Weatherford and Matha Earn All-Big Ten Honors
November 22, 2005 | Football
Nov. 22, 2005
University of Illinois senior football players Steve Weatherford and Ryan Matha earned All-Big Ten honors for the 2005 season, as announced by the conference Tuesday. Weatherford, Illinois' all-time punting average record holder, was named to the second team, his third straight year to earn conference honors. Matha garnered honorable mention accolades, the first of his career.
For the season, Weatherford averaged 42.6 yards per punt, downing 16 inside the 20 yardline. He leaves Illinois as the punting average leader for a single-season with 45.4 yards in 2004 and for a career, 43.8. He was an honorable mention All-Big Ten selection in 2003, first-team in 2004 and now second-team in 2005. Last season, he was a semifinalist for the Ray Guy Award, given to the nation's best punter.
Matha was a four-year starter at defensive tackle, totaling 19 tackles this season with four for loss and 2.5 quarterback sacks. He also recorded a blocked field goal against Rutgers in the season opener. For his career, Matha registered 88 stops, 13 TFL and 4.5 sacks.
