GUILFORD'S ALT LANDS SECOND TEAM ALL-LEAGUE FOOTBALL HONORS

Salem, VA (11/21/00) -- Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) football coaches selected Guilford College sophomore punter John Alt (Fort Lauderdale, FL/Nova) to the second team All-ODAC squad at their annual coaches meeting Monday. The coaches awarded Washington and Lee junior running back Marc Watson the league's Player of the Year Award and named Bridgewater boss Michael Clark ODAC Coach of the Year.

Six Guilford players earned honorable mention all-league recognition: junior Nick Lamotta (Rolesville, NC/Wake Forest-Rolesville), junior Lee Massey (St. Cloud, FL/St. Cloud), sophomore J.J. Edwards (Mims, FL/Astronaut), sophomore Brandon Lockhart (Roxboro, NC/Person), sophomore Oren Robinson (Anderson, SC/Westside) and rookie Marcus Ballard (Burgaw, NC/Pender).

Alt finished second in the league and 20th in NCAA Division III with a 39.1 yards per punt average. A 1999 second team all-league and All-South performer, the sophomore kicked a league-high 61 times for 2,388 yards. He placed 14 kicks inside the opponents' 20-yard line with no touchbacks. Alt booted a career-long 66-yard punt in Guilford's season-opener at Division I-AA Charleston Southern and averaged over 40 yards per kick four times. A Verizon/CoSIDA Academic All-District III honoree, he had eight punts of 50 yards or more.

Lamotta earned honorable mention recognition for the second straight season. He finished third among Guilford's receivers with 16 catches for 219 yards and a touchdown. The 6-4, 225-pound tight end had his best game in the Quakers' 31-28 win at Randolph-Macon with five catches for a career-high 85 yards and a touchdown.

Another Academic All-District honoree, Massey regularly graded out as the Quakers' top offensive lineman. A 6-1, 260-pound guard, he helped Guilford's running game gain 1,331 yards, its highest total since 1995. Massey helped the Quakers set a school record with 389 rushing yards in their season finale against Greensboro. He has started 26 of 27 career contests.

Edwards, a sophomore transfer from Division II Concord, led the Quakers with 22 grabs for 317 yards and a score. The 6-1, 175-pound receiver enjoyed a pair of 100-yard receiving contests, including an eight-catch, 111-yard effort against Catholic. Edwards caught five balls for 106 yards and the game-winning touchdown versus Randolph-Macon.

Lockhart, a 5-7, 180-pound running back enjoyed his finest season with a career-high 441 rushing yards on 94 carries and three touchdowns. He finished second to Ballard among Guilford's ball carriers and averaged 4.7 yards per carry. Lockhart gained a career-high 128 yards and two touchdowns on just five carries in the Quakers' October 21 loss to ODAC champion Emory & Henry. He recorded the second 100-yard rushing game of his career in Guilford's November 11 loss to Greensboro with 112 yards and a score on 12 carries. Lockhart added four catches out of the backfield for 20 yards and averaged 49.0 rushing yards per game.

Robinson finished second among Guilford's receivers with 18 receptions for 295 yards and five touchdowns, both career-high totals. The 5-8, 160-pound receiver caught a season-high four passes for a personal-best two touchdowns in a September 9 loss at Methodist and caught two more scores in a November 4 defeat at Catholic. A high school quarterback, Robinson moved under center midway through the third quarter of the Catholic game and completed 14 of 26 passes for 162 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for a score in the game.

A 5-8, 180-pound running back, Ballard became the first freshman to lead Guilford's rushers since Marques Williams in 1997. The ODAC's sixth-leading rusher, Ballard picked up 597 yards and three touchdowns on 114 carries, the most by a Guilford back since David Heggie '98 gained 951 yards in 1995. Ballard won the Quakers' Most Valuable Player Award in the fourth Annual Gate City Soup Bowl with a 16-carry, 182-yard performance against Greensboro. He ripped off an 81-yard scoring run in the November 11 contest, his second rushing touchdown of 80 or more yards of the year. Ballard recorded Guilford's longest offensive play since 1989 with an 82-yard scoring jaunt against Emory & Henry. He finished that game with 97 rushing yards on 11 carries.

The Quakers' top return man, Ballard led Guilford with 12 punt returns for 106 yards and 12 kickoff returns for 214 yards. He led the Quakers and ranked sixth in the conference with 103.9 all-purpose yards per game.