MEAC football Players of the Week – Oct. 9

NORFOLK, Va. – North Carolina A&T State quarterback Lamar Raynard was selected as the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Offensive Player of the Week, the conference announced today. South Carolina State’s Darius Leonard was named the Defensive Player of the Week while North Carolina A&T State’s Brandon Parker received Offensive Lineman of the Week honors. Norfolk State quarterback Juwan Carter was tabbed Rookie of the Week while North Carolina Central specialist Aedan Johnson is the Specialist of the Week.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

LAMAR RAYNARD
NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE
QB
6-4, 200, R-Jr.
HIGH POINT, N.C.

Raynard finished 20-for-26 and passed for three touchdowns in North Carolina A&T State’s homecoming win over Delaware State on Saturday. The redshirt junior also had a 219.7 pass efficiency rating and a 61-yard scoring strike. This was Raynard’s second 300-yard passing game of the season, making him the first Aggie quarterback in school history to have two 300-yard passing games in the same season. Five of his 17 touchdown passes have gone for 50 yards or more.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

DARIUS LEONARD
SOUTH CAROLINA STATE
LB
6-3, 235, R-SR.
LAKE VIEW, S.C.

Leonard finished with 18 tackles (14 solo) this past Friday in SC State’s win over Morgan State. In addition to his tackle count, Leonard also finished with two interceptions for 51 yards with one of them returned for the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter. Leonard also logged a tackle for loss, pass breakup and quarterback hurry.

OFFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE WEEK

BRANDON PARKER
NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE
OL 6-7, 309, R-SR.
KANNAPOLIS, N.C.

Parker had another solid weekend as he blocked for an offensive unit which went over the 400-yard mark for the sixth time this season. He did not allow a sack or any quarterback hurries versus Delaware State.

ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

JUWAN CARTER
NORFOLK STATE
QB 6-0, 170, FR.
RICHMOND, VA.

Carter completed 17-of-32 passes for 164 yards and two touchdowns to help Norfolk State top Florida A&M and improve to 2-0 in the MEAC. The freshman from Richmond, Va. came up big in the second half as he erased a seven-point deficit with a 45-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter. With the game tied at 28-all late in the fourth quarter, Carter’s 17-yard run set up the game-winning touchdown as he finished his final drive 3-for-4. He also completed a key two-point conversion to begin the fourth quarter which gave NSU a seven-point lead.

SPECIALIST OF THE WEEK

AEDAN JOHNSON
NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL
PK
5-8, 160, JR.
CHULA VISTA, CALIF.

Johnson came up big for the Eagles as he scored a MEAC-best seven points in North Carolina Central’s 13-7 win at Howard. Johnson connected on two big field goals in the second quarter to keep NCCU within distance and a PAT in the third quarter.

NOTABLE PERFORMERS

Eli Anglin (LB/Howard)
Anglin finished with three tackles, including two tackles for loss versus North Carolina Central.

Chauncey Caldwell (QB/North Carolina Central) Caldwell accounted for 208 yards of total offense, rushing for 89 yards and passing for 119 yards, including the game-winning 30-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter.

Nigel Chavis (DL/Norfolk State)
Chavis led a defensive effort that forced a season-high five turnovers in the win versus Florida A&M. Chavis had 12 tackles, a sack, quarterback hurry and forced two fumbles on his own, both of which NSU recovered and one of which was returned for a touchdown.

Khris Gardin (KR/North Carolina A&T State) Gardin finished with three kickoff returns for 136 yards, including a 78-yard kickoff return to the DSU 2-yard line that set up the Aggies’ second touchdown of the afternoon following a safety. He also had three punt returns for 17 yards.

Damion Gillespie (WR/Howard) Gillespie caught six receptions for 137 yards, including a 75-yard touchdown versus North Carolina Central.

Reggie Hunter (LB/North Carolina Central) Hunter amassed a game-high eight tackles, including 1.5 stops for a loss with an assisted sack, and grabbed an interception that set up a field goal at the end of the first half at Howard.

Raheim Huskey (LB/Hampton) Huskey led Hampton with 11 tackles, one interception and a tackle for loss as Hampton forced four turnovers in a 17-10 win at Savannah State.

Aaron Hutchins (OL/Howard) Hutchins blocked for a unit which went over the 400-yard mark and graded out at 90 percent.

Kenneth Kirby (OL/Norfolk State) Kirby graded out at 88 percent with two pancake blocks as he led a Spartan offense which produced three touchdowns in the win over Florida A&M.

Azende’ Rey (RB/Florida A&M) Rey rushed for 86 yards on 11 carries, including a 36-yard run that set up a FAMU touchdown.

Trey Samuel (RB/South Carolina State) Samuel finished Friday’s game with 146 yards on 19 rushing attempts. He averaged 7.7 yards per carry and had an 89-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter.

Ryan Stanley (QB/Florida A&M) Stanley finished 27-of-37 for 235 yards and passed for three touchdowns at Norfolk State.

Jakaris Wilson (DL/Florida A&M) Wilson led a stout Florida A&M defense with seven tackles, a half-sack and a pass breakup at Norfolk State.