SCAC Announces 2014 All-Conference Football Team

SCAC Announces 2014 All-Conference Football Team

LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. – In exclusive voting by the head coaches of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC), Marquis Barrolle of Texas Lutheran University was selected as the league's Offensive Player-of-the-Year while Julian Turner of Trinity University was voted the league's Defensive Player-of-the-Year. Complete Release

In the same balloting, Nik Kelly of Southwestern University was named the SCAC Newcomer-of-the-Year and Tyler Brandenburg of Texas Lutheran was selected as Special Teams Player-of-the-Year. Danny Padron of Texas Lutheran was selected as the league's Coach-of-the-Year for the second consecutive season.

Marquis Barrolle, a 5-4, 150-pound sophomore running back from Ingleside, Texas, led the SCAC and finished the regular season as the third-ranked rusher in Division III with 1,568 yards on 247 carries. With at least one more game remaining for the NCAA Playoff bound Bulldogs, Barrolle has already posted the second-highest single season rushing total in the 53-year history of SCAC football. The super soph was a five time SCAC Offensive Player-of-the-Week during the regular season (tying a conference record) as he topped 200 yards rushing in a single game three times – including a 288-yard effort on Oct. 4 (vs. Howard Payne) that was the fifth-best single game rushing performance in league history. His 14 rushing touchdowns also led the SCAC and he chipped in with 34 receptions (fifth in the SCAC) for 236 yards (ninth in the SCAC) – giving him 1,804 all-purpose yards on the season (eighth in Division III).

Julian Turner, a 6-1, 215-pound sophomore linebacker from Katy, Texas, led the SCAC during the regular season with 103 tackles, including 35 solo efforts (sixth in the SCAC). He also had 10 tackles for loss, which ranked third among SCAC linebackers and ninth overall. He also added two sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. He was the SCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Week the final weekend of the season as he and the Trinity defense held Austin College to just 164 yards of total offense and 64 rushing yards. Turner's selection as SCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Year represents the seventh consecutive year that a linebacker has won or shared the league's top defensive honor, but he is the first sophomore to win the award since the league established the honor in 1987.

Nik Kelly, a 5-7, 160-pound freshman defensive back from Houston, Texas, led the SCAC in both passes defended with 19 (tied for third in the nation) and interceptions with six – despite some games in which he faced zero pass attempts. In addition, he was second in the league in pass break-ups with 13 and also chipped in with 42 tackles, including 24 solo efforts. The versatile Kelly also made his mark as a punt returner and a receiver for the Pirates. He returned eight punts for 39 yards and caught two passes during the 2014 season – taking both of them to the house on scoring plays of 38 and 42 yards. Kelly is just the second defensive back and first since 2011 to earn SCAC Newcomer-of-the-Year honors.

Tyler Brandenburg, a 6-2, 210-pound senior placekicker from Spring, Texas, made 15 of 21 field goals (71.4%) during the regular season, including a 51-yarder on Nov. 8 at Austin College – the fifth-longest field goal in SCAC history. His 15 field goals are tied for the second-most in a SCAC single-season and he was tied for third in the nation in field goals made per game (1.5) at the conclusion of the regular season. Brandenburg was successful on 48 of 52 extra-point attempts for TLU and finished the regular season with 93 points – the second consecutive year he has led the SCAC in scoring. He is also ranked 27th in NCAA DIII in scoring (9.3 points per game). Despite playing just two years in the SCAC, Brandenburg is already 10th all-time in league history for field goals made in a career with 27. Brandenburg, who shared SCAC Special Teams Player-of-the-Year honors last year with Trinity's Matthew Kennemer, continues a trend of repeat winners for the honor. The last four student-athletes to earn SCAC Special Teams Player-of-the-Year won the award in back-to-back seasons.

Texas Lutheran head coach Danny Padron led his Bulldogs to a 9-1 overall mark and a perfect 3-0 conference record for the second consecutive season. Texas Lutheran finished the regular season ranked 17th in the nation (AFCA) and broke into the D3football.com Top 25 for the first time in program history with a ranking of 24th. More importantly, after winning its second-consecutive SCAC championship, Texas Lutheran was rewarded with an at-large bid to the NCAA Playoffs – the program's first-ever postseason appearance in the Division III era. The Bulldogs travel to play No. 2 Mary Hardin-Baylor (10-0, 5-0 American Southwest Conference) on Saturday in the first round of the NCAA Division III Football Championship. Padron, who inherited a program that went 0-10 in 2009, has amassed a 30-19 record in his five years at the helm in Seguin. It is the second consecutive year that he has been honored as SCAC Coach-of-the-Year.

To read the complete 2014 All-SCAC Football Team release, click here.