Langley Named Southland Player of the Week
FRISCO, Texas – Senior Brendan Langley has been named Southland Conference Special Teams Player of the Week announced league official Monday morning. Langley received the award for his efforts on the field against Incarnate Word.
"Brendan is a very special player,” said LU head coach Ray Woodard. “We've been able to see what he can do from his corner back position all year, but he was freed up to make some plays Saturday night on special teams. It was a very special night for him and I hate that his effort didn't get a win," added Woodard.
The Cardinals recorded three special teams touchdowns Saturday and Langley was responsible for two of them. After the Cardinals forced a stop on defense to start the second half, Langley fielded the ensuing punt on his own 10 yard line and returned it 90 yards for the score. The 90-yard return equaled the longest return in program history, a mark that had only been set two other times (Marcus Jackson in 2010 and Raymond Meyer in 1954).
Later in the second half Langley proved the first return was no fluke. This time taking a punt on his own 25, he weaved his way through traffic for a 75-yard touchdown return. His second return of the night was the 10th-longest punt return program history.
Langley finished the night with six returns for 206 yards and the two scores. He averaged 34.3 yards per return against the Cardinals. He shattered the previous single-game mark for punt return yards in a game by nearly 100 yards (118 set by Rondy Colbert in 1973), and was only 35 yards shy of making the school’s career top-10 list for punt return yards in Saturday’s game alone.
Langley becomes just one of five Cardinals to return two punts for a touchdown in a career (Kevin Johnson, Johnny Fuller, Rolbert and Johnny Ray Smith) and is one of two Cardinals (Johnson and Colbert) to have two returned for scores in the same season. Langley sits alone in the LU history books as the only Cardinal to record two punt returns for scores in the same game.
The Cardinals return to action Saturday when they travel to Lake Charles, La., to take on rival McNeese State.
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