Two University of South Carolina defensive players made the All-Southeastern Conference freshman team announced Thursday.
Earning a spot on the team from USC were defensive tackle/end Ladi Ajiboye and linebacker Cliff Matthews. They were named to the 2007 SEC All-Freshman Team, as selected by the league’s 12 coaches. Ajiboye and Matthews who were part of one of the nation’s top recruiting classes last year.
Ajiboye, a 6-1, 294-pound defensive tackle made 10 starts, most among the Gamecock freshmen. The Riverdale, Ga. native who attended Hargrave Military for one semester before enrolling at South Carolina in January of 2007, recorded 39 tackles, including 3.0 sacks. He registered a season-high six tackles, including 2.0 sacks in the win at North Carolina and was credited with five stops against both LSU and Arkansas.
Matthews, a 6-4, 234-pounder from Cheraw, S.C., logged 26 tackles including 2.0 tackles for loss while starting each of the final nine games at outside linebacker. He moved into the starting lineup at LSU despite playing with a broken bone in his hand. He had a season-high four tackles against South Carolina State and matched that total against North Carolina.
Auburn led all SEC teams with six players on the team while Arkansas and Florida had four.
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