Feb. 13, 2008

RUSTON, La. - Louisiana Tech football coach Derek Dooley recognized his players for their hard work and effort during the 2007 season at the team's annual banquet Wednesday evening at Squire Creek Country Club. Dooley thanked his team and coaching staff for making his first year as a head coach a successful one.

"This is a night to thank and honor all the people that put in countless hours of sacrifice for Louisiana Tech," Dooley said. "I am especially grateful for the fine group of seniors who, during their last year, welcomed and embraced a wave of change."

Before the season started, Dooley noted he would not name team captains until the end of the season. He believed the true team captains would emerge through their leadership on the field and in the locker room naturally. With the season concluded, Dooley and his staff recognized the 2007 team captains selected by the players as linebacker Quin Harris, offensive lineman Tyler Miller and defensive tackle Josh Muse.

All the players who were honored by the coaches in the Western Athletic Conference as All-WAC were again recognized by the team. Safety Antonio Baker and punter Chris Keagle both earned first team honors from the conference. Harris, running back Patrick Jackson, Miller, Muse and defensive end Chris Pugh all earned second team.

Baker, Keagle, Harris, cornerback Tony Moss and safety/linebacker Mark Dillard also were honored for earning WAC Player of the Week during the season.

The banquet each year is a chance for the coaching staff to recognize outstanding performances from players throughout the season, and Myke Compton was honored as Special Teams Player of the Year for the Bulldogs. Compton had 15 tackles on special teams and played a key role in setting up blocks for kick and punt returns. He was said to be one of the "unsung heroes" of the special teams unit by special teams coordinator Eric Russell for doing the work that goes unrecognized by many.

Considine received the President's Award given each year to the player that best exemplifies what it means to be a student-athlete. Considine's combined excellence in the classroom and on the field caught the eye of the coaching staff and Tech president Dr. Dan Reneau.

"Ryan Considine is truly a model representation of what we expect from all of our student-athletes at Louisiana Tech," Reneau said. "This year's recipient was a three-year starter on the offensive line, and was the only player in the country to play his fifth season after having received not only a Bachelor's degree in economics, but also a Master's in business Administration."

Four players received the Joe Aillet Award in recognition of each honoring the former Tech coach by following the core set of values the team believes are critical to winning - Attitude, Discipline, Toughness, Effort and Team. Receiver Philip Beck, center Lon Roberts, Baker and Harris all received the Joe Aillet Award.

The coaching staff began the evening by rewarding all players earning letters for the season. Defensive backs coach Terry Joseph also spoke of the tradition of awarding letters and said the staff will be bringing back another tradition to the program. All Bulldogs earning letters will receive letter jackets.