2023-10-02 18:01:21
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NEW ORLEANS – Following key contributions to thrilling victories, Arkansas State’s Jaylen Raynor, Georgia Southern’s Marques Watson-Trent and App State’s Michael Hughes earned the conference’s weekly honors.
Football Offensive Player of the Week
Jaylen Raynor, Arkansas State
(Fr., QB – Kernersville, N.C.)
Red Wolves true freshman quarterback Jaylen Raynor connected on 20-of-25 passes for 383 yards and six touchdowns in Arkansas State’s 52-28 non-conference win over UMass. The Kernersville, N.C., native’s six touchdown passes tied the program record and helped him join the elite company of Caleb Williams (Oklahoma vs. Texas Tech, 2021), Justin Herbert (Oregon at California, 2016) and Patrick Mahomes (Texas Tech vs. Baylor, 2014) as the fourth FBS true freshman since 2013 with six touchdown passes in a game. The win gives Arkansas State its first three-game winning streak since 2019.
Football Defensive Player of the Week
Marques Watson-Trent, Georgia Southern
(RS Jr., LB – Pittsburgh, Pa.)
Eagles redshirt junior linebacker Marques Watson-Trent tallied 14 tackles to help lift Georgia Southern to a 38-28 victory over Coastal Carolina in its conference opener—its first win over the Chanticleers since 2019. Watson-Trent sealed the win with the first interception of his collegiate career with 16 seconds to play—the fourth interception on the day by the Georgia Southern defensive unit. In front of a record-setting crowd of 26,483 fans at Paulson Stadium, the Pittsburgh, Pa., product registered the seventh double-digit tackling performance of his career.
Football Special Teams Player of the Week
Michael Hughes, App State
(Jr., K – Charleston, W.Va.)
Mountaineers junior kicker Michael Hughes sent a career-long 54-yard field goal through the uprights as time expired to lift App State to a come-from-behind 41-40 walk-off win over ULM in its conference opener. The kick was the longest game-ender in program history and was also the Mountaineers longest field goal since 2000. The Charleston, W.Va. native also connected on a 28-yarder to pull App State within two early in the fourth quarter and went a perfect 5-for-5 on extra point attempts in the win.
2023 Sun Belt Football Offensive Players of the Week
Week 1 – TJ Finley, Texas State (RS So., QB – Ponchatoula, La.)
Week 2 – Davis Brin, Georgia Southern (6th Yr., QB – Boerne, Texas)
Week 3 – Darren Grainger, Georgia State (RS Sr., QB – Conway, S.C.)
Week 4 – Rasheen Ali, Marshall (Jr., RB – Cleveland, Ohio)
Week 5 – Jaylen Raynor, Arkansas State (Fr., QB – Kernersville, N.C.)
2023 Sun Belt Football Defensive Players of the Week
Week 1 – Clayton Isbell, Coastal Carolina (Super Sr., S – St. Charles, Ill.)
Week 2 – Jason Henderson, Old Dominion (Jr., LB – Dingmans Ferry, Pa.)
Week 3 – LaMareon James, Old Dominion (Jr., CB – Norfolk, Va.)
Week 4 – Brian Holloway, Texas State (RS Sr., LB – Clear Lake, Texas)
Week 5 – Marques Watson-Trent, Georgia Southern (RS Jr., LB – Pittsburgh, Pa.)
2023 Sun Belt Football Special Teams Players of the Week
Week 1 – Andrew Stein, Southern Miss (RS Jr., K – Slidell, La.)
Week 2 – Aiden Fisher, James Madison (So., LB – Fredericksburg, Va.)
Week 3 – Camden Wise, James Madison (RS Sr., K – Blacksburg, Va.)
Week 4 – Dominic Zvada, Arkansas State (So., K – Chandler Ariz.)
Week 5 – Michael Hughes, App State (Jr., K – Charleston, W.Va.)
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