NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion University Football had six student-athletes selected to preseason All-Conference USA teams, selected by college football preview magazines Street and Smith's, and Athlon.
The Athlon preseason team featured a first and second team. ODU center Nick Clarke, defensive end Oshane Ximines and cornerback Brandon Addison were featured on the first team, while running back Ray Lawry, wide receiver Jonathan Duhart and defensive end Bunmi Rotimi were named to the second team.
Clark, a native of Mechanicsville, Virginia, has started 19-straight games at center for the Monarchs and was recently named to the Rimington Trophy Award Watch List. The award annually given to the best center in FBS. Ximines broke the single-season school record for sacks with 7.5, while adding 42 tackles and a team-high 11.5 tackles for loss. Addison, a former walk-on transfer from Division II Alderson Broaddus, led ODU with 10 pass breakups last season, including a single-game record five in the win over Marshall. He also holds the ODU career record with 21 pass breakups.
Lawry has led the Monarchs in rushing the last three years, breaking his own single-season rushing record each season as he ran for 1,255 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2016. He enters 2017 as the seventh active leading rusher in FBS. Duhart is ODU's leading returning receiver from 2016, as he caught 48 passes for 735 yards and tied for a team-best nine touchdowns. Rotimi finished last season with seven sacks and is tied with former Monarch Craig Wilkins, for the career sacks record with 13.5.
The Street and Smith College Football Preseason Magazine features one all-conference team. On the squad for the Monarchs were Lawry, Ximines and Addison.
ODU opens the 2017 at Foreman Field at S.B. Ballard Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 2 against Albany.