Eddie Cohen (9) earned his second All-America honor over the weekend as he was tabbed second-team by The Sports Network. He was joined on the squad by junior Quinton Phillips as an honorable mention at linebacker. Photo courtesy of Western Carolina University

Catamounts’ junior linebacker listed as honorable mention

CULLOWHEE— Western Carolina senior wide receiver Eddie Cohen was tabbed second-team All-America by The Sports Network, the publication announced on Jan. 7.

In addition, junior linebacker Quinton Phillips was an honorable mention at linebacker in the same release. All told, the Southern Conference landed 21 players on the first three teams including nine first-team selections.

Cohen is the sixth different WCU player — all-time — to be recognized by The Sports Network on its All-America selection. He joins the likes of Geno Segers (1st team, 1988); Todd Harkins (2nd, 1992); Kerry Hayes (1st, 1993); Ken Hinsley (3rd, 1998) and Eric Johnson (3rd, 1997; 1st, 1998).

The second-team All-America accolade marks the second for Cohen on the heels of establishing a new single-season benchmark for receiving yards at Western last year. The Hilton Head, S.C., native was also named second-team All-America by The Associated Press in mid-December becoming the 19th Catamount all-time to garner that recognition.

Cohen, who was named first-team All-Southern Conference by both the league’s head coaches and the voting members of the SoCon Sports Media Association (SCSMA), used six-straight 100-yard-plus receiving games to break Western’s 29-year old single-season receiving-yardage record held by former Catamount standout Gerald Harp (1977-80).

He became just the ninth WCU receiver all-time to breach the 1,000-yard mark by finishing with 1,208 receiving yards and nine touchdowns to surpass Harp’s previous benchmark of 1,145 by 63 yards.

The record-breaking reception came on Cohen’s second catch of the day — a 33-yard pass and catch from senior quarterback Todd Spitzer around the six-minute mark of the first quarter in the 2007 season finale against Furman.

In addition to ranking as the top single-season performance by a Catamount, Cohen’s season also ranked as the sixth-best season in SoCon history. He finished ranked second in the conference and fifth in the nation in receiving yards per game (109.82) and fourth in the conference and 17th overall in receptions per game after averaging 6.09 catches per game.

Along the way during his record-setting season, Cohen became just the fourth different Catamount to ever eclipse the 200-yard receiving barrier, posting the third-best single-game performance in the purple and gold with 212 yards at Georgia Southern to set a Paulson Stadium record. He also tied for the second-most catches in a game with 12 against Elon tying former WCU standout, Lamont Seward (2000-03). He and Spitzer also hooked up for the longest scoring play in the league this season on an 82-yard TD reception at Appalachian State.

Cohen concluded his collegiate career with 142 catches, tied for eighth in WCU history, for 2,173 yards and 15 touchdowns, tied for sixth all-time in the WCU record books.

Meanwhile, Phillips led the Catamount defense in tackles last season finishing with 127, including 63 solo stops, to rank fifth on Western’s single-season charts.

He also had seven and a half tackles for loss and one interception. Phillips twice earned SoCon Defensive Player of the Week honors last fall — one of only two players to do so — after posting two of the top individual performances in the SoCon.

At Georgia Southern, the Charlotte, N.C., native recorded a then career-best 19 tackles in Statesboro to earn the honor on Oct. 1. Three weeks later, Phillips posted a career-high 20 tackles at Chattanooga to garner the weekly recognition for the second time in his WCU career.

For the season, Phillips, who transferred to Western from Louisburg College, posted five games with double-digit tackles, with his 127 total stops ranking tied for 10th nationally. He was named first team All-SoCon by the SCSMA and second team by the league’s head coaches.