Offense
QB Taryn Christion, South Dakota State
6-2, 215, So., Sioux Falls (S.D.) Roosevelt High
   Christion set a school record with 466 passing yards and tied a career-high with five touchdown passes in South Dakota State’s 45-39 victory at Southern Illinois on Oct. 8. Christion completed 32-of-51 pass attempts in the game, connecting with eight different receivers. It marked the second week in a row Christion has thrown for five touchdowns as he upped his season total to 20 against only one interception.

Defense
DE Derek Rivers, Youngstown State
6-5, 250, Sr., Kinston (N.C.) High
   Rivers had three sacks in the Penguins’ solid 20-6 win over Illinois State. Rivers had four total tackles in the game, all solo stops. He also had a quarterback hurry. Two of Rivers’ sacks came on the final two possessions as the defense helped seal the victory. YSU allowed just 250 total offensive yards and six points to the Redbirds. Rivers now has seven sacks on the season and 33 for his career.

Special Teams
P Mark Schuler, Youngstown State
6-5, 250, RFr., New Middletown (Ohio) Springfield High
   Schuler averaged 45.7 yards per punt on six kicks and had a long of 55 in the 20-6 win over Illinois State. Schuler placed three punts inside the 20-yard line in the first half as the team’s battled for field position. He had punts of 44, 43, 55, 52, 35 and 45 in the contest. He punted five times in the first half and just once in the second.

Newcomer
QB Chris Streveler, South Dakota
6-2, 220, Jr., Crystal Lake (Ill.) Marian Central Catholic/Minnesota
    Streveler passed for 182 yards, ran for 128 yards and accounted for three touchdowns in South Dakota's 28-25 win against 11th-ranked UNI Saturday inside the DakotaDome. Streveler averaged 10.7 yards per carry against the nation's fourth-best run defense and averaged 22.7 yards per completion. He took the third play of the game 69 yards for a score and a 7-0 lead. He also threw touchdowns of 75 and 29 yards to Tacari Carpenter, and used a 63-yard bomb to Alonge Brooks to set up a 10-yard touchdown run by Trevor Bouma.

Offensive Lineman
LG Sepestiano Pupungatoa, South Dakota State
6-5, 305, So., River Falls (Wis.) High
   A converted defensive lineman, Pupungatoa graded out at 91 percent, recorded seven knockdown blocks and did not allow a sack or quarterback hurry in South Dakota State's 45-39 victory at Southern Illinois on Oct. 8.His performance helped allow the Jackrabbits rack up 572 yards of total offense, including a school-record 466 yards passing by quarterback Taryn Christion.

OTHERS NOMINATED

OFFENSE

• RB James Robinson, ILS -- Tallied 218 all-purpose yards for the Redbirds, with 103 of those coming on the ground. The 100-plus yard effort was the first of his career and included a career-long run of 42 yards.
• QB Aaron Bailey, UNI -- Rushed for 95 yards on the ground, adding two touchdowns. He also had 149 passing yards, including a 17-yard passing touchdown.
• WR Lance Lenoir, WIU -- Recorded his second career 200-yard receiving game, finishing the Indiana State game with 204 yards on 11 receptions. He tallied 169 of those yards in the first half (9 receptions). His two touchdown receptions tied a career-high.
• QB Josh Straughan, SIU -- Threw for 380 yards and two touchdowns vs. No. 12 South Dakota State. He went 33-for-50 with a pair of touchdowns. His 380 yards rank seventh in SIU single-game history.
• WR Robert Tonyan Jr., INS -- Became Indiana State’s all-time leader in receiving touchdowns at No. 13 Western Illinois. He had 82 yards and one score on three catches.
• WR Tacari Carpenter, USD -- Caught three passes for a career-high 109 yards and two touchdowns in South Dakota’s 28-25 win against 11th-ranked UNI. He caught a 75-yard touchdown pass in the middle of the second quarter that put USD back in front 21-17, and made a 29-yard touchdown catch in the 3rd Q.
• RB King Frazier, NDSU -- Rushed 19 times for a season-high 126 yards and two TDs at MSU. He averaged 6.6 yards per carry and scored on runs of 22 yards and 4 yards in the fourth quarter.

DEFENSE

• DT Kellen Soulek, SDSU -- Posted seven tackles (6 solo), including a pair of sacks, and also blocked a kick in helping lead South Dakota State to a 45-39 road win at SIU. Soulek blocked a game-tying field goal attempt early in the fourth quarter and his sacks were two of a season-high six recorded by SDSU.
• LB Matt Plank, NDSU -- Had three tackles for loss in the first eight minutes of the game finished with six total tackles in North Dakota State’s 27-3 win at Missouri State. He was part of a defensive unit that had 12 tackles for loss and held Missouri State to just 30 yards rushing.
• D’Shawn Dexter, UNI -- Had six solo tackles, adding one assisted. He also had a tackle for a loss of a yard, his third straight game with a tackle for loss.
• Kyron Watson, SIU -- Had seven tackles—all solo stops—in Southern’s 45-39 loss to No. 12 South Dakota State on Saturday. Watson had a sack, two tackles for loss and a forced fumble in the game.
• Colin Mertlik, USD -- Registered seven tackles including two sacks for 16 yards in South Dakota’s 28-25 win against 11th-ranked UNI. His first sack came on 3rd-and-5 early in the second half that forced a punt. His second came on 4th-and-4 with 1:15 remaining that sealed the win for the Coyotes.
• LB Dylan Cole, MSU -- Led all defenders with 15 stops vs. No. 1 North Dakota State, marking the 16th double-digit tackle performance of his career and his third in the last four games. He had eight solo tackles, including 2.5 tackles for loss. He also forced his third fumble of the season and had a QB hurry.
• LB Jameer Thurman, INS -- Had three tackles, but had a key fumble recovery on a muffed punt that sparked a 21-0 run by the Sycamores in the third quarter and added a 30-yard interception return for a TD, his third career pick but his first career score.
• LB Brett Taylor, WIU -- Finished with a game-high 11 tackles, nine of which were solo stops. He had a tackle for loss but his biggest play came during the final minutes. Taylor helped disrupt ISU’s snap on 4th-and-1 with 30 seconds left to help his teammates record a tackle for loss.

SPECIAL TEAMS

• DJ Davis -- Returned three kicks for 73 yards vs. No. 12 South Dakota State. He had a 40-yard return and kept his season average above 30 yards per return, which leads the MVFC and is sixth in the nation.
• Zach Drake, MSU -- Had a career-long 50-yard field goal and also averaged a net of 42.8 yards on his six punts vs. the Bison, including a pair of 50-plus yard kicks. He pinned NDSU inside its own 10 yard line on two separate occasions and recorded another career-best with his first-quarter punt of 59 yards.
• P Jackson Koonce, NDSU -- Averaged 42.3 yards on three punts at Missouri State. Koonce had a season-long 48-yard punt from inside the NDSU 20, and one fair catch inside the Missouri State 20.
• P/K Nathan Knuffman, WIU -- Kicked a 41-yard field goal, which proved to be the game-winner, in the 36-35 Homecoming win. He nailed 3-of-4 PATs and in the punt game averaged 40.4 yards on five punts.
• DB John McDonald-Horner, INS -- Blocked a punt deep in Western territory, which set up a 10-yard TD run by Roland Genesy to cap off a 21-0 run by the Sycamores.

NEWCOMER

• LB Christian Rozeboom, SDSU -- Had a game- and career-high 20 tackles at SIU. He also was credited with a forced fumble and one of his tackles was for a loss of three yards.
• DB Devin Brockington, INS -- Tallied six total tackles to lead the Sycamores at Western Illinois, but also added in two timely pass breakups.
• RB Jamie Gilmore, WIU -- Accounted for 35 yards rushing and receiving, but his biggest reception was a 9-yard leaping touchdown grab in the back of the endzone on 3rd-and-goal early in the fourth quarter to help Western’s comeback. He caught a season-high four passes for 29 yards.
• FS Cameron Price, MSU -- Turned in a career-best nine tackles vs. No. 1 North Dakota State. He logged five solo stops and six total tackles in the second half, while also breaking up a pass attempt.
• P Jackson Koonce, North Dakota State -- also nominated at Special Teams
• QB Josh Straughan, SIU -- also nominated at Offense
• P Mark Schuler, YSU -- earned Special Teams Player of the Week honors
• RB James Robinson, ILS -- also nominated at Offense 

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN

• OL Jacob Judd, WIU -- Judd led the offensive line grading out at 94 percent with nine pancake blocks. The offense gained nearly 500 yards (486) and did not allow a sack as QB Sean McGuire threw for a career-high in yards.
• LG Stetson Dagel, USD -- Dagel graded out as the top lineman in South Dakota’s 28-25 upset of 11th-ranked Northern Iowa Saturday inside the DakotaDome. He helped the Coyotes rack up 203 yards rushing against the nation’s fourth-best run defense and to 385 yards and four touchdowns overall. Dagel faced one of the nation’s best fronts in terms of producing negative plays, and limited UNI to no sacks and just three TFLs for five yards. The Coyotes averaged 7.9 yards per play including 5.5 yards per run and 15.2 yards per pass attempt.
• LG Zack Johnson, NDSU -- Johnson had a 100% assignment grade and led the Bison offensive line with 88% technique and 87% finish grades in North Dakota State’s 27-3 win at Missouri State. He played 67 snaps with 10 knockdowns including eight pancakes and two decleaters, and did not allow a sack or quarterback hurry. NDSU rushed for 269 yards against the No. 5-ranked rushing defense in FCS led by King Frazier’s season-high 126 yards.