NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State was represented on each side of the ball in the 2022 Southland Football All-Academic Team, which the conference released Wednesday morning.
 
Quarterback Zachary Clement and defensive back PJ Herrington were selected to the 26-man team that honors student-athletes who excelled both on the field and in the classroom during their season.
 
The team is selected by a vote of sports information directors, coaches and academic services personnel from each of the conference's eight football-playing institutions. To be eligible for the team, a student-athlete must have a cumulative 3.0 grade point average and have completed two semesters of academic work at their current institution.
 
Clement, a fourth-year sophomore from Broussard, was a second-team All-Southland Conference selection after throwing for 2,498 yards and 19 touchdowns. A biology major who holds a 3.75 grade point average, Clement added 303 rushing yards and three touchdowns as the Demons posted their best Southland Conference winning percentage since 2004.
 
Herrington, a senior safety from Natchez, Mississippi, joined Clement as the Demons' representatives on the all-academic team.
 
A second-team All-Southland selection as both a defensive back and as a punt returner, Herrington finished third on the team with 63 tackles and added 3.5 tackles for a loss and a sack. A December graduate in health and exercise science, Herrington graduated with a 3.16 grade point average.
 
Herrington's 38-yard interception return for a touchdown against Texas A&M-Commerce on Nov. 5 was the first pick-six for a Demon since Shemar Bartholomew returned one 96 yards for a touchdown in a Nov. 16, 2019, win at Sam Houston.
 
The all-academic selections were the first for both Clement and Herrington.
 
Southland Football All-Academic Team

Pos.	Name	School	Hometown	Cl.	GPA	Major
QB	Zach Clement	Northwestern State	Broussard, La.	Sr.	3.75	Biology
RB	Marcus Cooper	UIW	Altair, Texas	Gr.	3.13	MS, Sport Management
RB	Collin Guggenheim	Nicholls	Kenner, La.	Jr.	3.22	Human Performance Education
TE	Ivan Drobocky C	Southeastern	Bowling Green, Ky.	So.	3.54	Supply Chain Management
WR	Darion Chafin *	UIW	Wichita Falls, Texas	Gr.	3.50	MS, Sport Management
WR	Taylor Grimes *	UIW	Godley, Texas	Sr.	3.50	Cultural Studies
WR	Nick Kovacs	Southeastern	Springboro, Ohio	Sr.	3.82	General Studies
OL	John Allen *2	Southeastern	Jackson, Miss.	Jr.	3.00	Strategic Communication
OL	Calvin Barkat *C2	McNeese	Sachse, Texas	Sr.	3.59	H&HP-Pre Chiropractic
OL	Reid Francis *3	UIW	College Station, Texas	Sr.	3.99	Engineering
OL	Caleb Johnson *	UIW	Mount Pleasant, Texas	Sr.	3.12	Engineering Physics
OL	Dom Serapiglia III C	Southeastern	Jefferson Hills, Pa.	So.	3.57	Supply Chain Management
OL	Trey Vondenstein C	McNeese	Katy, Texas	R-Jr.	4.00	H&HP-Health Promotions
PK	Carson Mohr	UIW	The Woodlands, Texas	Sr.	3.84	Psychology
P	Austin Dunlap *	Southeastern	Slidell, La.	Jr.	3.47	Business Administration
DL	Garrett Crawford C	Southeastern	Slidell, La.	Jr.	3.55	Computer Science
DL	Clifford Funderburk	A&M-Commerce	Forney, Texas	So.	3.79	Business Administration
DL	Perry Ganci 2	Nicholls	New Orleans, La.	Sr.	3.12	Business Administration
DL	Mason Kinsey	McNeese	Mansfield, Texas	Sr.	3.25	Masters, Criminal Justice
LB	Kelechi Anyalabechi *	UIW	Pearland, Texas	Gr.	4.00	MBA, Sport Management
LB	Kordell Williams *2	McNeese	Carencro, La.	Sr.	3.00	Masters, Criminal Justice
LB	Brennan Young C3	HCU	Conroe, Texas	Gr.	3.72	MBA, Marketing
DB	Chase Brown	Nicholls	Baton Rouge, La.	Gr.	3.00	MBA
DB	PJ Herrington	Northwestern State	Natchez, Miss.	Sr.	3.16	Health and Exercise Science
DB	Sean-Krystoff King	A&M-Commerce	Humble, Texas	So.	3.73	Computer Science
DB	Logan Scott	Nicholls	Prairieville, La.	So.	3.05	Computer Information Systems

 
2022 Southland Football Student-Athlete of the Year: Kelechi Anyalebechi, UIW
* = First Team All-Conference
C = College Sports Communicators Academic All-District
# = Multi-time selection