JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The United Athletic Conference (UAC) has announced its weekly football awards for the week of Sept. 14 with Austin Peay, EKU and Tarleton State taking home honors.
Tylan Hines from Tarleton State earned his second consecutive Offensive Player of the Week nod after he ran for 141 yards on 17 carries in the team’s 27-24 win over McNeese to stay undefeated on the season. The fifth year crossed the pylons twice in the game while adding in two catches for six yards. Through the first three games of the season, the Mount Pleasant, Texas native is averaging the second-most yards per carry in FCS at 8.46.
EKU’s Cam Jessee took home this week’s Defensive Player of the Week award after he led the Colonels with eight total tackles and two tackles for loss. The sophomore linebacker added in his first sack of the season late in the game and had two pass breakups in the team’s 22-17 win over Chattanooga.
Alejandro De La Poza snagged Specialist of the Week after he booted in the game-winning field goal as time expired to give Tarleton State the 27-24 win over McNeese. The sophomore kicker from Spain went 3-for-3 on extra point attempts and added in another 24-yard field goal in the game.
Austin Peay’s Denver Harper grabbed his first Freshman of the Week honor after he racked up 196 all-purpose yards (124 receiving, 64 punt return, and eight rushing) and three touchdowns in the team’s runaway win over Morehead State. The Fort Mitchell, Alabama native found the endzone for all three scores in the first half, including the Governors’ first offensive play from scrimmage where he scored on a 73-yard pop pass.
Requests for interviews should be directed to:
Claire Johnson, Senior Director, Strategic Communications & Content
Unisun Sports / claire.johnson@unisunsports.com
About the United Athletic Conference
The United Athletic Conference (UAC) was established in 2023 as a single-sport football conference through a partnership between the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN) and the former Western Athletic Conference. In July 2026, the ASUN and UAC formed Unisun Sports to further strengthen the conference, which now features eight football-playing member institutions: Abilene Christian University (Abilene, Texas), Austin Peay State University (Clarksville, Tenn.), the University of Central Arkansas (Conway, Ark.), Eastern Kentucky University (Richmond, Ky.), the University of North Alabama (Florence, Ala.), Tarleton State University (Stephenville, Texas), the University of West Georgia (Carrollton, Ga.) and the University of West Florida (Pensacola, Fla.).