The Tulsa Hurricanes lost to East Carolina 51-49 in one of the most entertaining games to open the 2010 college football season and Damaris Johnson put on another show for a national audience.
Johnson, who starred at Destrehan High School, accounted for 299 yards of total offense against East Carolina. The 5-7, 170-pound wide receiver/return specialist caught four passes for 51 yards, had seven carries for 56 yards and one touchdown, returned three punts for 41 yards and he brought back five kickoffs for 151 yards.
Johnson set a new Tulsa record for career kickoff return yardage. He entered the game with 2,513 kickoff return yards and needed 59 yards to tie the school record. The speedy playmaker set the new record on his third kickoff return of the game.
“Damaris was terrific today,” said Tulsa head coach Todd Graham. “I just wished we could have played better defensively, but that young man put on quite a performance out there. He has been outstanding since he stepped on our campus and in my opinion he is the most explosive multi-purpose football player in college football. ”
Reynaud dealt to New York Giants
Former Hahnville High School star running back Darius Reynaud was dealt along with quarterback Sage Rosenfels from the Minnesota Vikings to the New York Giants in exchange for a 2011 fifth-round draft choice and a conditional 2012 selection.
Reynaud is entering his third season in the NFL and he was making the switch back from wide receiver to halfback before being dealt to the Giants.
“We lost Domenik Hixon, our punt and kickoff return man during the training camp sessions, and we wanted to add someone with experience and good skill-set at that spot,” said Giants head coach Tom Coughlin. “We kept a close eye on Darius’ progression in the league since we really were interested in him when he was in college at West Virginia. He brings versatility to our football team and a real knack for being an impact player on special teams. We’ll see how and where he fits offensively with us, but he should be a real good asset to our return units.”
Reynaud has averaged 10.3 yards per punt return on 30 runbacks and he has also averaged 24.2 yards per runback on kickoffs in the NFL.
Lockett expected back for Tulane game
Former Hahnville High School standout defensive end Kentrell Lockett is expected to return to action next week against Tulane.
The Ole Miss Rebel senior team captain did not play in the Rebels’ double-overtime loss to Jacksonville State 49-48 after he began experiencing heart rhythm issues during a scrimmage about ten days ago. He was immediately cared for by the Ole Miss Athletics’ medical director and medical team.
Last week the school sent Lockett to Cleveland, Ohio to visit cardiac specialists at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center. He underwent a battery of tests looking for rhythms and obstructive changes that would cause concerns, and the studies showed no signs of anatomical abnormalities.
The Cleveland Heart Center findings were that the cause of Lockett’s discomfort was atrial fibrillation, which is the most common cardiac arrhythmia and does not restrict him from competition.
“Dr. Dennis and the heart team in Cleveland have determined a very good medical plan for Kentrell,” Rebel head football coach Houston Nutt said. “We will monitor him daily, and if everything goes well, he could return to physical activity midweek, probably get in on some practice sessions and the game Saturday against Tulane. We missed him against Jacksonville State. We really missed his leadership skills when things started going bad for us. You really miss one of the guys voted team captain. His production and focus were missed, but this is more than about one game. This young man has meant so much to Ole Miss and his teammates, he has a future in the NFL and we will do everything to get him the best care out there. I know that he wants to get back on the field quicker than anyone, but we are going to be smart about this issue.”
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