Eight players 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 are the nominees.
- Roscoe Taylor, defensive back, Adams State (Aurora)
- Jaden Thermidor, running back, Colorado Mesa (Aurora)
- Lucas LeSieur, punter, Colorado Mines
- Hauss Hejny, quarterback, Colorado State
- Nyir Jones, wide receiver/returner, CSU Pueblo
- Ethan Kercher, punter, Fort Lewis (Centennial)
- Marcus Mozer, wide receiver, Northern Colorado (Fort Collins)
- Josiah Roy, quarterback, Western Colorado (Colorado Springs)
The NFF Colorado Chapter board of directors and representatives from College Sports Communicators at the 10 schools that compete in college football in Colorado will vote to determine the ninth POW recipient this season. WEEKLY STATISTICAL LEADERS – PDF / COMPOSITE SCHOOL STATISTICS – PDF
Linebacker Carter Daniels (Week 0) and quarterback Navi Bruzon (Week 2) from Colorado State Pueblo, quarterback Hauss Hejny (Week 1) from Colorado State, quarterback Joseph Capra (Weeks 3 and 7) and running back Max Barnes (Week 5) of Colorado School of Mines, and quarterbacks Liam Szarka (Week 4) and Evan Medders (Week 6) of the United States Air Force Academy were the first eight NFFCC recipients.
Here are this week’s nominees presented to Sarah Meier, coordinator of the Colorado Chapter’s POW program. PAST RECIPIENTS
- In Adams State’s 59-12 setback to Mesa in Alamosa, Taylor recorded a team-high 11 tackles, seven solo, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. The senior defensive back from Aurora and Smoky Hill High’s second-quarter strip and recovery stopped Colorado Mesa at Adams State, 21, giving him the team’s leading tackle total and its takeaway.
- A junior from Regis Jesuit, Thermidor rushed for 134 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries in Colorado Mesa’s 59-12 win at Adams State in Alamosa. The Aurora, Colo., resident caught one pass for 11 yards and a touchdown to finish the game with 145 total yards and three touchdowns
- A sophomore punter from Walnut Creek, Calif., LeSieur played a key role in the 17-10 Mines win over South Dakota Mines in Golden, helping the Orediggers win the field-position battle. LeSieur punted five times for a 49.4-yard average, hitting two over 50 yards. LeSieur pinned SDM to an average starting position of their own 18-yard line, and his day was highlighted by a booming 58-yarder that rolled out of bounds at the SDM 4. LeSieur also hit a 56-yarder that was ultimately fumbled and recovered by the Orediggers.
- A second-year quarterback from Aledo, Texas, Hejny threw for 418 yards and five touchdowns in CSU’s 56-49 win over San Diego State in Fort Collins. He also rushed for 85 yards on 11 carries and two scores, and he completed 24 of 31 passes for 333 yards and three scoring passes. He accounted for nine explosive plays, including a 30-yard rushing touchdown. The other eight were passes, including a 54-yard scoring pass. He returned to the starting lineup after being injured early in the BYU game. He now has 13 touchdown passes and three rushing TDs on the season.
- A sophomore from Camden, N. J., Jones made his presence felt on the first play of the game in CSU Pueblo’s 28-21 win at Fort Lewis. He returned the game’s opening kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown to give the Pack a 7-0 lead just 15 seconds. The 89-yard kickoff return marked the second straight game that Jones returned a kickoff for a score, as he tallied a 91-yard kickoff return in the Pack’s game last week against New Mexico Highlands. In addition to his 89-yard kickoff return, he returned one punt for 10 yards and caught one pass for four yards, for 103 all-purpose yards. Jones is one of five Division II players this season with two kickoff-return scores and leads the RMAC. The two kickoff return touchdowns are also tied for the school’s single-season mark. This season, Jones has returned five kickoffs for 250 yards, averaging 50.0 yards per return and 55.9 all-purpose yards per game.
- In Fort Lewis’ 28-21 setback to CSU Pueblo in Durango for the “mud brawl”, Kercher has a 48.9 punting averae for seven kicks with a long of 63. The sophomore from Centennial, Colo., and Arapahoe High, Kercher had two punts inside the 20, two punts of plus-50 yards, and two touchbacks. His ability to flip the field was paramount in Fort Lewis’ attempt to upset one of the nation’s top teams and set the stage for two fumble recoveries and a blocked punt inside the red zone, giving Fort Lewis one final possession to tie in the final two minutes. Kercher leads the RMAC and ranks 8th nationally in punting (Avg. 43.8 yards per punt; NCAA minimum 3.6 punts per game). His 63-yard punt is his longest this year and the 7th-longest in the RMAC. He leads the RMAC with 14 punts over 50 yards this season and ranks sixth in punts inside the 20 with 8.
- Mozer caught six passes for 69 yards, including a 23-yard scoring reception in the fourth quarter, as UNC lost 33-6 at UC Davis. A sophomore wide receiver from Fossil Ridge High in Fort Collins, Mozer has four TD receptions of the season.
- In Western Colorado’s 42-10 win at Black Hills State, Roy completed 33 of 44 passes for a career-high 348 yards and two touchdowns. A senior from Colorado Springs and Pine Creek High School, Roy rushed for 9 yards and 1 touchdown.
