Dec. 6, 2011

IRVING, Texas - The University of Tulsa had four Conference USA first-team selections and five second team performers as the Conference office announced it's all-league honors today, as voted on by the league's coaches.

Tulsa's first-team selections are all seniors and include offensive guard Clint Anderson, defensive end Tyrunn Walker, linebacker Curnelius Arnick and kicker Kevin Fitzpatrick. Second-team honorees on offense are quarterback G.J. Kinne, running back Ja'Terian Douglas, tight end Clay Sears and H-back Willie Carter. Safety Dexter McCoil earned second-team accolades as well.

The Hurricane also had seven players earn honorable mention all-conference merits, including running back Trey Watts and tackle Tyler Holmes on offense, while defensive honorees include end Cory Dorris, linebacker Shawn Jackson, safety Marco Nelson and cornerback Milton Howell. Senior deep snapper Bo Abbott was named special teams honorable mention.

Three Tulsa freshmen were named to the C-USA All-Freshman team this season, including defensive end Brentom Todd, safety Kwame Sexton and punter Cole Way.

The Hurricane had two players on defense earn first-team merits. Curnelius Arnick led the Golden Hurricane in tackles and ranks third in the nation in solo tackles with 91 and sixth for total stops with 142 tackles. He has turned in seven double-digit tackle games and had a career-high 19 stops at UCF. Tyrunn Walker has tallied 37 tackles this year, while leading the team in tackles for lost yardage and sacks. He has been credited with 12.5 stops for -72 yards and eight sacks for -57 yards.

Kicker Kevin Fitzpatrick, who took over the punting chores mid-season as well for the Hurricane, had the league's best field goal percentage at .857, while converting 12-of-14 field goals and 47-of-49 PATs on the year. Three of his 12 field goals were from 50+ yards, including one 51-yarder and two from 52 yards. Fitzpatrick became the school's all-time leading scorer in the final game of the regular season with 296 career points

The Hurricane had five players, including four on offense and one on defense, named to the C-USA second team.

A three-time C-USA All-Academic selection, Kinne earned all-conference accolades for the second straight year after earning first team honors in 2010. This season, the senior completed 64.1 percent of his passes for 2,876 yards and 25 TDs, while throwing for 300+ passing yards five times.

Kinne ranks second in school history for career total offense yards (10,617) and touchdown passes thrown (78), while ranking third on the school's career passing yards (9,258) list.

Sophomore Ja'Terian Douglas was the league's second-leading rusher with 836 yards for an 8.4 average per carry and four touchdowns. He had three 100+ yard rushing games on the season, including 194 yards against Marshall, 173 yards against No. 7 Oklahoma State and 137 yards against UAB. Junior Willie Carter was also a second-team selection after catching a team-leading 868 yards and seven touchdowns for the Hurricane

Tight end Clay Sears caught 35 passes for 438 yards and six touchdowns in his senior season. He had a season-best 105 yards and two touchdowns on nine receptions against UAB.

On the defensive side of the ball, junior safety Dexter McCoil grabbed second-team honors after tallying 74 tackles, six pass break-ups and four interceptions. He has now collected 11 career interceptions, just two shy of the school's all-time record.

The C-USA all-freshman team had three Tulsa rookies named to the squad as all three Hurricane honorees are from Tulsa-area high schools. Defensive end Brentom Todd (Union HS) played in all 12 games and collected 14 tackles, 4.5 stops for -17 yards and two sacks for -13 yards. Safety Kwame Sexton (Holland Hall HS) was credited with 20 tackles and had one fumble recovery on the year.

Punter Cole Way (Union HS) handled the punting duties for Tulsa's first seven contests and averaged 38.0 yards on 31 punts.

Tulsa will close out the 2011 campaign on December 30 against the BYU Cougars in the 2011 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl. The game will kick off at 11:00 am from SMU's Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas, Texas. Tickets are $40 and can be purchased online at www.tulsahurricane.com or by calling 918.631.GoTU (4688). Travel packages are available online at TUAlumni.com/bowl or by calling Spears Travel at 918-254-1608 or toll-free 800-688-8033.

C-USA ALL-CONFERENCE TEAMS
FIRST TEAM
OFFENSE
QB- Case Keenum, Sr., Houston
RB- Zach Line, Jr., SMU
RB- Charles Sims, So., Houston
OL- Clint Anderson, Sr., Tulsa
OL- Kelvin Beachum, Sr., SMU
OL- Lamar Holmes, Sr., Southern Miss
OL- Matt McCants, Sr., UAB
OL- Chris Thompson, Sr., Houston
TE- Justin Johnson, Sr., Houston
WR- Cole Beasley, Sr., SMU
WR- Patrick Edwards, Sr., Houston
WR- Darius Johnson, Jr., SMU
DEFENSE
DL- Vinny Curry, Sr., Marshall
DL- Tyrunn Walker, Sr., Tulsa
DL- Cordarro Law, Sr., Southern Miss
DL- Taylor Thompson, Sr., SMU
LB- Curnelius Arnick, Sr., Tulsa
LB- Sammy Brown, Sr., Houston
LB- Trent Mackey, Jr., Tulane
DB- Omar Brown, Sr., Marshall
DB- Richard Crawford, Sr., SMU
DB- Marquese Wheaton, Sr., Southern Miss
DB- Josh Robinson, Jr., UCF
SPECIAL TEAMS
K- Kevin Fitzpatrick, Sr., Tulsa
P- Kyle Martens, Sr., Rice
KR- Rannell Hall, Fr., UCF
PR- Tracy Lampley, Sr., Southern Miss
LS- Matt Camilli, Sr., UTEP
SECOND TEAM
OFFENSE
QB- Austin Davis, Sr., Southern Miss
QB- G.J. Kinne, Sr., Tulsa
RB- Orleans Darkwa, So., Tulane
RB- Ja'Terian Douglas, So., Tulsa
OL- Jacoby Ashworth, Jr., Houston
OL- Joe Duhon, Jr., Southern Miss
OL- Ron Leary, Sr., Memphis
OL- Nick Pieschel, Sr., UCF
OL- Jason Weaver, Sr., Southern Miss
TE- Clay Sears, Sr., Tulsa
WR-Tyron Carrier, Sr., Houston
WR-Willie Carter, Jr., Tulsa
WR-Lance Lewis, Sr., East Carolina
DEFENSE
DL- Marquis Frazier, Sr., SMU
DL- Dezman Moses, Sr., Tulane
DL- Dontari Poe, Jr., Memphis
DL- Scott Solomon, Sr., Rice
LB- Ja'Gared Davis, Sr., SMU
LB- Marcus McGraw, Sr., Houston
LB- Taylor Reed, Jr., SMU
DB- Jamie Bender, Sr., UAB
DB- Emanuel Davis, Jr., East Carolina
DB- D.J. Hayden, Jr., Houston
DB- Dexter McCoil, Jr., Tulsa
SPECIAL TEAMS
K- Danny Hrapmann, Sr., Southern Miss
P- Ian Campbell, Jr., UTEP
KR- Tyron Carrier, Sr., Houston
PR- Patrick Edwards, Sr., Houston
LS- Charley Hughlett, Sr., UCF