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| Austin DeNoyer was getting the ball handed to him, rather than handing it off, for Martin Luther on Saturday. Martin Luther athletics photo |
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Games of April 9-10, 2021
The Team of the Week, presented by Scoutware, is D3football.com's weekly honor roll, in its 22nd season of recognizing the top performance at each position from the previous week. Players are nominated by schools.
Offense
QB Matthew Weimer, Jr., Hanover
Weimer helped propel the Panthers to at least a share of their third straight HCAC title as they defeated Franklin 56-21. The junior threw for a game-high 281 yards on 21-for-29 passing. He added three touchdowns through the air and one on the ground, rushing for 59 yards and a score.
OL Michael Norwood, Jacob Finfer, Jake Buhe, Chris Wojciak, AJ Lust, Illinois Wesleyan
The Titans' recorded better than 90 percent blocking efficiency across the entire line in rushing for 5.6 yards per carry and not allowing a sack in IWU's win against North Park.
RB Austin DeNoyer, Sr., Martin Luther
DeNoyer, pressed into service at quarterback the previous week in a win against Ripon, returned to his more customary position and picked up 218 yards on just 12 carries to lead the Knights to a 44-14 win against Minnesota-Morris. He scored on touchdowns of 27, 60 and 71 yards in the win.
RB Montavious Yearby, So., Heidelberg
Yearby shouldered the load for the Student Princes all game, picking up 194 yards on 27 carries in a win against Ohio Northern. On the game-winning drive, he carried the ball eight times for 60 yards, including converting two third downs, one a third-and-10.
RB Bryce Agnew, So., Marietta
Agnew scored on runs of 6, 10 and 61 yards on a night in which he finished with 191 yards on 26 carries, leading Marietta to a 29-7 win against Muskingum.
WR Cody Gustafson, Sr., Grove City
Gustafson caught a program-record 19 passes for 162 yards and both of the Wolverines' touchdowns Friday night against Westminster (Pa.).
WR James Tucker, Jr., Anderson
Tucker notched nine receptions, 150 receiving yards and two touchdowns in a 49-30 loss to Mount St. Joseph.
Defense
DE Sam Brod, Sr., Carnegie Mellon
Brod led a Tartans defense that held Geneva to 202 yards of total offense in a 20-7 win Friday night at Gesling Stadium. It marked Carnegie Mellon's 20th straight win when holding their opponent to under 300 yards of total offense. The senior tied a career high with eight tackles and he added two tackles for loss.
DT Tyler Turek, So., Heidelberg
Both of his tackles were for loss, including a sack of the elusive Brody Hahn in a win against Ohio Northern. He also "intercepted" a lateral attempt on the game's final play, a play which goes down as a fumble recovery (not to mention a 38-yard return) to preserve the 42-35 victory.
DT Richard Pope IV, Fr., Defiance
In Defiance's slim 23-20 loss at Bluffton last Saturday, Pope had a game-high 10 total tackles, including six solos, four for loss and a sack. Pope also was credited with a quarterback hurry.
DT Blade Durbala, Sr., Central
Durbala had five tackles, including one and a half tackles for loss in a 37-19 win against Nebraska Wesleyan. He forced a fumble, had two quarterback hurries and blocked an extra point that Central returned for two points.
DE Mike Murphy, Sr., Illinois Wesleyan
Murphy set the Illinois Wesleyan records for sacks in a single game and a career in the Titans' 42-7 victory over North Park at Tucci Stadium. Murphy finished with eight tackles, six for loss, and a program record five sacks. His five quarterback takedowns pushed his career total to 25.5, breaking the school mark record of 24.0 set in 2006.
LB Ian Barr, Jr., Westminster (Pa.)
Barr, last week's conference defensive player of the week, had another memorable performance with a fumble recovery that stopped Grove City's momentum to begin the second half, a crucial breakup on a Wolverine fourth down with two minutes remaining, and the game-sealing interception. Barr also had a game-high 1.5 tackles for a loss among his 10 total tackles.
LB Justin Scales, So., Westminster (Mo.)
Scales racked up six tackles, all solo and none of them more than 4 yards past the line of scrimmage as the Blue Jays got past Iowa Wesleyan 20-13 on Saturday. He also had a tackle for loss in the win
CB Montez Archer Jr., Fr., Bluffton
Archer had himself another day, with seven tackles, six of them solo, as well as a fumble recovery in the Beavers' narrow 23-20 win against Defiance.
S Abe Smith, Sr., George Fox
Smith made a tackle and an interception that he returned 45 yards to the opponent's 12-yard line, setting up a score with one of the Bruins' six takeaways in a 35-7 win against Pacific.
CB Dmaurien Franklin, Sr., N.C. Wesleyan
Franklin returned an interception for a touchdown in a 28-21 loss to Southern Virginia on Friday while also breaking up three passes and recording three tackles.
Special teams
K Dylan Kidder, Sr., Westminster (Pa.)
Kidder made a career-long 40 yard field goal in the Titans' 24-17 win at Grove City on Friday. The boot was the first Titan field goal for 40 yards or longer since 2017.
P Kameron Lee, Jr., Capital
Lee was a bright spot in the Crusaders' 47-10 loss to Otterbein, placing five of his seven punts inside the opposing 20-yard line, averaging 40.3 yards per kick.
RET A.J. Jackson, So., Lake Forest
Jackson, 2019 All-America selection, picked up right where he left off as the first time he touched the ball for the season was a 82-yard punt return for a touchdown in a win against Greenville. Jackson also had a block that sprung the off returner on the opening kickoff for a 34-yard return.
ST Benjamin Crist, So., Central
After Nebraska Wesleyan's first quarter TD, Crist scooped up a blocked extra point and scampered 81 yards for a defensive 2-point play to make it 6-2. Central outscored the Prairie Wolves 35-13 the rest of the way for a 37-19 win.