LAKE CHARLES – The revealing of McNeese Football's All-75
th Anniversary Team continues on Monday with the release of the program's greatest running backs.
The 2018 season will mark the 75
th year of McNeese Cowboy football.
In conjunction with that, McNeese Athletics will be releasing its All-75
th Anniversary Team that will be broken down by positions.
The criteria for being named to the team includes one of the following, but not all three: a member of the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame, named an All-American, or earned first team all-conference honors two or more years.
This running back group features a total of 22 backs – 14 that are in the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame, five all-Americans, and 13 who where named first team all-conference two or more times.
2018 All-75th Anniversary Running Backs (alphabetical order)
Charles Anastasio (1963-64) – A 1964 Williamson Mid-Bracket All-American… two-time first team All-Gulf States Conference selection… rushed for 1,143 yards in his two-year career… three games where he rushed for 100 yards or more with a high of 135 yards against Northwestern State on Oct. 4, 1952.
Andre Anderson (2010-11) – Rushed for 1,473 yards in his two seasons with the Cowboys and is currently ranked 28
th on the all-time rushing list… named first team All-Southland Conference in both the 2010 and 2011 years… ranked tied for eighth all-time with two games in rushing for 150 yards or more (170 vs. Texas State, Nov. 13, 2010; and 158 vs. UTSA on Nov. 12, 2011).
Jessie Burton (1998-2000) – Currently ranked eighth on the all-time rushing list with 2,637 yards… tied for sixth with 28 career rushing touchdowns and tied for first with 18 rushing TDs in a single season (1998)… current record holder with seven rushing TDs in a game (at Southern Utah in 1998)… ranked fourth all-time with a rushing average of 116.2 per game… tied for first with seven 100-yard rushing games in a season (1998) and is second with 17 career 100-yard rushing games… ran for 1,172 yards in 1998 which currently ranks him 10
th in the record book… had an 80-yard TD run against Southern Utah in 1998 that currently ranks as the 13
th-longest in school history… a two-time all-Southland Conference selection… named the Louisiana Freshman of the Year in 1998)
Carol Breaux (1966-69) – 1969 team captain… two-time All-Gulf States Conference selection as a fullback… team offensive MVP for 1968 when he led the Cowboys in rushing… his 171-yard rushing game against Southeastern Louisiana in 1996 ranks 33
rd in school history for most rushing yards in a game.
Jesse Castete (1952-55) – A standout running back and one of the first McNeese players to go on and play in the NFL where he was drafted by the Chicago Bears and also playing for the Los Angeles Rams where he started as a defensive back… during his years with the Cowboys, was twice named MVP… accumulated 1,969 rushing yards which currently ranks 15
th all-time… a two-time All-Gulf States Conference selection… 1955 team captain… inducted into the McNeese Hall of Fame in 1982.
Tony Citizen (1986-89) - Citizen made national news in his very first game for the Cowboys when the Church Point native ran for 306 yards in the 1986 season opener against Prairie View, setting what was then a NCAA freshman record plus Southland, McNeese and Louisiana single game records… a starter at tailback all four of his seasons with the Cowboys and total 3,284 career rushing yards which currently ranks third on the university's all-time chart... his 33 career rushing TDs currently ranks him fourth while his nine 100-yard rushing games in a career is ranked sixth… he rushed for 100 or more yards in 1989, ranking tied as the 10
th-most in a season while his three games of rushing for 200 or more yards in a career ranks him tied for first… a first team all-Southland and all-Louisiana pick, Citizen was named his team's MVP in 1989 and the school's athlete of the year for the 1989-90 season and was named a member of the SLC's 1970s all-decade team... also earned all-conference honors as a freshman in 1986… played two seasons of professional football, one year with Tampa Bay and one with Miami… he was inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 2014.
Jules DeRouen (1951-53) - He played in the early 1950s for the Cowboys and in 1952 set a rushing standard that currently ranks No. 2 in the school record book 66 years later - 1,313 yards… His 7.8 average per carry remains a school record… DeRouen only played in a few games the 1953 season before leaving school and joining the Marines… the 1,624 yards he netted in his career ranks him No. 21 on the school's career list... twice in his career he ran for over 200 yards in a game, netting 213 on 21 carries against Sam Houston State and 210 yards on 21 trips against Tampa University, both in the 1952 season… his six 100-yard rushing games in 1952 ranks tied as the fourth-most in a season in school history while four of those went for 150 or more yards, tying him with the school record… he was inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 1982.
Henry Fields (1992-95) - He's currently the all-time leading career rusher in McNeese history with 4,358 yards… led the Cowboys in rushing for four straight seasons, going over the 1,000 mark three times - 1,206 yards in 1995 (currently eighth all-time); 1,100 yards in 1994; and 1,198 yards (ninth all-time) as a rookie in 1992… played on conference championship teams in 1993 and 1995 and in four straight NCAA FCS playoffs while helping the Cowboys to their first-ever semifinal appearance in 1995… his 90-yard TD run against Idaho in 1994 is tied as the third-longest in school history… he also recorded TD runs of 71 and 70 yards in his career… his 16, 100-yard rushing games in his career ranks as the third most in school history while his six in 1995 ranks tied as the fourth-most in a single season… he was an all-conference (1994, 1995) and all-Louisiana pick (1993, 1995) and was named McNeese's Offensive MVP in 1992… inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 2009…. Fields passed away in 2008.
Larry Grissom (1968-71) - A standout running back, he once was the Cowboys all-time leading rusher and still ranks seventh on the list with 2,761 career yards… played in the late 1960s and early 1970s and was one of the stars on McNeese's Grantland Rice Bowl team in 1971… a two-time McNeese MVP (1969, 1971), he led the team in rushing three straight years, netting 1,149 yards in 1969 (currently ranks as the 11
th-most yards in a season in school history)… three times he rushed for over 150 yards in a game (tied for seventh all-time) and had a career high of 233 yards on 30 carries in a game against ULM (then-Northeast Louisiana) in 1969 which currently ranks as the fourth-most in a game in school history… his six 100-yard rushing games in 1969 ranks him tied for fourth in the record book while his nine career 100-yard games ranks him tied for sixth… a two-time All-Gulf States Conference pick… a 1985 inductee into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame.
Rogers Hampton (1956-57) - One of the top running backs at McNeese in the 1950s, leading the team in rushing in 1956 with 596 yards and in 1957 with 450… also returned kickoffs and punts and in 1956 led the nation with a 30-yard average on punt returns, returning eight for 238 yards and a touchdown… his 89-yard touchdown run against Southwest Oklahoma in 1956 still ranks as the fifth-longest rushing score in school history… he also had a 72-yard score against Louisiana College in 1956… in addition, he had a 57-yard punt return for a TD versus Sam Houston State in '56, ranking as the 20
th-longest in history… a two-time all-Gulf States Conference pick… he's a member of the Ark-La-Tex Hall of Fame as a prep track athlete and is the only athlete from Shreveport to have ever won three events at the same state high school meet… he was drafted by the Chicago Bears after McNeese but opted to sign with Montreal of the CFL where his career ended due to injuries… inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 1993… Hampton passed away in 2010
Desmond Jones (1950-52) - He was a football standout for the Cowboys in the 1950s and was the football team's MVP in 1951 when he helped the Cowboys to 5-4-1 record and to a victory in the Cosmopolitan Bowl in the school's first season of senior college football… that year he helped set a school record on a 99-yard touchdown pass reception from Lester Landry, a record that can only be matched and will never be broken… served as the team's co-captain that season… he went on to coach the Cowboy baseball team for two years, placing third in the conference in 1967 all while being a member of the McNeese football coaching staff from 1965 to 1969… McNeese's Athlete of the Year Award is named in his honor and memory… he was inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 1997… Jones passed away in 2009.
Buford Jordan (1980-83) - A four-year starting tailback for the Cowboys during a period where he set school, Southland Conference and Louisiana rushing records… Ran for a record 4,156 yards in his career, three times eclipsing the 1,000-yard mark, and scored 45 TDs… his rushing record held up until Henry Fields broke it in 1995 but is still ranked No. 2 all-time… he rushed for 1,267 yards (sixth all-time) in 1981 and 1,116 yards (12
th all-time) in 1982… he followed that up with 1,007 yards his senior season… his 20 100-yard career rushing games continues to top the school record list while his seven century marks in 1981 ranks tied for first… he rushed for 150 or more yards eight times in a career (school record), four of those in 1983 (tying a school record)… his 45 career rushing TDs continues to top the school chart and his 18 TDs in 1981 ties him with Jessie Burton as the most in a season… his best rushing game was against ULM (then-Northeast Louisiana) in 1981 when he ran for 208 yards on 25 carries… that total ranks as the 13
th-most in a game in school history… Earned AP All-American honors in 1983, was a three-time first team All-SLC selection and All-Louisiana selection… 1981 SLC Offensive Player of the Year… 1983 Louisiana Offensive Player of the Year… 1980 SLC Freshman of the Year… 1981 and 1983 McNeese MVP… , all-conference and all-Louisiana honors and was twice named the school's MVP. In 1981 he was the SLC player of the year and in 1983 he was the Louisiana player of the year… 1983 James J. Corbett Award as Louisiana's Amateur Athlete of the Year… played in the East/West Shrine Game… drafted in the first round by the New Orleans Breakers of the USFL in 1984… after two seasons with the Breakers (team moved to Portland in 1985), he went on to play seven seasons as the starting fullback for the New Orleans Saints… inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 1993 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 2011.
Vick King (2001-03) – In three seasons, rushed for 3,130 yards, ranking him fifth on the school's career record list… helped guide McNeese to three straight Southland Conference championships, becoming the first school in league history to achieve that mark, and the 2002 National Championship game… rushed for 1,000 yards or more two times (1,240 in 2003, ranking 7
th all-time; and 1,103 in 2002, 14
th all-time)… scored 26 career TDs, ranking him eight all-time while his 11 TDs scored in 2003 ranks tied as the ninth-most in a season… recorded 10, 100-yard rushing games in his career to rank tied for fourth and had five 100-yard or more games in 2003, tying at the 10
th-most in a season… ran for 200 or more yard twice – 215 yards at Grambling on Sept. 20, 2003 (8
th-most) and 208 at Jacksonville State on Oct. 19, 2002 (11
th-most)… 2002 and 2003 Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Year… two-time first team All-SLC and All-Louisiana (2002, 2003)… 2003 McNeese Offensive MVP… played in the Blue/Gray Game.
Luke Lawton (2000-03) – Arguably one of the greatest fullbacks in McNeese football history… scored 22 career rushing touchdowns which currently ranks him 12
th all-time in the McNeese record book… ran for a career-high 115 yards on just seven carries at ULM on Sept. 14, 2002… rushed for 1,114 yards in his career and caught another 70 passes for 571 yards and nine TDs… his career pass receptions ranks him 25
th all-time in McNeese history and third-most in running back receptions… scored 31 total touchdowns in his career ranking him tied for fifth on the all-time TD list… helped lead McNeese to three straight Southland Conference championships, becoming the first school in league history to achieve that mark, and the 2002 National Championship game… two-time first team All-SLC selection (2002 and 2003)… played in the Las Vegas All-American Game and the Villages Gridiron Classic… had a seven-year career in the NFL playing for Buffalo, the New York Giants, Atlanta, New York Jets, Indianapolis, Philadelphia and Oakland… was a member of the Super Bowl XLI Championship Colts team.
Darrell Lester (1962-63) - A hard running fullback in a Cowboy alignment in the 1960s that utilized just such a runner to get the hard yardage… earned Williamson Mid-Bracket All-American honors in 1963 when he led the Cowboys to an undefeated season, the first of six unbeaten regular seasons in school history... twice he was named to the all-Gulf States Conference team and led the league in scoring in 1963 with 68 points… a two-way player who also played linebacker… after college, he was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the ninth round of the 1964 NFL Draft… he was inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.
Theron McClendon (1978-81) - He wasn't very big (5-foot-8, 162-pounds) but he's one of the best running backs in McNeese football history, having rushed for 2,920 yards in four years (sixth on the all-time chart)… carved up defenses with his dashing, darting style and twice he ran for over 200 yards in a single game (212 vs. La Tech in 1979, 10
th all-time; and 203 vs. Nicholls State in 1980, 15
th all-time)… the 46 times he carried the football against Louisiana Tech in 1979 remains as a school single-game record… led the Cowboys and the SLC in rushing in 1980 with 1,279 yards (5
th-most in a game)… played on two SLC championship teams and in two Independence Bowl games (1979 and 1980)… his eight 100-yard rushing games in a career is ranked eighth in school history while his five games with 150 yards or more in a career ranks him tied for third… ranked tied for ninth on the career list with 24 rushing touchdowns, is fourth with 593 career rushes and is second on the single-season list with 257 carries in 1980… he had two TD scores of 70 yards or more in his career – 87 vs. Lamar in 1980 which ranks as the seventh-longest in school history, and 72 yards vs. Nicholls in 1980… earned first team all-conference and all-Louisiana honors in 1980… 1980 McNeese Offensive MVP… inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 1998.
Toddrick Pendland (2006-09) - Another running back sensation for the Cowboys as he helped McNeese win three league titles in his four years… a two-time Associated Press All-American (2008, 2009), he racked up 3,137 career rushing yards that currently ranks him No. 4 on the school's all-time list… he compiled 3,504 all-purpose yards ranking him seventh all-time... his 1,431 rushing yards in 2008 continues to sit atop the team's record book… he also led the team in rushing in 2009 with 1,059 yards… his 130.1 rushing yards per game average in 2008 is the second-highest in a season in school history while his seven 100-yard rushing games in that same season is tied for the most in a season… he compiled 13, 100-yard rushing games in his career with seven of those going for 150 yards or more… he ran for 242 yards against Stephen F. Austin in 2008, a mark that ranks second all-time… twice he scored on TD runs of 70 yards or more – 70 vs. Henderson State in 2009 and 73 vs. Southeastern Louisiana in 2006… McNeese posted a 34-13 overall mark in his career and 22-5 record in conference games… named first team all-SLC in 2008 and 2009 and all-Louisiana in 2008… 2008 SLC Offensive Player of the Year and McNeese MVP… 2009 team captain and team Offensive MVP… inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.
Artie Shankle (1976-79) - The top running back for the Cowboys from 1976 to 1979, leading the team in rushing three of those seasons… compiled 2,143 yards in his career ranking him 11
th on the school's all-time list… played in two Independence Bowl games and was the team's MVP in 1979 when he rushed for 938 yards and eight touchdowns as the Cowboys went undefeated in the regular season and led the Cowboys with 85 yards against Syracuse in the 1979 Independence Bowl… is second in the record book with five rushing touchdowns scored against Nicholls on Oct. 7, 1978… rushed for 100 yards or more seven times in his career, ranking hi tied for ninth all-time… best game came on Oct. 20, 1979 when he ran for 161 yards on 35 carries to help lift the Cowboys to a thrilling 10-7 win over Arkansas State in front of 20,000 in Cowboy Stadium… his 4-yard TD run with seven minutes to play put the Cowboys on top for good… a three-time first team all-SLC selection (1977, 78, 79) and a 1979 all-Louisiana recipient… 1979 McNeese team MVP… 1978 and 1978 McNeese Offensive MVP… had a brief stint in the professional ranks… inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 2005 and the Silsbee High School Wall of Fame in 2013… Shankle passed away in June 2014
Kenneth Sweeney (1948-49) – A standout running back for the Cowboys who was also a stellar punter… named the team's MVP in 1949 as he led McNeese to an appearance in the Oil Bowl… was team captain in 1949… after his playing days, he held several positions on the McNeese campus from 1952-88, including the rodeo coach from 1954-59 where he helped the team win three national championships… he later taught agriculture economics, management, was director of farms and grounds, and was the university's Vice President of Administrative and Student Affairs… in 1988, he received the Outstanding McNeese Alumni Award… he was inducted into the McNeese Sports Hall of Fame in 1992… he passed away in July 2014.
Merlin Walet (1963-65) - Perhaps the toughest runner in McNeese history, he was a three year letterman and an MVP in 1965… played on the undefeated team in 1963 and on two conference championship squads… in 1965 he led the Cowboys in rushing with 914 yards and completed his career with 1,349 yards and an outstanding 5.2 yard average per carry… earned all-conference honors in 1965 and led the Gulf States Conference in both rushing and scoring… after college he was drafted and played professional football with Denver… he passed away in May 2015.
Bobby Wilson (1974-76) – One of the toughest fullbacks to ever wear the blue and gold, Wilson racked up 2,457 rushing yards in his career which currently ranks him 10
th in the McNeese all-time record book… he was a member of the 1976 Cowboy team that won the Southland Conference championship and played in, and won, the very first Independence Bowl… Wilson came up big in helping the Cowboys reach that bowl game when he scored a TD against ULL (then-USL) to pull the Cowboys to within a score and eventually a 20-19 win over the Cajuns in a packed house at Cowboy Stadium… rushed for 100 yards or more six times in his career and posted a career-high 144 yards against Arkansas State in 1976… he led the team in rushing that season with 875 yards and nine touchdowns… he was named all-SLC in 1974 and 1976… 1974 McNeese MVP.
Marcus Wiltz (2010-13) – In his four seasons with the Cowboys, Wiltz totaled 2,566 rushing yards, ranking him ninth on the school's career rushing list… his 1,287 yards in 2013 ranks as the fourth-most in a season while his 11 rushing TDs that same year is tied as the ninth-most… he scored 24 rushing TDs in his career (tied for ninth rushing and 10
th overall) and recorded 10 games where he ran for 100-yards or more (tied for fifth)… his career-high rushing game came at Central Arkansas on Oct. 5, 2013 where he ran for 181 yards on 17 carries… named 2013 STATS All-American… 2012 and 2013 All-Southland Conference and All-Louisiana… McNeese Offensive MVP in 2012 and 2013.
2018 All-75th Anniversary Running Backs (List)
Charles Anastasio
Andre Anderson
Carol Breaux
Jessie Burton
Jesse Castete
Tony Citizen
Jules DeRouen
Henry Fields
Larry Grissom
Rogers Hampton
Desmond Jones
Buford Jordan
Vick King
Luke Lawton
Darrell Lester
Theron McClendon
Toddrick Pendland
Artie Shankle
Kenneth Sweeney
Merlin Walet
Bobby Wilson
Marcus Wiltz
Schedule of team releases:
Thursday, Aug. 2 – Quarterbacks
Monday, Aug. 6 – Running Backs
Wednesday, Aug. 8 – Wide Receivers
Friday, Aug. 10 – Tight Ends
Monday, Aug. 13 – Offensive Line
Wednesday, Aug. 15 – Defensive Line
Friday, Aug. 17 – Linebackers
Monday, Aug. 20 – Defensive Backs
Wednesday, Aug. 22 – Kickers/Punters
Friday, Aug. 24 – Kick/Punt Returners
