Hampton, Va. – For their part in leading Hampton to its third consecutive 10-win season and Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) championship, seven Pirates were named first team All-MEAC as selected by the league’s coaches and sports information directors. Coach Joe Taylor was honored as the Coach of the Year for the fourth time, while linebacker Justin Durant became the first player in MEAC history to win a third Defensive Player of the Year Award.

Durant led the league with 98 total tackles, including 65 solo stops. The senior from Florence, S.C., also had 13 tackles for loss, a sack, five pass breakups and a fumble recovery for a Pirate defense that allowed just 14.5 points per game (7th in NCAA).

Joining Durant on the first team defense was defensive end Kendall Langford and cornerback Travarous Bain. Langford led the Pirates with 15.5 tackles for loss and eight sacks despite seeing double teams on a weekly basis. Bain earned his second consecutive appearance on the all-conference team after leading the Pirates with five interceptions and breaking up six other pass attempts.

Senior Andrew Paterini, Hampton’s all-time leader in field goals and points by a kicker, was honored as the league’s top placekicker once again. He led Hampton with 96 points scored for the year, making 16-of-21 field goal attempts and 48-of-52 PATs.

The Pirates also placed three players on the first team offense with quarterback Princeton Shepherd, running back Alonzo Coleman and offensive tackle Nevin McCaskill garnering All-MEAC honors. Shepherd had the best season of his career by completing a school record 67.6% of his passes and throwing for 1,750 yards and 17 touchdowns. He ended his career at Hampton with a record of 30-7 as a starter.

Protecting Shepherd’s blind side for the past four years was McCaskill a 6-4, 292-pound native of Tallahassee, Fla. He also helped clear the way for Hampton offensive unit that led the league in rushing touchdowns (28) and total touchdowns (52).

Despite carrying the ball a career-low 158 yards due to injury, Coleman ran for 1,052 yards and 12 touchdowns to become just the sixth player in Division I-AA history to post four 1,000-yard seasons. He departs as the conference’s all-time leading rusher with 4,648 yards and 64 touchdowns.

Five other Hampton players were named to the All-MEAC second team and they include: WR Marquay McDaniel, DE Marcus Dixon, CB Calvin Bannister, P Jahmal Blanchard and KR Kevin Teel.

Complete 2006 All-MEAC Football Team