Six Warhawks Honored with Sun Belt Postseason Accolades

NEW ORLEANS – Six ULM football players received individual honors as the Sun Belt Conference released its annual postseason teams and award winners on Wednesday afternoon. Senior offensive linemen Jeff Savage was named to the Second Team All-Sun Belt Conference offensive team, while fellow seniors Ajalen Holley and Justin Backus, along with junior Frank Sutton and sophomore David Griffith, all received Honorable Mention nods. Senior transfer punter Dayton Balvantz was named to the league’s All-Newcomer team as well.

 

Savage started all 12 games on the offensive line, engineering the offense as one of its mainstays this season. He helped the team to five games of over 450 yards of total offense and two games with over 520 yards of offense (vs. Southern and vs. Idaho), including a season-high 533 yard offensive night in the season opener against Southern, including season-best 325 rushing yards in the win. He played center and both guard positions this fall as an anchor on a line that helped ULM rush for 2,176 yards this season – only its second season with over 2,000 yards rushing since 2001.

 

The selections of Backus, Griffith, Holley and Sutton as Honorable Mention performers marks the second consecutive season for ULM with four honorees on the listing.

 

As a senior, Backus started all 12 games in the secondary for the Warhawks, finishing his final campaign with 57 total tackles (43 solo, 14 assist), a pair of interceptions and a fumble recovery. Backus recorded tackles in all 12 contests, including a season-high nine tackles at Appalachian State and he finished with four or more tackles in eight games.

 

Holley saw action in all 12 games with nine starts in his final campaign for the Warhawks, tallying 310 yards receiving this season. His 34 catches were the second-most on the roster and averaged 9.1 yards per catch. Had a season-high six catches for 77 yards in win at Georgia State and a season-long 30 yard catch as part of a five-catch game against Idaho. Holley caught five passes in a game three times this season.

 

Sutton saw action in all 12 games with 10 starts for the Warhawks at left guard as a junior, and was part of an offensive line that allowed three different quarterbacks to throw for two or more touchdowns in a game this season. Sutton helped anchor a line that allowed running back Thomas Koufie to rush for 201 yards and program-best five touchdowns against Georgia State, while his work helped ULM tally 450-plus yards of offense for two straight weeks against South Alabama (460 yards)and Georgia State (457 yards) late in the season.

 

A sophomore, Griffith started all 12 games for the Warhawk defense as one of its mainstays. He recorded at least three tackles in every game, including three-games with double-digit tackles and a career-high 14 total tackles, including nine solo, in the season-opening victory over Southern. Griffith also notched 11 tackles (nine solo) and a season-high three tackles for loss against Georgia Southern and recorded a forced fumble in the game, while he totaled 10 tackles in overtime victory against South Alabama. He finished with four sacks on the season from his linebacker position, with three coming in Sun Belt Conference action.

 

As a senior transfer, Balvanz booted 63 punts this season for the Warhawks, finishing the year averaging 41.0 yards per punt. He tallied 12 kicks of 50 yards or more, while he pinned the opposition inside the 20 yard line 24 times. His season-long 54-yard punt came at Auburn, while he also booted 53 yard punts against New Mexico, Georgia State and Louisiana this season.