6 USM football players named to Athlon Sports 2024 Preseason All-Sun Belt team

HATTIESBURG, Miss. (WDAM) – Six University of Southern Mississippi football players were selected for the Athlon Sports Preseason All-Sun Belt team in their 2024 Sun Belt Conference preview.

Southern Miss Athletics said one of the players, junior punt returner/wide receiver Tiaquelin Mims, was named a first-team punt returner.

Below are the players who were named to their respective teams in the season preview:

Tiaquelin Mims | PR/WR | Junior – First Team

Mims led the Golden Eagles with 39 receptions and posted 445 receiving yards, along with catching two touchdown passes while averaging 37.1 receiving yards per game. As a returner, he totaled 167 punt return yards and one touchdown. Against Old Dominion this past season, he had a season-high 82 punt return yards on two returns.

Jalil Clemons | Linebacker | Senior (Redshirt) – Second Team

Clemons played nine games for USM last season and finished with 31 tackles, including 17 solo tackles. He made five straight starts to begin the season and had seven total. In games against Texas State and Appalachian State, he was able to force a fumble, while having a nine-tackle game against the Mountaineers. Clemons also had 5.5 sacks on the season and posted 2.5 in the App State contest.

Rodrigues Clark | Running back | Senior (RS) – Third Team

In this past season, Clark was the second leading rusher for USM, as he managed to have 429 yards and averaged 5.6 yards per carry in his 10-game appearance. The senior had two touchdowns and his longest rush was a 59-yard gain. He posted a season-high 86 rushing yards against Florida State, as well as had three games with at least 70 rushing yards and had back-to-back 70-plus yard games against Arkansas State and Texas State.

Dylan Lawrence | Defensive back | Senior (RS) – Third Team

As the Golden Eagles’ leader in tackles, Lawrence put together a total of 78 tackles, while 38 were solo. According to Southern Miss Athletics, the George County product also had a tackle for loss and an interception. He recorded double-digit tackles against Arkansas State (11) and Mississippi State (10). Lawrence had six or more tackles in eight games and averaged 8.2 tackles in his final five appearances.

Jalen Williams | Defensive lineman | Senior (RS) – Fourth Team

Williams tallied 30 total tackles this past season and posted a season-high nine against Tulane. The Tylertown native had 1.5 tackles for loss and forced four quarterback hurries. He started in nine games for the Golden Eagles, including the first six games of the season. In 2022, Williams led USM’s defensive line with 47 tackles and had 7.5 tackles for loss.

Bryce Lofton | Punter | Senior (RS) – Fourth Team

Lofton averaged 40.4 yards per punt over 60 total punts this past season and only had four touchbacks. His kicks resulted in 23 fair catches and pinned Southern Miss opponents inside the 20-yard line 13 times. Lofton had five punts go over 50 yards and helped the Golden Eagles rank fourth in the league in net punting at 36.57 yards.

To see the full list of players selected to Athlon Sports’ All-Sun Belt Conference, click HERE.

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