NORFOLK – Old Dominion senior linebacker Jason Henderson was named the Sun Belt Preseason Defensive Player of the Year and earned first-team all-conference honors, the league announced Monday.
Monarchs defensive lineman Denzel Lowry was named to the second team, as selected by the league’s head coaches and media members.
Henderson led the nation for the second straight season in tackles per game, averaging 14.2, and finished third in the country with 1.6 tackles for loss per game.
Henderson finished second in the country with 170 tackles, one behind Jay Higgins of Iowa, who played two more games than Henderson.
Henderson is college football’s active leader in career tackles, with 436. He’s 142 tackles away from breaking the FBS career record held by Troy’s Carlton Martial.
Lowry started all 13 games last season and led ODU defensive linemen with 46 tackles and four sacks. He also had 5 1/2 tackles for loss.
David Hall, david.hall@pilotonline.com
ODU predicted sixth in division
Old Dominion was picked sixth in the seven-team East Division, which Appalachian State was predicted to win. Texas State was named the West Division favorite.
James Madison, which finished atop the Sun Belt East in its first two seasons in the league, was chosen second in the division. The Dukes received two first-place votes and tallied 79 total points. App State claimed 12 first-place votes and 96 points.
App State’s Joey Aguilar was named the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year. He shared first-team preseason honors at quarterback with Texas State’s Jordan McCloud, who was the Sun Belt Player of the Year last season for JMU.
The Dukes’ first-team preseason honorees included offensive lineman Cole Potts and punter Ryan Hanson. JMU’s second-teamers were offensive lineman Tyshawn Wyatt, defensive lineman Eric O’Neill and defensive back Chauncey Logan.
East Division
(First-place votes), points
1. Appalachian State (12) 96
2. James Madison (2) 79
3. Coastal Carolina 67
4. Georgia Southern 50
5. Marshall 49
6. Old Dominion 32
7. Georgia State 19
West Division
(First-place votes), points
1. Texas State (9) 92
2. Troy (4) 68
3. Louisiana (1) 66
4. Arkansas State 65
5. South Alabama 54
6. Southern Mississippi 31
7. Louisiana Monroe 16
Staff reports
