Locals make impact on bowls

Published 12:00 am Saturday, January 6, 2001

LAPLACE – River Parishes athletes shone under the lights during the recent bowl season.

It all started with the Mobile Alabama Bowl on Dec. 20. That was when Lutcher graduate Kenneth Johnson caught a 29-yard touchdown pass from Jeff Kelly with eight seconds left, giving Southern Mississippi a 28-21 victory over 13th-ranked Texas Christian.

The catch capped a solid true freshman season for Johnson. Johnson saw action in all 11 games, catching 27 passes for 311 yards and a touchdown. He had a long-gain of 55 yards. He also led the team with 24 punt returns for 333 yards with a long of 42.

East St. John alum DeQuincy Scott also had a tackle in the bowl win for the Golden Eagles. He finished his senior season with 64 tackles, including 30 solos. Eleven of the tackles were for losses including five sacks for a minus 31 yards. Scott also had two forced fumbles and an interception.

Hahnville grad Karon Champagne completed his redshirt freshman season for the Golden Eagles with one tackle in three games. The defensive back saw action on 30 plays, 15 on defense and 15 on special teams.

Southern Miss finished the season at 8-4.

East St. John graduate Greg Gathers was the talk of the first half but the sophomore defensive lineman could not prevent a 28-14 victory by LSU over the 17th-ranked Yellow Jackets in the Peach Bowl Dec. 29. Gathers harassed LSU quarterback Josh Booty throughout the half, finishing with four tackles, including three solos. Three of the tackles were for 12 yards in losses, including one sack for six yards. He also had a pass breakup.

Gathers concluded the regular season with 58 tackles, 43 solos, in 11 games. He finished second in the Atlantic Coast Conference and tied for third in the country with 13 sacks for 89 yards in losses. He has had a sack in 13 of his last 15 games.

Gathers also had 20 tackles behind the line, 15 quarterback hurries, three pass breakups, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and one interception in being named first-team all-ACC.

Sophomore wide receiver Kerry Watkins, also out of East St. John, caught three passes for 45 yards, including one of 30 yards, in the Peach Bowl. It capped a season in which Watkins finished third on the team with 26 catches for 480 yards and six touchdowns. One of the catches was for 72 yards, the Yellow Jackets longest pass play of the season.

Watkins led the team with an 18.5 yards-per-catch average and was second in touchdown receptions. He finished with 497 all-purpose yards. He also had eight tackles on punt coverage.

Destrehan grad Edward Reed was the starting safety for Miami (Fla.) in its 37-20 victory over Florida in the Sugar Bowl Tuesday. The first-team all- American finished the season with 42 solo tackles, 17 assists, eight interceptions and 23 pass breakups. The Hurricanes finished the season ranked second in the country with an 11-1 record.