Line Named Preseason C-USA Offensive Player Of The Year

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DALLAS (SMU) – SMU senior running back Zach Line has been named the preseason C-USA Offensive Player Of The Year and four Mustangs were named first-team All-Conference by Blue Ribbon College Football Yearbook, the news outlet announced this week. Joining Line on the All-C-USA squad are defensive lineman Margus Hunt, wide receiver Darius Johnson and linebacker Taylor Reed.

Line was named first-team All-C-USA in both 2010 and 2011 and led the league in rushing both years. Last season, Line suffered a foot injury and missed the last three games of the season but still ranked seventh in the nation in rushing at 122.4 yards a game. He posted eight 100-yard rushing games in 10 games played and was named one of 10 Doak Walker Award semifinalists.

Hunt enters 2012 after being named the No. 1 athletic “freak” in college football by CBSSports.com. He is a three-time All-C-USA honorable mention selection and notched 28 stops and four blocked kicks in 2011. He wrapped up the season with a dominant performance in the BBVA Compass Bowl win, notching three sacks and five total tackles.

Johnson has been named MVP in back-to-back bowl games for the Mustangs and was a first-team All-C-USA pick in 2011. He finished the year with 79 catches for 1,188 yards and eight TDs.

Reed, who was All-C-USA in 2011 and on the All-C-USA Freshman Team in 2009, led SMU with 101 tackles last season, including 9.5 tackles for loss and four sacks. He was also selected to the Lombardi Award watch list.

On the heels of its third straight bowl appearance, SMU will host Texas A&M, TCU, Memphis, C-USA West rivals Houston and Tulsa and 2011 C-USA Champion Southern Miss at Ford Stadium in 2012. For Mustang ticket information, call the Athletics Department Ticket Office at (214) SMU-GAME (768-4263).