NEW ORLEANS – The Sun Belt Conference has been celebrating the 150th anniversary of college football throughout the 2019 football season, including the announcement Wednesday of the league's CFB150 Honor Roll consisting of five former players from each school as voted on by all 10 football-playing institutions.
The selections to represent the University of South Alabama — who were not limited to those that played while members of the Sun Belt — feature two former Jaguars currently playing in the National Football League, two other individuals invited to participate in the Reese's Senior Bowl following the conclusion of their collegiate careers and a three-time all-conference honoree.
South's Sun Belt Conference CFB150 Honor Roll are:
Gerald Everett, TE, 2015-16
A two-time first-team all-Sun Belt Conference selection, Everett caught 90 passes for 1,292 yards and 12 touchdowns — all figures that rank in the top 10 in the school's record books — over his two seasons with the Jaguar program. He led South with 41 catches for 575 yards and eight scores in 2015, adding four touchdowns rushing and another passing his first year on the team. As a senior Everett shared team-high honors with 49 receptions, recording 717 receiving yards — the most ever for a Jag tight end — and four touchdowns to help South earn an invitation to the NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl. He became the first player in program history to be selected in the National Football League Draft after the Los Angeles Rams chose him with the 12th selection of the second round, No. 44 overall, and is entering his third season with the franchise after appearing in Super Bowl LIII in February.
Jake Johnson, LB, 2010-12
Johnson played three seasons for the Jaguars, recording 245 total tackles including 25½ behind the line of scrimmage with nine sacks; he ended his career as the school's all-time leader in both stops and tackles for loss, remaining on the top-10 list in each category on the program's record list. After posting South season standards with 131 tackles and 15 stops behind the line — the former mark remains first on the list to this day — he was the first Jag ever to be voted first-team all-Sun Belt Conference to cap his senior year. Johnson also paced USA with 83 stops the previous fall as well as with four sacks his first season on the team in 2010. He was selected to participate in the Senior Bowl following his senior season, but suffered an injury at his first practice of the week and was unable to play at the professional level.
Chris May, OL, 2012-15
May earned all-Sun Belt Conference honors each of his last three years as a Jaguar after being named by beat writers to the league's All-Freshman Team his first season at the collegiate level. After moving into a starting role midway through his freshman campaign, May led South with 65 knockdown blocks and an 87 percent grade to be chosen first-team all-conference in 2013. He was an honorable mention all-Sun Belt selection the next year after helping the Jags to their first-ever postseason bowl appearance after the team received an invitation to the Raycom Media Camellia Bowl, earning second-team all-league recognition as a senior as well.
Jeremy Reaves, S/CB, 2014-17
The 2017 Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Year, Reaves earned all-league honors on three occasions including picking up first-team honors after each of his last two seasons at the collegiate level. He was voted second-team all-conference as a sophomore after posting 96 stops, eight tackles for loss and six passes broken up, receiving first-team all-Sun Belt recognition in 2016 after finishing with 85 tackles and seven pass breaks ups while helping South earn an invitation to the NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl. Reaves repeated as a first-team all-league honoree as a senior after pacing the Jags with 104 total tackles including seven behind the line of scrimmage, ending his career among the top 10 in eight different statistical categories in the school's record books. After appearing in the Senior Bowl, he signed with the National Football League's Philadelphia Eagles and is currently in his second season with the Washington Redskins.
Wes Saxton, TE, 2012-14
Saxton remains in the top 10 in South's career record books after recording 96 receptions for 1,126 yards over three years. He tied for the team lead with 50 catches in 2013, posting 635 receiving yards while being voted first-team all-Sun Belt Conference, and the following year posted 20 more receptions to help the Jaguars earn an invitation to the Raycom Media Camellia Bowl, the program's first-ever postseason appearance. Saxton was invited to play in the Senior Bowl following the conclusion of his collegiate career, and after signing with the New York Jets in 2014 he became the first former Jaguar to play in a National Football League game the following season when the Jets visited the Miami Dolphins. During the summer he participated in the Seattle Seahawks training camp.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
Join the South Circle, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics. Contributions to South Circle directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/give
—USA—
