High Expectations Centered Around SFA Football
8/10/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 10, 2010
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Expectations for the 2010 football season are as high as they have been in several years for the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks. SFA was a unanimous pick to repeat as conference champions according to the preseason poll of the league head coaches and sports information directors. SFA is already ranked 12th nationally in one national poll, with several other polls waiting to be released in the coming days.
A good bit of those expectations are resting squarely on the shoulders of two individuals who were a part of J.C. Harper's first recruiting class after being named SFA head coach. Senior quarterback Jeremy Moses and senior linebacker Jabara Williams are two of the top players in the nation, and both are receiving early recognition for some major awards. Moses is one of 20 players named to the Walter Payton Award Watch List, while Williams has been named to the Buck Buchanan Award Watch List, an award given annually to the top defensive player at the FCS level.
A preseason All-America selection, Moses enters his final season as the school's all-time leader in pass yards, passing touchdowns, total offense and completions. The next group of records that fall to Moses' passing onslaught should be at the conference level, with an outside shot at moving into the NCAA's all-time top 10 in all four categories.
One of the favorites for the Walter Payton Award, the NCAA FCS' version of the Heisman Trophy, Moses guided an offense that led the nation in 2009 averaging nearly 344 passing yards per game. Moses was named the 2009 SLC Player of the Year for his efforts on the field.
Williams is one of the more intimidating players in the country. Standing 6-3, 225 pounds, the Garrison, Texas native proved his athletic ability during his freshman season where he played on both sides of the ball. Due to injuries in the Lumberjack backfield, Williams played running back and linebacker, and started at both positions in three games that year.
His sophomore season Williams focused solely on the defensive side of the ball, and responded by leading the league in tackles. As a junior, Williams was the catalyst for an improved defense that finished among the nation's top 20 in sacks and tackles for losses. A two-time first-team All-Southland Conference selection, Williams enters his final season looking to guide SFA to a return trip to the FCS playoffs and another conference title.
Both players were taken to Lake Charles, La., to represent SFA at the Southland Conference's annual media day event to kick off the upcoming football season. The most impressive thing about the SFA duo was not the potential for more individual hardware, but a focus on a common team goal. Both players were asked multiple questions about awards, honors, and future plans, but both redirected the conversation back to a single focus.
"In our school's history, we've never won back-to-back conference titles," said Moses. "I want to be a part of the team that brings that to SFA. That is our goal this year, and if we don't do that then I believe Jabara (Williams), myself and the rest of this senior class has failed."
Moses and Williams have also made SFA a member of a very elite group entering the upcoming football season. SFA is one of only eight schools in the country to have a player named to the watch list for both the Walter Payton Award and the Buck Buchanan Award.
There will be many more preseason polls, and honors to de distributed at all levels of the game in the coming days leading up to the 2010 campaign. But there is only one honor that SFA wants this season, the right to be called `Southland Conference Champions' for a second consecutive year. SFA begins its quest for a second-straight title Saturday, Sept. 4, when they travel to College Station, Texas to take on Texas A&M.
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