Lamar sports information

BEAUMONT – Lamar running back Kade Harrington has been named Southeast Texas Newsmaker of the Year by the Press Club of Southeast Texas. The honor marked the first time that an LU athlete has received the award.

“It is truly an amazing honor to receive this award,” said Harrington, who was unable to attend Friday’s award ceremony. “It’s awesome that Lamar football is getting put on the map a little more. I owe all of this to my teammates and our offensive line. If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be in this position to receive this honor. I would also like to thank the Press Club of Southeast Texas for considering me.”

The annual event hosts local dignitaries and also recognizes the top area newsmakers from Southeast Texas. The finalists for the Newsmaker of the Year award were voted on by Press Club membership.

Proceeds from the banquet fund the Press Club Memorial Scholarship at LU dedicated to deceased journalists and awarded annually to students in communications, advertising, public relations or a related field.

Harrington helped placed the LU football program in the national spotlight by putting up video-game type numbers. The two-time STATS FCS National Player of the Week selection led the nation in total rushing yards, rush yards per game, rushing touchdowns and all-purpose yards. He also finished the regular season ranked second nationally in scoring and third in yards per carry. In Southland games, Harrington averaged better than 220 yards per contest on his way to a unanimous All-America selection.

Just two years after becoming the first Cardinal to earn league freshman of the year honors, Harrington became the first player in program history to be named conference MVP. That honor was bestowed on Harrington just days prior to receiving the American Sports Network’s National Player of the Year award.

In addition to all of the other firsts for Harrington in 2015, he also became the first Cardinal in program history to be named a finalist for the STATS FCS National Offensive Player of the Year award, considered the Heisman Trophy for FCS football. Harrington was runner-up for the award, missing out by a mere 29 points in one of the closest votes in the awards history.

LU athletics has a strong history with the Press Club of Southeast Texas’ top honor. Recently retired baseball head coach Jim Gilligan has been a recipient of the award, while LU head football coach Ray Woodard was a finalist following the 2010 season.