Lucky, Nicks named second-team All-Big 12

Nebraska junior I-back Marlon Lucky and senior offensive tackle Carl Nicks have been selected as second-team All-Big 12 selections, the conference office announced on Tuesday. The selections were made by the conference's 12 head coaches, who are not permitted to vote for their own players.

In addition to the selection of Lucky and Nicks to the second-team offense, 10 other Huskers received honorable-mention All-Big 12 accolades.

The 6-0, 210-pound Lucky produced one of the top all-purpose yardage seasons in Nebraska history. On the ground, Lucky ran for 1,019 yards and nine touchdowns, marking the 28th, 1,000-yard rushing season in Nebraska history. Lucky was just as dangerous for Nebraska in the passing game, catching a school-record 75 passes for 705 yards and three touchdowns. His 75 receptions are the most by a running back in the nation and his 705 receiving yards are the fifth-most in school history.

A native of North Hollywood, Calif., Lucky finished with 1,743 all-purpose yards, the seventh-best single-season total in Nebraska history and the best since Ahman Green totaled 1,982 yards in 1997. This marks the second straight year Lucky has been honored by the conference, as the coaches made him an honorable-mention selection as a sophomore, while the Associated Press selected him as a second-team all-purpose player in 2006.

Nicks was the anchor of an offensive line that helped Lucky produce his yardage totals, while also guiding Nebraska to a school-record passing total. The 6-5, 330-pound Nicks started 11 of 12 games at left tackle, providing the push for Nebraska to rank eighth nationally in passing offense and 13th in total offense.

The offensive line allowed just 18 sacks in a school-record 481 pass attempts in 2007, and provided the protection to allow quarterbacks Sam Keller and Joe Ganz to produce five of the top eight passing games in school history.

Ten Huskers were selected to the honorable-mention list—four on offense, four on defense and two on special teams. Offensively, the players honored were senior center Brett Byford, junior tackle Lydon Murtha, sophomore guard Jacob Hickman and senior receiver Maurice Purify. On the defensive side, junior defensive end Zach Potter, senior linebackers Bo Ruud and Steve Octavien and sophomore safety Larry Asante received honorable-mention honors. Rounding out the Huskers recognized were senior kickoff/punt returner Cortney Grixby and junior punter Dan Titchener.