FRISCO, Texas – Southeastern Louisiana University placed three student-athletes, including automatic selection and two-time honoree Tommy Connors, to the 2008 Capital One/Southland Conference Football All-Academic Team in a release by the league office on Monday.

Joining Connors on the All-Academic squad were senior offensive lineman Brad Bardy and sophomore tight end Cole Wardell.

Connors, a first-team All-Southland Conference and third-team Associated Press All-American selection, led Southeastern with 108 tackles and paced the SLC with four interceptions on the season. The junior, who carries a 3.08 grade point average in accounting, posted four games with 10 or more tackles, highlighted by a 15-tackle performance at nationally-ranked Central Arkansas.

Bardy, who earned his degree in Kinesiology earlier this month, started all 12 games at center for the Lions and anchored a line that helped quarterback Brian Babin post career-high numbers in nearly every category. The Covington native, who was a two-year starter on the offensive line, finished with a 3.44 grade point average.

Wardell, from Rockwall, Texas, played in all 12 games and caught eight passes with a touchdown. Wardell, a 3.73 student-athlete in General Business, caught two passes in games at Alcorn State, Stephen F. Austin and Nicholls State and added his first career touchdown pass in the season-finale against the Colonels.

Northwestern State graduate Dudley Guice was named the Capital One/Southland Conference Football Student-Athlete of the Year. Guice, a cum laude graduate last May, managed a 3.60 grade-point average as a criminal justice major and started all 12 games for the Demons this past fall while pursuing additional hours in addiction studies.

The Fayette, Miss., native, led Northwestern's run-oriented offense in receiving his final two seasons. As a senior, Guice ranked among conference leaders with team-high total of 35 catches for 606 yards despite missing three games and most of a fourth with an early season ankle injury.

The Southland Conference awards committee, which consists of one administrator from each of the 12 member schools, voted for the student-athlete of the year. The Southland student-athlete of the year award is presented to the one student-athlete who achieves excellence in both academics and athletics. All nominees shall have earned at least a 3.2 GPA on a 4.0 scale, and demonstrated athletics achievement for at least two years at the nominating institution.

Six of Guice's teammates joined him, including linebacker Blake Delcambre, running back Quinten Goodie, defensive back Lance Lacoste, defensive lineman Kendall Rodrigue and wide receiver Adam Varnado.

Texas State, which won its first outright conference championship since 1983, had four players make the all-academic team, including running back Blake Burton, quarterback Bradley George, defensive lineman Travis Houston and defensive back Will Thompson.

McNeese State, Sam Houston State and Southeastern each placed three student-athletes on the team, while two from each Central Arkansas and Stephen F. Austin made the squad. Nicholls State had one honoree.

There were 10 automatic selections to the All-Academic team. To be an automatic selection, a student-athlete must make at least one of the following teams: first-team All-Southland Conference, College Sports Information Directors of America/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District VI team or FCS Athletic Directors Association Academic All-Star Team.

Four players, including Rodrigue, David Ballard and Brant Linde, both of McNeese State, and Cory Long of Stephen F. Austin each earned CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District VI recognition, while five players were named FCS ADA Academic All-Stars, including Ballard, Guice, Linde, Long and Houston.

Three others – Eman Naghavi of McNeese State, Tim Knicky of Stephen F. Austin and Patrick Dolan of Nicholls State – were automatic selections by virtue of being named first-team All-Southland Conference.

Ballard, Long and Linde made the All-Academic team for the third time, while two-time honorees include Burton, George, Guice, Knicky, Naghavi, Varnado, and Nolen Bucek and Jeff Sparks, both of Sam Houston State.

The All-Academic teams are voted on by the head coaches, sports information directors and academic/compliance administrators from each Southland Conference university. Student-athletes must possess a 3.0 cumulative GPA, have completed one full academic year at the nominating institution and participated in at least 50 percent of the team's competition to qualify for the all-academic squad.

Included in Capital One's support of the Southland Conference's Academic Awards Program is the F.L. McDonald Postgraduate Scholarship, the All-Academic Teams, the Student-Athlete of the Year, the Scholar-Athlete Award and the Commissioner's Honor Roll.


2008 Southland Conference Football All-Academic Teams
OFFENSE
Pos. Name University Class Hometown GPA Major
QB - Bradley George+, Texas State, Jr., New Braunfels, Texas, 3.16, Industrial Technology
WR - Dudley Guice^+, Northwestern State, Gr., Fayette, Miss., 3.60, Criminal Justice
WR - Adam Varnado+, Northwestern State, Sr., Big Sandy, Texas, 3.33, Social Studies Education
RB - Blake Burton+, Texas State, Sr., Hungerford, Texas, 3.43, Exercise and Sports Science
RB - Quinten Goodie, Northwestern State, Sr., Lafayette, La., 3.47, Computer Information Systems
TE - Cole Wardell, Southeastern La., So., Rockwall, Texas, 3.73, General Business
OL - Eman Naghavi*+, McNeese State, Sr., Katy, Texas, 3.23, Management
OL - David Ballard*#, McNeese State, Gr., Lake Charles, La., 3.71, Exercise Science
OL - Jordan Bowersox, Sam Houston State, Jr., Wichita, Kan., 3.77, Finance
OL - Brad Bardy, Southeastern La., Sr., Covington, La., 3.44, Kinesiology
OL - Casey Thurber, Central Arkansas, Jr., Tulsa, Okla., 3.53, Chemistry
K - Cory Long*#, Stephen F. Austin, Sr., Richardson, Texas, 3.91, Finance

DEFENSE
Pos. Name University Class Hometown GPA Major
DL - Tim Knicky*+, Stephen F. Austin, Jr., Cedar Park, Texas, 3.36, Kinesiology
DL - Kendall Rodrigue*, Northwestern State, Sr., Walker, La., 3.69, Accounting
DL - Travis Houston, Texas State, Jr., Converse, Texas, 3.77, Computer Information Systems
DL - Taylor Scott, Central Arkansas, Jr., Little Rock, Ark., 3.10, Marketing and Management
LB - Nolen Bucek+, Sam Houston State, Sr., Houston, Texas, 3.02, Marketing
LB - Blake Delcambre, Northwestern State, Sr., New Iberia, La., 3.03, General Studies
DB - Tommy Connors*+, Southeastern La., Jr., Marrero, La., 3.08, Accounting
DB - ¬Brant Linde*#, McNeese State, Sr., Mandeville, La., 3.62, Accounting
DB - Will Thompson, Texas State, Jr., Katy, Texas, 3.02, Accounting
DB - Lance Lacoste, Northwestern State, Jr., New Orleans, La., 3.15, Health and Exercise Science
DB - Jeff Sparks+, Sam Houston State, Sr., Houston, Texas, 3.13, Criminal Justice
P - Patrick Dolan*, Nicholls State, So., Mobile, Ala., 3.74, Marketing

^ 2008 Southland Football Student-Athlete of the Year
* Automatic Selection
+ Two-time all-academic selection
# Three-time all-academic selection