BATON ROUGE – LSU quarterback Danny Etling has been elected as the vice-chair of the Southeastern Conference Football Leadership Council, the league announced Thursday.

Etling joins Kentucky's Greg Hart, who was selected to serve as chair for the group, as the two elected leaders of the football council. Etling and Hart were selected by a vote of their peers at the council meeting in Birmingham two weeks ago. The two will attend a portion of the meeting of the SEC's Athletics Directors in March and the Conference's Spring Meetings in May and June.

"I've been part of two conferences, and the SEC is very hands on and really cares about the players and wants us to have a voice," Etling said. "Just the fact that Commissioner Sankey was there and listened and was involved in our discussions is huge. We were able to talk through some issues that we see, and he's trying to find solutions for us. It's been fun to be a part of."

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey introduced new Student-Leadership Councils in 2016 for football, along with men and women's basketball. The councils, which consist of one representative from each institution, serve as a link of communication to the conference office on issues related to student-athlete experience and student-athlete wellness.
 
Etling, who earned Academic All-District honors in 2016, led LSU to an 8-4 overall mark last year, including a 29-9 win over Louisville in the Citrus Bowl. Etling finished his first year with the Tigers by completing 160-of-269 passes for 2,123 yards, 11 touchdowns and five interceptions.