Southland Announces Football Players of the Week
Southland Conference
FRISCO, Texas – UIW sophomore quarterback Trent Brittain and senior linebacker Myke Taverres along with Sam Houston State senior wide receiver Gerald Thomas earned Southland Conference Football Player of the Week honors presented by UniversalCoin.com, the league office announced Monday. Brittain took offensive honors while Taverres was named defensive player of the week and Thomas was tabbed the top special teams player.
Offensive Player of the Week: Trent Brittain, UIW
Brittain had the best game of his career in UIW’s 45-31 come-from-behind win against Northwestern State. After the Demons took a 14-0 lead after the first quarter, the sophomore from Eastland, Texas (Eastland H.S.), mounted the Cardinals’ comeback by going 20-for-32 for 259 yards and two touchdowns in the air without an interception. He also scored three touchdowns on eight carries for 57 yards on the ground. His 47-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter put the game out of reach for the Demons by giving UIW a 35-24 lead. His five total touchdowns are a single-game high for Brittain, and it is the second consecutive game in which he tallied more than 300 yards of total offense.
Honorable Mention: D’Shaie Landor, Southeastern Louisiana; Dominique Thomas, Central Arkansas.
Defensive Player of the Week: Myke Taverres, UIW
Taverres recorded a season-high 15 tackles, including nine solo tackles, in the Cardinals’ 45-31 win over Northwestern State. The senior linebacker from Lake Oswego, Ore. (Lake Ridge H.S.), had 1.5 tackles for a loss, including one on a fourth-and-inches late in the game that stopped the Northwestern State momentum.
Honorable Mention: Bo Brown, McNeese State; Micah Eugene, Southeastern Louisiana.
Special Teams Player of the Week: Gerald Thomas, Sam Houston State
Thomas, a senior from Plano, Texas (The Colony H.S.), sparked the Sam Houston State offense by scoring the team’s first touchdown early in the third quarter on a 78-yard punt return. Thomas had 144 all-purpose yards, including 95 yards on three punt returns, in the Bearkats’ 34-28 win over Stephen F. Austin in the 90th Battle of the Piney Woods. Thomas’ return for a score was the sixth-longest punt return in school history and the longest for Sam Houston since 2009.
Honorable Mention: Rodney Randle, Lamar; Xavier Roberson, Southeastern Louisiana; Jace Denker, Central Arkansas.
Each school’s sports information director nominates and votes for the players of the week, though is not permitted to vote for his own player. To receive honorable mention, a player must receive votes from 25 percent of the Southland sports information directors.