#UACFOOTBALL -- With a weekend full of success around United Athletic Conference Football, the Player of the Week honors are a reflection of that strong play as four different programs were recognized by the league office on Monday. Abilene Christian's Sam Hicks (Offense) ran his way to an award while Tarleton State's Ty Rawls (Defense) made his presence felt for his honor. North Alabama's Scott Payne (Specialist) recorded a career-high in field goals and Southern Utah's Jayden Robertson (Freshman) snatched a pair of interceptions en route to his first weekly honor.
Hicks, a senior running back, finished with 203 yards on 12 carries (17.0 YPC) in the Wildcats win at Utah Tech. He notched three touchdown runs of 53, 35 and 8 yards. His performance was the third highest single-game rushing total in ACU's Division I era (since 2013), and was just the 16th time in ACU history that a player went over 200 yards rushing. Hicks also had a pair of catches for nine yards.
A senior linebacker, Rawls forced and recovered a fumble in helping the Texans post a third straight win. He matched a career-best with seven total tackles including five solo stops and one tackle for loss. Rawls forced and recovered the fumble in a crucial part of the game as TSU had just retaken the lead and then scored to extend the lead following his play.
The Lions' graduate transfer placekicker, Payne finished with 11 points higlighted by a career-high three field goals made in UNA's first win of the season He drilled kicks from 24, 27 and 30 yards out and has now made at least one field goal in four consecutive games. His nine points on field goals proved to be the margin of victory for UNA over longtime rivel West Georgia.
Robertson, a true freshman defensive back, picked off the Austin Peay quarterback twice in the Thunderbirds win on the road to double his season interception total. Robertson's second interception clinched the victory as he returned it 20 yards for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
| DATE |
OFFENSIVE |
DEFENSIVE |
SPECIALIST |
FRESHMAN |
| Aug. 26 |
Kayvon Britten
(Tarleton State) |
Kasyus Kurns (Tarleton State)
Gregory Reddick (North Alabama) |
Adrian Guzman
(Tarleton State) |
Jalen Fletcher
(North Alabama) |
| Sept. 2 |
Maverick McIvor
(Abilene Christian) |
David Walker (Central Arkansas)
Micah Thurman (West Georgia) |
Andy Day
(Utah Tech) |
Fred Vili
(North Alabama) |
| Sept. 9 |
Targhee Lambson
(Southern Utah) |
Jaden Lyles
(Austin Peay) |
Danny King
(Southern Utah) |
Josh Anglin
(North Alabama) |
| Sept. 16 |
ShunDerrick Powell
(Central Arkansas) |
Kaghen Roach
(Abilene Christian) |
Ritse Vaes
(Abilene Christian) |
Josh Anglin
(North Alabama) |
| Sept. 23 |
Kayvon Britten
(Tarleton State) |
TaMuarion Wilson
(Central Arkansas) |
Romon Copeland Jr.
(Austin Peay) |
Corey Richardson
(Austin Peay) |
| Sept 30 |
Sam Hicks
(Abilene Christian) |
Ty Rawls
(Tarleton State) |
Scott Payne
(North Alabama) |
Jayden Robertson
(Southen Utah) |
Other Nominees
Offensive:
La'Vell Wright (APSU); ShunDerrick Powell (UCA); Joshua Carter (EKU); Dakota Warfield (UNA); Targhee Lambson (SUU); Darius Cooper (TSU)
Defensive:
Chris Wright (ACU); Dion Hunter (APSU); David Walker (UCA); Braden Sullivan (EKU); Jackson Bratton (UNA); George Ramirez (SUU)
Specialist:
Romon Copeland Jr. (APSU); Jake Gaster (UCA); Patrick Nations (EKU); Cade Bowring (SUU); Andy Day (UTech)
Freshman:
Kyler Meschi (ACU); Kaden Smith (EKU); Josh Anglin (UNA); Reggie Graff (UTech)