Dorothy Glover
July 30, 2007
Horace Scott
August 1, 2007
The LSU Tigers, with 15 starters returning from last year’s 11-2 team, has been predicted to win the Southeastern Conference championship by media voting at the 2007 SEC Football Media Days.
The 2007 SEC Football Media Days was the highest attended in the 23 years of SEC football media days. The media days event drew an attendance of 830, which was larger than last year’s attendance of 685.
The Tigers, which finished last year ranked third in the country by Associated Press and USA Today/Coaches polls, were listed on 54 of the 80 ballots, while defending SEC and National Champion Florida was listed on seven ballots. Arkansas received five votes, Auburn four, Alabama and South Carolina three and Tennessee and Georgia were listed on two ballots.
Florida was predicted to win the Eastern Division, while Tennessee was voted second, Georgia third, South Carolina four, Kentucky fifth and Vanderbilt was listed sixth. The Gators were listed on 41 ballots as the Eastern Division champion while Tennessee had 16 votes, Georgia 12 and South Carolina 11.
LSU was listed on 63 ballots as the Western Division Champion while Auburn was second (first on five ballots), Arkansas third (five ballots), Alabama fourth (seven ballots), Ole Miss fifth and Mississippi State sixth.
On the All-SEC Team, LSU led all teams with eight selections followed by Kentucky and Florida with six each while Alabama, Arkansas and Tennessee each had five players on the first and second teams.
Arkansas led all teams with five players selected to the first team followed by LSU with four. Every SEC team was represented on either the first or second team.
Arkansas running back Darren McFadden was the only unanimous selection to the All-SEC Team. LSU players voted to the first team were offensive lineman Will Arnold, wide receiver Early Doucet, defensive lineman Glenn Dorsey, linebacker Ali Highsmith and defensive back Chevis Jackson.
Defensive lineman Tyson Jackson, linebacker Darry Beckwith and defensive back Jonathan Zenon were second-team selections.
BROUSSARD LEAVES
LSU running back Alley Broussard has decided to leave the Tiger football team.
Broussard, a senior from Lafayette, said he will remain in school at LSU, where he is scheduled to graduate in December.
“My heart was no longer in it,” Broussard said. “I’m scheduled to graduate in December so I want to use the fall semester to dedicate my time towards getting my degree. I enjoyed my four years as part of the LSU football team and I wish my teammates success in 2007.”
LSU coach Les Miles thanked Broussard for his service to the Tiger football team.
“We understand Alley’s decision and we’ll support him as he continues to pursue his college degree. We wish him success in his future endeavors and thank him for the time that he spent with our program.”
In four years with the Tigers, Broussard played in 35 games, starting eight times. He finished his career with 1,537 yards rushing and 18 touchdowns. Broussard, who missed all of the 2005 season with a knee injury, returned to action last year, rushing for 281 yards and four touchdowns on 74 carries.
ROORBACH JOINS SOFTBALL STAFF
Adam Roorbach was hired recently as Director of Softball Operations for the upcoming season. Roorbach joins the nationally ranked Tiger program from Houston, where he served as an assistant coach for the 2007 season. No stranger to the softball community, he has spent three years as an assistant softball coach at the Division I level after spending four seasons as a head coach at the NAIA and junior college levels.
Although this is a new position within the softball department, Roorbach already has ties to the Tiger coaching staff after working with current LSU assistant coach Megan Smith for one season at Western Carolina.
As an assistant coach with the Cougars last season, he helped the program to its Conference USA Regular Season and Tournament championship in school history, advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2004.
After knocking off UL-Lafayette and Texas A&M, Houston advanced to the final day of competition at the College Station Regional before falling twice to Aggies to end its season with a school record 44 wins.
Prior to his one-year stint at Houston, Roorbach was an assistant coach at Western Carolina under current LSU assistant coach Megan Smith, who was the Catamounts’ head coach.
In its inaugural season in 2005, Western Carolina posted a 41-20 record and won the Southern Conference Championship. The Catamounts also ranked third nationally with 81 home runs and 12th in the NCAA with a .476 slugging percentage. Three WCU players were ranked nationally statistically and two were named to the NFCA All-Southeastern Region team.
In 2005, Roorbach served as an assistant coach at Nicholls State. Working primarily with the Lady Colonel hitters and outfielders, Nicholls set a school record with 31 home runs and improved its team batting average by 29 points over the previous season.
Roorbach moved to the Division I level at Nicholls after serving for three seasons as the head coach at NAIA affiliate Bethel College in Mishawaka, Ind. From 2002-2004, he compiled a 102-56 record and won three consecutive Mid-Central Conference Championships and qualified for the NAIA Regional and National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) National Tournaments all three years.
Earning 2003 Mid-Central Conference Coach of the Year honors, Roorbach guided 14 Pilot players to All-Mid-Central Conference awards. Equally as impressive, all three of his teams were awarded the prestigious NFCA Top 10 Academic Team Award and 17 of his players were named NFCA Academic All-Americans.
Prior to arriving at Bethel, Roorbach spent one season as the head coach at Andrew College in Cuthbert, Ga. In his only season, he guided the Tigers to a 14-18 record, a 13-win improvement over the previous years’ 1-32 mark. In addition, he faced Smith on the field for the first time as Andrew College took on Young Harris College, where Smith was the head coach.
Roorbach graduated from Indiana Wesleyan University in 1999 with a double major in business administration and sports management, he went on to earn his master’s degree in physical education from Eastern Illinois in 2000. While attending Indiana Wesleyan, he served as an assistant softball coach and also the school’s sports information director.
LANE HIRED
Former University of Miami assistant Todd Lane has joined the LSU track and field staff. Lane joins the LSU coaching staff after one season at Miami where he was voted the top women’s jumps and combined events assistant coach in the East Region by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association in a vote of his fellow regional coaches.
The Hurricanes enjoyed unprecedented success under Lane’s tutelage during the 2007 season as he coached his athletes to a total of two All-America honors, nine All-Atlantic Coast Conference awards, five ACC titles and two current school records.
Prior to joining the staff at Miami, Lane served as an assistant coach at Ball State University of the Mid-American Conference where he also coached the jumps and combined events.
Lane is a USATF Level I instructor and is Level II certified in the sprints and hurdles, jumps, throws and the multi-events.
His wife, Turena, is one of the top marathon runners in the United States and has represented her country at the IAAF World Championships in Athletics.
