SUWANEE,
Ga. – In exclusive voting by the head coaches
of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC), Juan
Joseph of Millsaps College was selected as the league's Offensive
Player-of-the-Year for the second consecutive season while
Desmond Hendricks of Rhodes College and Casey Younger of
Millsaps split the coaches' vote to share the
league's
Defensive
Player-of-the-Year honor.
In the same
balloting, Walter Arrington of Birmingham-Southern College
was named the
SCAC Newcomer-of-the-Year while John Milazzo
of Millsaps was selected as Special Teams Player-of-the-Year.
Steve Mohr of Trinity University was selected as the league’s
Coach-of-the-Year.
Joseph, a
6-foot-2, 178-pound junior quarterback from Edgard, La., is
just the fourth player in SCAC history to earn the league's
Offensive POTY award in back-to-back seasons and the first to
do so it since Trinity All-American Roy Hampton in 2001 and 2002.
Joseph shattered all of the single-season school records he
set in 2006, passing for 2,860 yards and 31 touchdowns (tops
in the
SCAC) against just six interceptions. He completed 254 of his
394 attempts on the season - averaging a league-best 317.8 yards
per game with a pass efficiency rating of 148.36.
He also led the league in total offense, averaging 321.4 yards
per game.
A three-time SCAC Offensive Player-of-the-Week
selection during the season to gain his sixth POW honor overall,
Joseph broke three single-game, six single-season and four
career
school
records
this season
and ranked fifth in all of Division III in both total offense
and passing yards per game.
Joseph received
four votes in the Offensive POTY voting, followed closely by
Blake Barmore of Trinity with three votes. Jeremiah
Marks of DePauw Univ. and Nolan Swett of Colorado College
each received one vote.
Casey Younger,
a 6-foot-1, 260-pound senior defensive tackle from Vicksburg,
Miss., finished third in the league in sacks (7.0)
and fourth in tackles-for-loss (11.0). He had a career-high four
tackles for loss and three sacks in the 42-0 shutout of Rhodes
and was rewarded with the SCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Week honor.
An ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District VI selection,
Younger finished the 2007 campaign with 23 solo and 22 assisted
tackles
for 45 total tackles. He finishes his career ranked in the Top
15 in Millsaps history with 180 tackles, 29 tackles-for-loss
and 12 sacks. Younger is the Majors' first Defensive Player-of-the-Year
selection since All-American linebacker Matt O'Bryant won the
award in back-to-back years in 2001 and 2002.
John Milazzo,
a 5-foot-9, 180-pound punt/kick returner from Hammond, La.,
led the SCAC and was 33rd in the nation in punt returns
this season, averaging 11.5 yards per take-back. He also averaged
23.3 yards per kick return and had eight catches for 142 yards
and a touchdown as a wide receiver. Milazzo received 6 of 9
total votes to continue Millsaps' legacy of elite return men
that
was established last
season by
the 2006 SCAC Special Teams Player-of-the-Year, All-American
Chris Jackson.
A year removed from landing a school-record best 15 selections
(14 players) on the 2006 All-SCAC squad, Millsaps placed 13 on
this year's list including eight on the First Team and five
on the Second Team.
Below is the complete list of Millsaps players on the 2007 All-SCAC
Team:
2007 All-SCAC First Team:
James Antonini, Sr, OG, Santa Rosa, Calif.
John Shivers, So, OG, Summerville, Ala.
Eric McCarty, Jr, WR, Grand Prairie, Texas
Juan Joseph, Jr, QB, Edgard, La.
Casey Younger, Sr, DT, Vicksburg, Miss.
Denarold Anderson, Jr, DE, Edgard, La.
Ronnie Wheat, Sr, LB, Vancleave, Miss.
Ray Kline, Sr, DB, Vicksburg, Miss.
2007 All-SCAC Second Team:
Louis Conley, Sr, WR, Tupelo, Miss.
Raymece Savage, Jr, WR, Monroe, La.
Neil Woodall, Sr, FB, Covington, La.
Shawn Gillenwater, Sr, LB, Southaven, Miss.
Jacob Hanberry, Jr, DB, Cut Off, La.
2007 All-SCAC Honorable Mention:
Jonathan Brooks, Jr, DB, Roxie, Miss.
David Dale, So, DE, Amory, Miss.
Donnie Epps, Jr, WR, Grand Prairie, Texas
Marcus Harris, Jr, DB, Vicksburg, Miss.
Burt Pereira, Jr, WR/QB, Bush, La.
