Opta Analyst’s FCS football coverage includes weekly national player and team honors throughout the regular season and will lead toward the annual season-ending FCS National Awards Banquet, scheduled for Jan. 4 in Frisco, Texas.
Central Arkansas’ ShunDerrick Powell, Sacramento State’s Will Leota, Central Connecticut State’s Aidan Clark and Furman’s Trey Hedden were selected Monday as the Stats Perform FCS National Players of the Week for Week 3 college football games ending on Sept. 14.
In addition, the Mercer Bears were named the Stats Perform FCS National Team of the Week.
The five honorees plus honorable mention selections for the FCS National Awards:
Stats Perform FCS National Offensive Player of the Week
ShunDerrick Powell, Central Arkansas, RB, Sr., 5-9, 180, Hoxie, Arkansas
Powell continued his huge start to the season with 210 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns in the Bears’ 45-17 win over defending United Athletic Conference champion Austin Peay. He scored on 11- and 63-yard runs while finishing with 173 rushing yards, and on a 12-yard reception – one of his four catches. He ranks No. 1 in the FCS with 631 scrimmage yards and eight TDs.
Honorable Mention: Jacob Clark, QB, Missouri State; JaMario Clements, RB, Duquesne; Josh Derry, WR, Monmouth; Bryson Irby, RB, ETSU; Seth Morgan, QB, New Hampshire; DJ Williams, QB, Southern Illinois
Stats Perform FCS National Defensive Player of the Week
Will Leota, Sacramento State, LB, Sr., 6-2, 223, Salt Lake City, Utah
The Hornets from the Big Sky held defending Southland Conference champ Nicholls without an offensive touchdown in a 34-7 victory, with Leota posting team highs of 10 tackles, three tackles for loss and two sacks. The Utah Tech transfer had his eighth career game with 10+ tackles, and his drops behind the line of scrimmage resulted in 15 yards of losses.
Honorable Mention: Devin Hembry, DB, North Dakota; Jalen Howard, DL, Central Connecticut State; Vincent King, LB, Lindenwood; Cole Kozloewski, LB, Colgate; Nicholas Lenon, DE, Merrimack; Garret Ollendieck, LB, Indiana State; A.J. Pena, Jr., LB, Rhode Island; Boogsie Silveria, DB, McNeese
Stats Perform FCS National Special Teams Player of the Week
Aidan Clark, Central Connecticut State, P, Sr., 6-3, 255, Tolland, Connecticut
Clark had both a hand and foot in CCSU’s 27-20 triumph at Saint Francis, tying the Northeast Conference record with an 84-yard punt. It was one of his three punts of at least 50 yards, and he placed four of his six boots inside the SFU 20 while averaging 51.7 yards. He also completed a 19-yard pass and was the holder on two field goals and three extra points.
Honorable Mention: Darnell Deas, KR, Bethune-Cookman; Andrew Marshall, PR, Idaho; Hunter Ridley, PK, UC Davis; Ritse Vaes, Abilene Christian; Ian Williams, PK, Furman; Jeff York, P, Elon
Stats Perform FCS National Freshman Player of the Week
Trey Hedden, Furman, QB, Fr., 6-3, 231, Tampa, Florida
A true freshman, Hedden accounted for three straight touchdowns during defending Southern Conference champ Furman’s 48-7 win over Stetson. He completed 20 of 27 pass attempts for 267 yards, including 51- and 50-yard TDs, and used his legs to score from 13 yards out. He posted a 181.6 passer rating, which ranked seventh-best in the Week 3 FCS schedule.
Honorable Mention: DaMario Crawford, DB/KR, Saint Francis; Malae Fonoti, RB, Montana; Sascha Garcia, DB, William & Mary; Qualan Jones, RB, Stephen F. Austin; Nic Lendino, DB, Valparaiso; Isaiah Ragland, RB, Villanova
Stats Perform FCS National Team of the Week
Mercer (10-3 win at then-No. 14 Chattanooga)
The Bears, off to a 3-0 start under first-year coach Mike Jacobs, won a huge SoCon opener while remaining as the only non-Ivy League FCS team yet to trail in a game this season. They’ve held all three opponents to 29 or fewer rushing yards. Brayden Smith scored the game’s only touchdown on a 9-yard run in the second quarter, and linebacker Isaac Dowling and cornerback TJ Moore finished with six tackles each.
Honorable Mention: Duquesne (28-25 win at then-No. 21 Youngstown State); Lamar (17-16 win over then-No. 20 Weber State); Sacramento State (34-7 win over then-No. 24 Nicholls)
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