Willis Named First Team All-SEC By Coaches

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. Ole Miss senior linebacker Patrick Willis continues to collect the awards as the Bruceton, Tenn, native was named to the 2006 All-SEC First Team by the league coaches a day after he picked up SEC Defensive Player of the Year and first team honors from The Associated Press.

Junior running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis and sophomore left tackle Michael Oher also were honored by the coaches, as each player was named to the All-SEC Second Team.

Willis led the SEC in tackles for the second straight season. This year he was the only SEC defender to average more than 10 tackles a game with 11.4. His 137 stops rank sixth in the nation, and he’s third in solo tackles with more than seven a game.

Winner of this year’s Conerly Trophy (awarded to state’s top player), Willis is also a finalist for the Butkus Award, which will be announced Thursday. In addition he finished the season as a runner-up for the Bronko Nagurski Award.

Green-Ellis rushed for 999 yards, the fourth-highest total in school history and set a school record with 234 rushing attempts on the season.  He finished second in the conference to Arkansas’ Darren McFadden (1,558 yards), the AP Offensive Player of the Year.  

The New Orleans, La., native eclipsed the 100-yard mark in rushing four times including a career-best 135 yards on 21 carries vs. No. 9 Georgia.

Oher was instrumental in helping Green-Ellis gain his yards, working along the Rebel offensive line. The Memphis, Tenn., native, was honored as a member of the 2005 All-SEC Freshman Team.

The University of Mississippi Athletics

Related Videos