Thirteen Frogs named to All-Mountain West Conference teams
12/5/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 5, 2006
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Thirteen TCU football players have been named to the 2006 All-Mountain West Conference football teams.First-team selections include defensive end Tommy Blake, return specialist Brian Bonner, defensive end Chase Ortiz, linebacker Jason Phillips, offensive tackle Herb Taylor and safety Marvin White.
The Frogs had four of the 11 first-team defensive selections. Blake was a unanimous choice. Bonner, a junior safety, was also named to the second team on defense.
TCU had the most first-team selections (six) of any team in the league as well as the highest number of first- and second-team picks combined (10). With four on the honorable-mention team, the Frogs tied Utah for the most overall selections (14).
Representing the Frogs on the second team were Bonner, quarterback Jeff Ballard, tailback Aaron Brown and offensive guard Matty Lindner.
Named as honorable-mention picks were linebacker Robert Henson, tailback Lonta Hobbs, placekicker Chris Manfredini and center Blake Schlueter.
Blake, Ortiz and Taylor were also first-team selections last season.
Blake and Ortiz, both juniors, are the MWC leaders in tackles for a loss with 13.5 and 10.0, respectively.
Blake (Aransas Pass, Texas) is also among the league's best with five sacks. He's forced two fumbles and had two recoveries, including one he returned 12 yards for a touchdown at New Mexico. Blake places fourth on the Frogs with 51 tackles.
Ortiz (League City, Texas) began the year with an interception at Baylor and closed the regular season with four tackles for a loss versus Air Force.
White, a two-time MWC Defensive Player of the Week, tops the Frogs with 79 tackles and four interceptions. The senior from Port Barre, La., forced two fumbles in the New Mexico game.
Phillips (Waller, Texas) is second on TCU with 67 stops, including five for a loss. In 2005, Phillips became the first freshman defensive player in league history to be named All-MWC when he was a second-team choice.
Taylor anchors a TCU offensive line that's allowed just 13 sacks, the lowest total in the MWC and tied for sixth-best nationally. A senior from Houston, Taylor has started all 48 games in his Frog career.
Bonner tops the MWC and ranks 15th nationally in punt return average (12.0 yards). The former prep quarterback from Beeville, Texas, has totaled 48 tackles on the season, including 8.5 for a loss with 4.5 sacks. He has two interceptions.
Ballard, an honorable-mention All-MWC pick in 2005, has posted three of the top-six single-game completion percentages in TCU history this season. He has connected on 61.5 percent of his passes for 2,136 yards with 12 touchdowns and just five interceptions. His streak of 125 attempts without an interception currently ranks third in the nation. Ballard has 404 yards rushing to place third on the Frogs.
A senior from Friendswood, Texas, Ballard is TCU's career leader in winning percentage (90.0, 18-2) by a starting quarterback as well as completion percentage (60.9).
Brown (Katy, Texas) tops TCU in rushing (749) while placing second in receptions (33) and receiving yards (447). The 2005 MWC Freshman of the Year is second in the league in all-purpose yards (118.5) and third in rushing. His 5.3 per carry average is second among the MWC's top-10 ground gainers.
Lindner (Comfort, Texas), in his first year as a starter, has been instrumental in the Frogs placing ninth in the nation in rushing (194.3 yards) and 17th in total offense (404.5 yards).
Henson is the Frogs' third-leading tackler with 58 stops, including 7.5 for a loss. Also a special teams standout, the sophomore from Longview, Texas, blocked a punt against Texas Tech and forced a fumble on a Wyoming kickoff return.
Hobbs returned to action this season after missing more than a year because of injury. He places second on the Frogs with 556 yards rushing while adding 12 receptions. The senior from Clarksville, Texas, is TCU's fifth-leading career rusher with 2,962 yards. He needs 38 yards in the Dec. 19 Poinsettia Bowl to reach the 3,000 mark.
Manfredini is the MWC leader in field-goal percentage (84.6) after making 11-of-13 attempts this season. The junior from Colleyville, Texas, accounted for all of TCU's scoring with four field goals in a 12-3 win over Texas Tech.
Schlueter, a sophomore from Ganado, Texas, totaled a team-best 63 knockdown blocks while starting all 12 games.
