PHOTO CAPTION
Senior center Austin Douglas is the 2014 recipient of the prestigious Coach Jack Clayton Memorial Scholarship, given annually to an outstanding Northwestern State football student-athlete. Shown during the pregame presentation last Saturday at NSU's Turpin Stadium are (l-r) former Clayton players Deacon Lewis, Carroll Long and Dick Reding, along with Douglas, Mrs. Nellie (Jack) Clayton, their daughter Nancy Reding, and another of Coach Clayton's former players, Shelley Dickie.
 
 
NATCHITOCHES – Senior center Austin Douglas has been awarded Northwestern State's prestigious Jack Clayton Scholarship in recognition of his outstanding academic and athletic achievements in the Demons' football program.
 
The Jack Clayton Scholarship, along with the Jack Clayton Plaza in the south end zone of Turpin Stadium, was created in 1999 by former players of NSU Coach Jack Clayton, whose teams won four Gulf States Conference championships from 1957-66 and whose 1966 team was undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the nation's NAIA ranks at the end of the season.  The recipient of the Jack Clayton Scholarship is dedicated to academics and must display Coach Clayton's trademark characteristics of leadership, integrity, and work ethic.
 
Presentation of the scholarship trophy was made in a pregame ceremony last Saturday afternoon in Turpin Stadium before Douglas played all 86 snaps for the Demons, and graded a season and team-best 88 percent, as Northwestern State piled up 482 yards in a come-from-behind 31-27 Southland Conference victory over the 24^th-ranked team in Division I FCS, Sam Houston State.
 
A Batesville, Miss. Native and South Panola High School product, Douglas was a junior college All-American at Northwest Mississippi Community College. He helped South Panola win the 2010 Class 6A state championship and was an All-State second-team selection.
 
In April, Douglas was the first offensive lineman in the 25-year history of the Joe Delaney Bowl, the Demons' spring game, to win the Delaney Bowl Most Valuable Player award. This summer, league coaches named him a preseason All-Southland Conference second-team selection as an offensive lineman.
 
Last year, Douglas transferred from Ole Miss in preseason camp and quickly became a starting guard for the first time in his football career. He moved over to center for the last half of the season and NSU played its best, winning three of the final four games for a 6-6 finish, the best since 2008 for the Demons.
 
The Demons (4-3 overall, 2-1 in the Southland Conference) have won four of their last five games going into Saturday's visit to Central Arkansas for a Southland game. Included in their wins is a 30-27 victory Sept. 20 over Conference USA leader Louisiana Tech.
 
Presenting Douglas with a trophy last Saturday afternoon in a pregame ceremony were Nellie Clayton, wife of coach Clayton, and their daughter, Nancy; and several of Clayton's players: Deacon Lewis, Carroll Long, Dick Reding, and Shelley Dickie.