BATON ROUGE — LSU senior linebacker Kelvin Sheppard has earned a spot on the Sporting News Preseason All-America Team, as the publication’s college football preview issue hit newsstands this week.
Sheppard was the only Southeastern Conference player to be named to the defense. He was joined by Tank Carder (TCU) and Lawrence Wilson (Connecticut) at the linebacker position.
The publication also tabbed LSU 20th in its preseason Top 25 poll. North Carolina is ranked 21st, while five SEC teams are ranked in the poll led by No. 1 Alabama.
Sheppard, a native of Stone Mountain, Ga., has garnered national award watch list attention heading into his final season. He is a candidate for five major defensive awards, including the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Butkus Award, Chuck Bednarik Award, Lott Trophy and Rotary Lombardi Award.
Sheppard, a preseason first-team All-SEC selection, ranked third in the league in total tackles with 103 in 2009, and he has played in 40 games during his career.
2010 Sporting News Preseason All-Americans
Offense
QB – Ryan Mallet, Arkansas
RB – Mark Ingram, Alabama
RB – Dion Lewis, Pittsburgh
OL – Mike Pouncey, Florida
OL – Jason Pinkston, Pittsburgh
OL – Rodney Hudson, Florida State
OL – Jake Kirkpatrick, TCU
WR – Ryan Broyles, Oklahoma
WR – A.J. Green, Georgia
TE – Kyle Rudolph, Notre Dame
Defense
DL – Allen Bailey, Miami
DL – Jurrell Casey, USC
DL – Cameron Heyward, Ohio State
DL – Jeremy Beal, Oklahoma
LB – Tank Carder, TCU
LB – Lawrence Wilson, Connecticut
LB – Kelvin Sheppard, LSU
DB – Trevin Wade, Arizona
DB – Curtis Brown, Texas
DB – Jeron Johnson, Boise State
DB – Deunta Williams, North Carolina