eastern New
Mexico
Jr. Finance
Denton, Texas
Karlton Graves,
OT Eastern New
Mexico
Jr. Political
Science
Brownwood, Texas
Josh Neiswander, QB Angelo
State
Jr. Business
Administration Winnsboro,
Texas
Jorge Guerra,
OT
Texas
A&M-Kingsville
Sr.
Management
Roma, Texas
Eric Edwards,
LB
Abilene
Christian
Jr.
Mathematics
Teaching
Stephenville, Texas
Ian Ritchey,
LB
Angelo
State
Sr.
Mathematics
Boyd, Texas
Emery Dudensing, FB Abilene
Christian
Jr.
Mathematics
Rule, Texas
J.J. Ford,
TE
Midwestern
State
Sr. Comp. Science /
Mathematics
Garden City, Kan.
Dustin Washburn, C
Tarleton
State
Sr.
Kinesiology
Abilene, Texas
Tyler Maner,
DB
Midwestern
State
So.
Business
Fredricksburg, Texas
South Division Special
Recognition
Academic Player of the Year:
Zack Eskridge, Midwestern State
South Division Commissioner's Honor
Roll
Abilene Christian: Derek
Odelusi, So.; Adam Myer, Sr.;
Angelo State: Pete Parker, Sr.;
D.J. Clough, So.; Dylan Wiggs, Jr.; Zach McCormick, So.; Wade
Goode, So.;
Stephen Boyles, So.;
Eastern New Mexico: Devin Sweet,
Sr.; Mark Pena, Jr.;
Midwestern State: Lee
Scott
, Sr.; Michael Mejia, Jr.;
Tarleton State: Levi
Kirkland
, So.; Chris Oguayo, Jr.; Brandon
Johnson,
Jr.
Texas A&M-Kingsville:
Timothy Byerly, Jr.; Thermon Biggers, Jr.; Drew Harper, So.;
West Texas A&M: Steve Smith,
Jr.