Dec. 5, 2006
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The University of New Mexico had nine players honored this morning as the Mountain West Conference announced its 2006 all-conference football teams and individual award winners as selected by the nine head coaches and media panel. Senior kicker Kenny Byrd (Albuquerque, N.M.) shared the inaugural Special Teams Player of the Year award with Utah punter/kicker Louie Sakoda and was one of five Lobos named to the all-MWC first team.
Senior offensive guard Robert Turner (Austin, Texas) was a first team selection for the second straight year, while senior lobo (safety) Quincy Black (Chicago, Ill.), junior wide receiver Travis Brown (West Covina, Calif.) and sophomore tailback Rodney Ferguson (Albuquerque, N.M.) earned first team honors for the first time in their careers.
Junior defensive end Tyler Donaldson (Lawrenceville, Ga.) and sophomore cornerback DeAndre Wright (Clinton, Md.) were named to the all-MWC second team, while sophomore cornerback Glover Quin (Summit, Miss.) and junior wide receiver Marcus Smith (San Diego, Calif.) were honorable mention picks.
New Mexico’s five first team selections were tied for second in the league behind TCU’s six. The Lobos’ seven all-conference (first and second team) picks ranked third behind TCU (10) and BYU (9).
After landing just four total first team all-conference selections in his first three seasons at New Mexico, head coach Rocky Long has had 31 first team honorees since 2001 – an average of more than five per season. UNM has had 25 players named to the all-MWC first team over the past four years.
Notables
Kenny Byrd is the first player in both UNM and MWC history to be named Special Teams Player of the Year as the award did not exist prior to 2006…Byrd is the third Lobo kicker to be named first team all-MWC, joining former teammate Wes Zunker (’03) and Vladimir Borombozin (’01).
Robert Turner is the third UNM offensive lineman to earn first team all-MWC honors in back-to-back years, joining C Ryan Cook (`03,’04, ’05) and OG/OT Claude Terrell (’03, ’04)…the Lobo offensive line unit, known as The Hitmen, has had at least one first team selection each of the past four years…four different linemen have earned first team honors eight times since 2003.
New Mexico has had at least one player named first team all-conference every year under ninth-year head coach Rocky Long and 15 total defensive all-MWC awards since 1998.
Rodney Ferguson was the lone sophomore on the first team offense and is the first underclassman running back on the all-MWC first team since former teammate DonTrell Moore did it as a sophomore in 2003…Ferguson and Moore (four times) are the only Lobo running backs to earn first team all-conference honors since 1996.
Travis Brown’s selection gives New Mexico a first team all-conference wide receiver in back-to-back years for the first times since Terance Mathis in 1986 and ’87…Hank Baskett was the first Lobo receiver to earn first team all-MWC honors in 2005.
Click here for a complete listing of the 2006 All-Mountain West teams and individual honors.