A total of 10 players from each college and university that fields a football team in the state of Colorado have been nominated for the player-of-the-week honors presented by the Colorado Chapter of the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame.  Here is the list:

• Andre Branch, running back, Adams State
• Carter Cremsacoli, placekicker, Air Force
• Lamont Lester Jr., defensive lineman, Colorado
• Liu Aumavae, quarterback, Colorado Mesa
• Nick Stone, wide receiver, Colorado School of Mines
• Hauss Hejny, quarterback, Colorado State
• Navi Bruzon, quarterback, CSU Pueblo
• Drennan Dowell, linebacker, Fort Lewis
• Trey Olsen, wide receiver, Northern Colorado
• Caden Campuzano, linebacker, Western Colorado

The second POW recipient this season will be determined by a vote of the members of the NFF Colorado Chapter’s board of directors and representatives from College Sports Communicators at the 10 schools that compete in college football in the state of Colorado.  STATISTICAL LEADERS  / COMBINED STATISTICS

Linebacker Carter Daniels from Colorado State Pueblo was the first NFFCC recipient for the 2026 season. In his first start for the ThunderWolves, the sophomore from Mountain Vista High School in Centennial, Colo., had 16 total tackles (five solos) and returned an interception for a touchdown in sixth-ranked CSU Pueblo’s 44-25 win over Central Missouri on August 27 at the ThunderBowl in the Steel City.

Here are this week’s nominees presented to Sarah Meier, coordinator of the POW program for the Colorado Chapter.  PAST RECIPIENTS

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  In Adams State’s 52-26 setback at Sul Ross State in Alpine, Texas, Branch rushed for 78 yards and caught one pass for 13 yards.  The senior from Phoenix scored Adams State’s first touchdown on a 4-yard run with 6:02 remaining in the first quarter and opened the second half with a 15-yard run as the Griz put together a 73-yard touchdown drive. Branch is the RMAC’s top rusher.

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  Cremsacoli contributed 10 points in Air Force’s 34-0 season-opening win over Duquesne.  Playing in his first-career game, the Mount Prospect, Ill. sophomore was two for two on field goals, including a 52-yarder for the 19th longest in school history and the longest by a Falcon since Matthew Dapore hit from 54 against Colorado in 2022.  Named the AFA kicker at mid-week this week, Cremascoli turned down a $100,000 offer from a Big Ten school in December and decided to stay at the Academy, even though he was No. 2 in the spring and entered the fall No. 2.

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  Despite being on the field for only 12 plays, Lester Jr. recorded all three of Colorado’s sacks (22 yards in losses) and 3.5 tackles for loss in the Buffaloes’ 14-13 season-opening win at Georgia Tech.   The three sacks from the Ramsey, N. J., junior each ended a Georgia Tech possession short of a score, and he was in on four of the defense’s eight third-down stops as Colorado held the Yellow Jackets to 51 rushing yards on 30 carries and did not allow an offensive touchdown.

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  Aumavae, a fifth-year player from Waldorf, Md., completed eight of 12 passes for three touchdowns (48, 13, 54) in leading Colorado Mesa to a 42-23 win at Eastern New Mexico in Portales.

• Stone had a career game to lead Colorado School of Mines in its 16-16 tie at Washburn in Topeka, Kan.  The Highlands Ranch, Colo., senior caught nine passes for 125 yards and a touchdown.  The game went four full quarters but was called off before overtime due to extreme heat.

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  As the quarterback to start the Jim Mora Era at Colorado State, Hejny completed 23 of 33 passes for 214 yards and five touchdowns in the Rams’ 35-13 win over Wyoming in Collins.  The second-year player from Aledo, Texas also rushed for 43 yards and caught a pass for 28 in the contest. The five passing touchdowns matched a program record for most in a season-opening game for a Rams signal caller.  His reception helped set up the opening drive touchdown, setting the tone for the Rams’ offense.

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  In his second start for CSU Pueblo, Bruzon amassed 322 yards of total offense and accounted for four touchdowns in helping the No. 5 ThunderWolves to a 35-17 win at No. 25 Fort Hays State.  The two-time Arizona Gatorade High School Player of the Year from Peoria completed 21  of 31 passes for 280 yards and three touchdowns.  He added 42 yards rushing on eight carries and scored on a 20-yard touchdown run to give the Pack a 14-7 lead less than six minutes into the second quarter. He had touchdown passes of 42 yards, 5 yards, and 7 yards in the win.  Through two games this season, Bruzon is completing 65 percent of his passes, with 39-for-60 passing for 601 yards; he has thrown seven touchdown passes and two interceptions, has rushed for 50 yards on 19 carries, and is averaging 325.5 yards of total offense per game.  He currently leads the RMAC in passing yards, passing touchdowns, and passing yards per game and is second in passing efficiency at 181.0.

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  A sophomore from Lakewood, Colo., Dowell posted career highs with seven tackles (two solos) in his first career start as Fort Lewis posted a 27-9 win over Arizona Christian in Durango.  He had one tackle for 4 yards lost, recovered one fumble with a 12-yard return, and hauled in one interception for another eight-yard return.  Accounting for two of the three Skyhawk turnovers in the game, Dowell helped FLC hold Arizona Christian to only three field goals and 288 yards of offense (80 passing).

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  A sophomore from Loveland, Olsen caught three passes for 61 yards and a touchdown in Northern Colorado’s 38-23 setback to South Dakota in Greeley.  His 54-yard TD reception gave the Bears a 7-0 lead in the game.  He has recorded a touchdown in back-to-back games to open the 2026 season after switching back to receiver after playing safety a season ago.

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  In 11th-ranked Western Colorado’s come-from-behind 23-21 win over Angelo State in Gunnison, Campuzano piled up 12 tackles (six solo) and made the game-finishing tackle in Western’s 2-point win, sacking the Angelo State quarterback on 4th and 12 at Western’s 49 with 1:17 left in the game. The Upland, Calif., product had two sacks for minus-12 yards and one fumble recovery