DALLAS – Conference USA released its 2023 All-Conference and All-Freshman Teams on Tuesday and Jacksonville State had 14 players honored.
The Gamecocks are fresh off their first bowl selection in their FBS history and became just the fifth team to play in a bowl in their first season against an FBS schedule when they were invited to play in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl against Louisiana on Dec. 16. Jax State posted an 8-4 record, just the eighth team since 1970 to win at least eight games in the first season of FBS.
The CUSA All-Conference honors came on Tuesday, when the conference office announced the teams that were voted on by the league's head coaches.
Jax State had two First-Team All-CUSA players, with running back
Malik Jackson named to the offense and defensive end
Chris Hardie named to the defense.
Five Jax State players were honored as Second-Team All-CUSA players, with tight end
Sean Brown and offensive linemen
Treylen Brown and
Clay Webb selected to the offense and defensive backs
Jeremiah Harris and
Derek Carter on the defensive list.
Six more players received Honorable Mention All-CUSA honors in wide receiver
Perry Carter, offensive lineman
Will O'Steen, defensive end
J-Rock Swain, defensive tackle
Jeff Marks, linebacker
Quae Drake and punter
Jack Dawson. Offensive lineman
Xavier Bausley was named to the CUSA All-Freshman Team.
Jackson, a redshirt senior from Lufkin, Texas earned First Team All-CUSA Running Back honors in his first season with the Gamecocks after transferring from ULM, despite missing some action due to injury. The leading rusher on the No. 5 rushing offense in FBS and in a running back group that spreads the carries around, he has less than 23 percent of the Gamecocks carries but has over 30 percent of their rushing yards. He is ranked second in CUSA in rushing yards per game with 78.18 and is third in the league in rushing yards with 817 despite missing a game and being limited in two others. His seven rushing touchdowns rank third among all CUSA players and he leads Conference USA and ranks ninth in the nation in rushing yards per carry at 6.47.
Hardie, a redshirt junior from Vincent, Ala., quickly solidified himself as one of the top defenders in Conference USA. The top pass rusher on one of the best pass rushing defenses in the nation, he started every game on the defensive front. Hardie led a team that leads CUSA and is 10th nationally in sacks and is the team leader in sacks with 8.5, which also ranks 18th nationally. He is CUSA's individual leader in total sacks with 8.5 and in sacks per game with 0.71 and the Gamecocks' leader in tackles for a loss with 16.0, pacing a defense that leads CUSA and ranks 13th nationally in total tackles for a loss.
Sean Brown, a redshirt junior from Rome, Ga., is on the watch list for the John Mackey Award and one of the Gamecocks' top offensive players. He appeared in every game for the Gamecocks as a redshirt-junior, serving as a top blocker in the run game as well as a top target in the passing game. He blocked for the fifth-best rushing offense in FBS, while catching 18 passes for 292 yards and a team-high five touchdowns. He was named the Mackey Award National Tight end of the Week after five catches for 103 yards and a score against Middle Tennessee.
Treylen Brown is a redshirt senior from Spartanburg, S.C., that started every game at center for the Gamecocks and was the anchor in the middle of Jax State's offensive line. He led an offensive line that led the Gamecocks to fifth-best rushing offense in FBS through the regular season and helped pave the way for an offense that is averaging 232.2 yards per game on the ground. Jax State ran for at least 140 in every game but one in 2023, including seven games with more than 200 yards and a CUSA-record 522 rushing yards against LA Tech.
Webb, a junior from nearby Oxford, Ala., started every game but one at left guard for the Gamecocks in 2023 and was a key piece in an offensive line that led the Gamecocks to fifth-best rushing offense in FBS through the regular season. He helped pave the way for an offense that is averaging 232.2 yards per game on the ground and has run for at least 140 in every game but one in 2023, including seven games with more than 200 yards and a CUSA-record 522 rushing yards against LA Tech.
Harris, a redshirt senior from Shorterville, Ala., earned the All-CUSA selection at defensive back after his seventh season in a Jax State uniform. An appearance in the bowl game will break the record for games played in a Jax State career with 58, and he is seventh in school history in total tackles with 255. A solid force that has started at safety in every game, he ranks fourth on the team with 58 tackles, while also contributing a tackle for a loss and two interceptions.
Derek Carter is a redshirt sophomore cornerback from Birmingham, Ala., is one of the Gamecocks' top cover corners in 2023. He leads the team and is tied for third in CUSA in pass break-ups with eight – three more than the closest player on the Gamecocks. He is tied for sixth among all CUSA players in passes defended with eight and had a season-high eight tackles twice – at Coastal Carolina and vs. Western Kentucky.
Perry Carter is a redshirt-junior from Houston, Texas is Jax State's leading receiver and top big-play threat in the passing game. He is averaging 17.74 yards per reception, ranking him third among all CUSA receivers and had his best game of the season on the biggest stage, hauling in five catches for 106 yards and a score at South Carolina. He caught the game-tying TD at Sam Houston, capping Jax State's improbable comeback and caught seven passes for 134 yards in the regular-season finale at New Mexico State.
O'Steen is a redshirt-sophomore from nearby White Plains, Ala., who is also a member of the Conference USA All-Academic Football Team in 2023, already holding his undergraduate degree in Biology and working on his Master's in Biology. He started every game at left tackle for an offensive line that led the Gamecocks to fifth-best rushing offense in FBS through the regular season and helped pave the way for an offense that is averaging 232.2 yards per game on the ground.
Swain, a junior from nearby Oxford, Ala., Played in 10 games for Jax State before suffering an injury in the LA Tech game. The Gamecocks' starter at the bandit position and a key cog in one of the nation's top pass rushing defenses, he is tied for the CUSA lead in fumbles recovered with two. He is second on the team with 6.5 tackles for a loss, pacing the defense that leads CUSA and is ranked 13th nationally in that category. On the defense that leads CUSA and is 10th nationally in sacks, he is second on the team and eighth among all CUSA players with 4.0 sacks this season. His six career fumble recoveries are second among all active CUSA players.
Marks is a redshirt senior from Mobile, Ala., and one of the Gamecocks' top interior linemen on a defense that leads Conference USA and ranks in the Top 20 in FBS in stopping the run. He has a knack for getting the football, tied for the CUSA lead in fumble recoveries with two, while also forcing one fumble. He is second among the Gamecocks' defensive linemen in tackles with 34, while also adding 4.5 tackles for a loss and 1.5 sacks.
Drake is a redshirt senior from Wadley, Ala., that is one of the Gamecocks' leaders on defense in his first season after transferring from ULM for his senior season. Rotating with a deep corps of linebackers, Drake leads the Gamecocks and ranks ninth in CUSA with 86 tackles. He has started every game in the middle for the Gamecocks in his only season in Jacksonville and has made an immediate impact on his team and the conference. He's fourth on the team in tackles for a loss, a feat for a linebacker that plays for the team that leads CUSA and ranks 16th in the nation in total TFL.
A junior from Sylvania Waters, Australia, Dawson is the Gamecocks' punter for the third-straight season and one of the top legs in CUSA. He is third in CUSA in punting average with 42.62 yards per punt and leads Conference USA in Net Yards Per Punt with 40.09. He is second among all CUSA punters in punts of over 50 yards with 10, while he leads the conference with 22 punts pinned inside the 20. He was named the CUSA Special Teams Player of the Week twice – on Aug. 26 vs UTEP, when he punted five times for an average of 45.8 yards with two over 50 yards and three inside the 20, and on Sept. 23 against Eastern Michigan, when he punted five times for an average of 41.0 yards with one over 50 yards and two inside the 20.
Bausley, a redshirt freshman from Dunbar, W.Va., was an immediate impact maker as a freshman on the Gamecocks' offensive line. He started 11 games at right tackle for the Gamecocks in the regular season as a redshirt freshman and was a key part of an offensive line that led the Gamecocks to fifth-best rushing offense in FBS through the regular season. He helped pave the way for an offense that is averaging 232.2 yards per game on the ground.
