Drake’s Luke Bailey, Eastern Kentucky’s Logan Blake, Chattanooga’s Clayton Crile and Mississippi Valley State’s Ty’Jarian Williams were selected Monday as the FedEx Ground FCS National Players of the Week for Week 7 college football games ending this past Saturday.
In addition, Montana was named the FCS National Team of the Week.
The five honorees plus honorable mention selections:
FedEx Ground FCS National Offensive Player of the Week
Luke Bailey, Drake, QB, Sr., 6-2, 190, Lemont, Illinois
Bailey set career highs with 411 passing yards and five touchdown passes as Drake handled St. Thomas 52-21, ending the defending champion’s 13-game winning streak against Pioneer Football League opponents. He completed 24 of 32 attempts, and, like the passing yardage, his 234.5 pass efficiency rating marked the FCS weekly high. The Bulldogs (3-3, 3-0) moved into a first-place tie with Davidson.
Honorable Mention: Mari Adams, RB, Davidson; Aidan Bouman, QB, South Dakota; Dante Chachere, QB, Portland State; Efton Chism III, WR, Eastern Washington; Mike DiLiello, QB, Austin Peay; Zevi Eckhaus, QB, Bryant; Mark Gronowski, QB, South Dakota State; Chedon James, WR, Idaho State; Tyler Knoop, QB, Georgetown; Xavier Lankford, RB, Alabama A&M; Mark Mahoney, WR, Brown; Zach Osborne, QB, Colgate; LaDarius Owens, RB, Texas Southern; Braedon Sloan, RB, Eastern Kentucky
FedEx Ground FCS National Defensive Player of the Week
Logan Blake, Eastern Kentucky, LB, 6-2, 240, Lizton, Indiana
Blake already had 15 tackles for a second straight game when he intercepted a pass to end Tarleton’s possession in the second overtime, and Eastern Kentucky went on to score on its turn to post a 41-35 victory in the United Athletic Conference – the Colonels’ third consecutive win. The Marian transfer had 10 solos and one tackle for loss. He’s recorded nine or more tackles in all six games.
Honorable Mention: Colton Adams, LB, Alabama State; Terrell Allen, DE, Tennessee State; Macklin Ayers, LB, Dartmouth; Cirby Coheley, LB, Abilene Christian; Tylan Foster, LB, UIW; Jay Person, DE, Chattanooga; AJ Richardson, LB, Norfolk State; Isaiah Stalbird, LB, South Dakota State; Jackson Taylor, LB, Delaware; Angelo Vokolos, LB, Marist; Jacob Williams, LB, Texas Southern
FedEx Ground FCS National Special Teams Player of the Week
Clayton Crile, Chattanooga, PK/P, Sr., 6-2, 228, Duncan, South Carolina
Crile was 5-for-5 while notching a school record for field goals and averaged 48.8 yards on five punts in Chattanooga’s 22-10 win at Mercer in the Southern Conference. He converted his only extra point attempt, giving him 16 points, and three of his punts went inside the Mercer 20, including 57- and 55-yarders. The grad transfer from Catawba also kicked off seven times.
Honorable Mention: Jared Campbell, P, Western Illinois; Grant Glasgow, PK, Montana; Joshua Johnson, Return, Grambling State; Kyle Ramsey, PK, Abilene Christian; Kyle Romenick, P, Elon; Luke Skokna, Return/RB, North Dakota; TJ Speight, KR/WR, Monmouth
FedEx Ground FCS National Freshman Player of the Week
Ty’Jarian Williams, Mississippi Valley State, QB, 6-3, 240, Aliceville, Alabama
Williams passed for 265 yards and three touchdowns while directing the Delta Devils to a 42-17, Homecoming Day victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff – their first of the season – in the SWAC. He completed 19 of 29 passes, with a long of 75 yards, and added 30 rushing yards.
Honorable Mention: Tedy Afful, WR, Duquesne; Carter Glassmyer, LB, Saint Francis; Duhron Goodman, DB, Portland State; Jawarn Howell, RB, South Carolina State; Brendan Jenkins, WR, Samford; Isaiah Ragland, RB, Villanova; Aaron Sears, CB, Stephen F. Austin; Patrick Turner, P, Lindenwood
FedEx Ground FCS National Team of the Week
Montana (23-21 win at then-No. 3 Idaho)
Montana reclaimed the Little Brown Stein rivalry trophy while achieving back-to-back nationally ranked wins on the road (UC Davis last weekend), which hadn’t happened since 2000. Quarterback Clifton McDowell improved to 3-0 as a starter, connecting with Junior Bergen for a 76-yard touchdown pass and adding another score on the ground as the Grizzlies built a 20-0 first-half lead. Their defense forced three turnovers, had six sacks and limited Idaho to 58 net rushing yards.
Honorable Mention: Drake (52-21 win over St. Thomas); Houston Christian (30-0 win over Prairie View A&M); Idaho State (42-41 win over then-No. 21 Eastern Washington); North Dakota (49-24 win over then-No. 6 North Dakota State)
