LAKE CHARLES, La. _ The University of Central Arkansas Bears had seven players selected to the preseason All-Southland Conference football teams on Wednesday. The teams were announced as part of the 2010 Southland Conference Football Media Day activities at the L’auberge du lac Casino Resort.
UCA’s first-teamers were senior kicker Eddie Carmona, senior offensive lineman Austin Emerson, senior fullback/tight end Rico Moss, Senior receiver Willie Landers, sophomore running back Jackie Hinton and senior defensive end Markell Carter. Senior cornerback Henry Minor was named to the second team.
“I’m certainly pleased that the conference coaches recognized the individual talents of these young men,’ said head coach Clint Conque, entering his 11th season at UCA. “ Certainly, as a football program, it’s our hope that this will motivate them to really continue the process of preparation for the upcoming season.’
Carter, a 6-foot-4, 248-pounder from Bartlesville, Okla., and Landers, a 6-2, 204-pounder from El Dorado, represented UCA at Media Day. Carter, named a second-team preseason All-American by The Sports Network on Monday, had 11.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks a year ago. He had 47 total tackles and recovered two fumbles en route to second-team All-SLC honors.
“Markell is a just really good athlete,’ said UCA head coach Clint Conque. “He can bend and he’s athletic. He’s gotten stronger. He’s still a work in progress as far as building the type of mass he’s going to need week in and week out. But he can really bend, he’s got length and long arms. He’s just a fabulous athlete for his size.’
Carter will be depended on heavily on a defense that lost seven starters, including All-American defensive end Larry Hart, now with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
“No. 1, we need leadership out of Markell,’ said Conque. “He’s probably our most experienced defender, particularly up front. He’s had a lot of preseason attention coming off an outstanding junior year and now he’ll be counted on to elevate his level of play even more this season.
“With Larry gone, he’s the guy now. He’s going to get the chip blocks, the slide protection, all that. Certainly, he’s going to have to bring his best effort every week to be the productive player we know he can be and that we need him to be.
“The key is he’s played with some great ones in Larry Hart, Taylor Scott, guys like Uriah Perry, a three-year starter. So he’s an opportunity to be around some outstanding players and he understands expectations. And he just needs to respect the process as we finish the summer and carry that over into camp.’
Landers was voted to the first team despite missing the entire 2009 season after injuring his knee on the first day of practice last fall.
“I think it’s impressive that the conference coaches voted Willie a first-team all-conference selection even though he didn’t play a down last year,’ said Conque, who is entering his 11th season at UCA. “ But the resume he put together before his injury was outstanding. He’s averaged over 16 yards per catch for his career. If he has another quality season, he has a chance to be in the top five or six receivers in our school history.’
Landers was UCA’s third-leading receiver in 2008 with 44 receptions for 735 yards and seven touchdowns. He averaged a team-high 16.7 yards per catch. Conque said the Bears, who lost seven games by a combined 23 points in 2009, could certainly have used Landers last season.
“Certainly not having him last year really hurt our big-play ability, as well as our ability to score in the red zone,’ he said. “He’s bigger, he’s stronger, and I think now it’s just a question of going out there and doing it in practice and preparing well. And I think there’s a little less pressure on him because we have some quality players at receiver as well as at tight end.’
Carmona, from Charleston, was a first-team All-Southland pick last season, leading the league in kicking with 37 of 37 extra points and 12 field goals. Emerson, from Sperry, Okla., was an honorable mention selection. Moss, from Hope, caught 10 passes for 110 yards in 2009, while Minor, from Baton Rouge, La., had 39 tackles, forced a fumble and recovered a fumble.
