11 Hurricanes Earn All-BIG EAST Honors
Dec. 10, 2003
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (BIG EAST Conference) – Miami junior safety Sean Taylor capped an exceptional 2003 regular season by being named BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year, the league announced Tuesday. Pittsburgh receiver Larry Fitzgerald earned Offensive Player of the Year, while Andy Lee of Pittsburgh and DeAngelo Hall of Virginia Tech shared the Special Teams Player of the Year award. West Virginia wideout Chris Henry garnered BIG EAST Rookie of the Year, while the Mountaineers’ Rich Rodriguez earned Coach of the Year honors.
The All-BIG EAST First and Second Teams were also announced. All selections are made by the league’s head coaches, who are not permitted to vote for their own players.
Taylor leads a Miami defense that is second nationally in pass defense, allowing 147.5 yards per game. The junior safety has a league-best nine interceptions, a total that is tied for second in the country. He has returned three pickoffs for scores, setting a BIG EAST standard for interception returns for touchdowns in a season. He is second in the league with 18 pass break-ups and also has recorded 72 tackles (36 solo) in 2003. Taylor is the sixth BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year winner from Miami.
Fitzgerald is the third Panther player to earn offensive accolades and just the second to do so outright (Billy West, Pittsburgh, 1994). Fitzgerald set nearly every conference receiving record this season, ranking first in the all-time record book in catches (87), yards (1,595) and touchdown receptions (22). The sophomore wide receiver has posted 132.9 yards per game, the top mark in the nation and an average that is first in league annals entering the bowl season. He leads the country with 10 games with 100 receiving yards or more and has caught a touchdown in an NCAA-record 18 consecutive contests. A finalist for the Maxwell and Walter Camp Awards, Fitzgerald is the third wide receiver (Antonio Bryant, UP, Santana Moss, UM; 2000) in history to win the league award.
Lee wins special teams recognition for the second year in a row after leading the BIG EAST in punting with 44.0 yards per kick, an average that is 14th nationally. The senior had the best average for a conference-leader since 1997 (Jimmy Kibble, VT, 45.1). He punted 75 times for 3,300 yards, with 20 traveling 50 or more yards. Twenty-three of his kicks were inside the 20-yard line, as he averaged 43.1 yards or better in nine of 12 outings. He had a long punt of 62 yards. He is the first player in BIG EAST history to win special teams honors in back-to-back seasons.
SHall is first in the conference and No. 7 in the nation in punt returns with a 14.47-yard average. The junior had 30 returns for 434 yards, including two for touchdowns. He recorded two games with more than 100 return yards, with a long run of 60 yards. Hall, who also played on offense this season, was an All-BIG EAST First Team choice on both special teams and defense.
Henry is the third Mountaineer in BIG EAST history (Grant Wiley, 2000; Amos Zereoue, 1996) to earn rookie honors after finishing second in the conference with 10 touchdown catches and 87.3 yards per game. Henry, who did not play last year, finished the regular season with 38 receptions for 960 yards, averaging 25.3 yards per catch. The first three receptions of his career earlier this season went for touchdowns. He has been very strong in his last seven contests, catching 31 passes for 805 yards and seven scores. Henry also has four outings of 100 receiving yards or more in 2003.
Rodriguez guided West Virginia, picked fourth in the preseason poll, to a share of the BIG EAST Championship. The title was the second for the Mountaineers and first since 1993. After a 1-4 start, he helped maintain the team’s focus as WVU concluded the year with a seven-game winning streak. Rodriguez has led West Virginia to a 12-2 conference record over the past two seasons and guided them to their second straight bowl appearance. He is the second WVU coach (Don Nehlen, 1993) to earn league Coach of the Year honors and the fourth overall to be a unanimous selection.
The All-BIG EAST selections boasted six repeat first team choices. Six players moved up from second to first team, with three players repeating on the second team. Six players were unanimous picks on the first squad – Fitzgerald, Taylor, Rod Rutherford and Andy Lee (Pittsburgh), Jonathan Vilma (Miami), Kevin Jones (Virginia Tech) and Grant Wiley (West Virginia). Every school in the conference had at least one player on the first squad. Vilma is just the ninth player in conference history to be a first team choice three times in his career.
2003 BIG EAST FOOTBALL AWARDS
BIG EAST OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR LARRY FITZGERALD, PITTSBURGH, WR, Sophomore, 6-3, 225, Minneapolis, Minn./Academy of the Holy Angels/Valley Forge Military Academy (Pa.)
BIG EAST DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR Sean Taylor, MIAMI, S, Junior, 6-3, 225, Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep
BIG EAST SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYERS OF THE YEAR ANDY LEE, PITTSBURGH, P, Senior, 6-2, 205, Westminster, S.C./West-Oak DeANGELO HALL, VIRGINIA TECH, PR, Junior, 5-11, 198, Chesapeake, Va./Deep Creek
BIG EAST ROOKIE OF THE YEAR CHRIS HENRY, WEST VIRGINIA, WR, Sophomore, 6-4, 190, Belle Chasse, La./Belle Chasse
BIG EAST COACH OF THE YEAR RICH RODRIGUEZ, WEST VIRGINIA, 65-52-2 (.555) – 11th Season; At WVU: 20-16 (.556) – 3rd Season Alma Mater: West Virginia (1986); Hometown: Grant Town, W. Va.2003 ALL-BIG EAST FIRST TEAM
OFFENSEPos. Player School Cl. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School/Junior CollegeWR Larry Fitzgerald** Pittsburgh So. 6-3 225 Minneapolis, Minn./Academy of the Holy Angels/Valley Forge Military Academy (Pa.)WR Zamir Cobb Temple Sr. 6-1 185 Washington, D.C./RooseveltOT Eric Winston Miami So. 6-7 290 Midland, Texas/LeeOG Augie Hoffmann Boston College Sr. 6-2 307 Parkridge, N.J./St. Joseph’sC Jake Grove Virginia Tech Sr. 6-3 300 Forest, Va./Jefferson ForestOG Chris Snee Boston College Jr. 6-3 331 Montrose, Pa./MontroseOT Rob Petitti Pittsburgh Sr. 6-6 330 Rumson, N.J./Rumson-Fair Haven RegionalTE Kellen Winslow Miami Jr. 6-5 243 San Diego, Calif./Scripps RanchQB Rod Rutherford** Pittsburgh Sr. 6-3 225 Pittsburgh, Pa./Perry Traditional AcademyRB Kevin Jones** Virginia Tech Jr. 6-0 209 Chester, Pa./Cardinal O’HaraRB Quincy Wilson West Virginia Sr. 5-9 210 Weirton, W. Va./WeirPK Jon Peattie Miami RF 6-3 200 Clearwater, Fla./CountrysideKR/PR DeAngelo Hall Virginia Tech Jr. 5-11 198 Chesapeake, Va./Deep Creek
DEFENSEDL Vince Wilfork** Miami Jr. 6-2 344 Boynton Beach, Fla./SantalucesDL Raheem Orr Rutgers Sr. 6-4 260 Elizabeth, N.J./ElizabethDL Mathias Kiwanuka Boston College So. 6-8 246 Indianapolis, Ind./CathedralDL Louis Gachelin Syracuse Sr. 6-1 287 Miami, Fla./Miami JacksonLB Jonathan Vilma** Miami Sr. 6-2 220 Coral Gables, Fla./Coral GablesLB D.J. Williams Miami Sr. 6-2 249 Pittsburg, Calif./Concord De La SalleLB Grant Wiley** West Virginia Sr. 6-1 230 Trappe, Pa./Perkiomen ValleyCB Antrel Rolle Miami Jr. 6-1 197 Homestead, Fla./South DadeCB DeAngelo Hall Virginia Tech Jr. 5-11 198 Chesapeake, Va./Deep CreekS Sean Taylor** Miami Jr. 6-3 225 Miami, Fla./Gulliver PrepS Brian King West Virginia Sr. 6-0 180 Damascus, Md./DamascusP Andy Lee** Pittsburgh Sr. 6-2 205 Westminster, S.C./West-Oak2003 ALL-BIG EAST SECOND TEAM
OFFENSEPos. Player School Cl. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School/Junior CollegeWR Ernest Wilford Virginia Tech Sr. 6-4 221 Richmond, Va./Armstrong/Franklin/Fork UnionWR Chris Henry West Virginia So. 6-4 190 Belle Chasse, La./Belle ChasseOT Adam Terry Syracuse Jr. 6-8 314 Queensbury, N.Y./QueensburyOG Vernon Carey Miami Sr. 6-5 363 Miami, Fla./NorthwesternC Nick Romeo Syracuse Sr. 6-1 300 Tarpon Springs, Fla./East LakeOG Chris Myers Miami Jr. 6-5 283 Miami, Fla./PalmettoOT Jeff Berk West Virginia Jr. 6-5 275 Huber Heights, Ohio/WayneTE Kris Wilson Pittsburgh Sr. 6-3 250 Lancaster, Pa./J.P. McCaskeyQB Rasheed Marshall West Virginia Jr. 6-1 190 Pittsburgh, Pa./Valley Forge Military AcademyRB Derrick Knight Boston College Sr. 5-9 205 Rockland, Mass./Xaverian BrothersRB Walter Reyes Syracuse Jr. 5-10 205 Struthers, Ohio/StruthersPK Collin Barber Syracuse Jr. 6-1 214 Lexington, Ky./CatholicKR/PR Nate Jones Rutgers Sr. 5-10 180 Scotch Plains, N.J./Scotch Plains-Fanwood
DEFENSEDL Doug Goodwin Boston College Sr. 6-1 298 Freeport, N.Y./Holy TrinityDL Christian Ferrara Syracuse Sr. 6-4 295 North Caldwell, N.J./West Essex RegionalDL Cols Colas Virginia Tech Sr. 6-0 226 Plantation, Fla./South PlantationDL Nathaniel Adibi Virginia Tech Sr. 6-3 255 Hampton, Va./PhoebusLB Rich Scanlon Syracuse Sr. 6-1 243 Oradell, N.J./Bergen CatholicLB Rian Wallace Temple So. 6-4 240 Pottstown, Pa./PottstownLB Vegas Robinson Virginia Tech Sr. 6-0 244 Chesapeake, Va./Deep CreekCB Will Blackmon Boston College So. 6-0 196 Cranston, R.I./Bishop HendrickenCB Adam Jones West Virginia So. 5-11 175 College Park, Ga./WestlakeS Maurice Sikes Miami Sr. 5-11 197 Miami, Fla./PaceS Michael Crawford Virginia Tech Sr. 5-11 209 Baltimore, Md./PattersonP Brendan Carney Syracuse RF 6-5 188 Valley Forge, Pa./Malvern Prep** – unanimous selectionTies in the voting created an additional position for Special Teams Player of the Year.
