April 24, 2010

RUSTON - Less than 24 hours after seeing his former teammateD'Anthony Smith taken in the third round, Louisiana Tech's Dennis Morris was selected by the Washington Redskins in the sixth round of the 2010 NFL Draft.

Morris was taken with the fifth pick in the sixth round, the 174th pick overall selection.

The Shreveport native who starred at Woodlawn High School was named the top tight end in the nation by the College Football Performance Awards in January. The All-American selection finished his senior year at Tech with 38 catches for 623 yards and a program record 12 touchdowns.

The 6-foot-2, 260-pounder earned first team all-Western Athletic Conference and first team all-state honors by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association this past year.

Morris finished his college career with 70 receptions for 1,107 yards and 16 touchdowns, averaging more than 15.0 yards per reception.

It marks the first year since 2004 that multiple Bulldogs were selected in the NFL Draft. In 2004, both Luke McCown (4th round, Cleveland Browns) and Josh Scobee (5th round, Jacksonville Jaguars) were taken in the draft.

Morris is the first LA Tech player to be drafted by the Redskins organization since Bob Brunet was taken in the seventh round of the 1968 NFL Draft.

With Morris selection, the Western Athletic Conference has five draftees with Louisiana Tech being the only program with more than one.