Six 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.
- Frank Acuri, quarterback, Adams State
- Evan Medders, quarterback, Air Force
- Gideon ESPN Lampron, linebacker, Colorado
- Carter Daniels, linebacker, CSU Pueblo
- Solomon Latimer, wide receiver, Fort Lewis
- Josiah Roy, quarterback, Western Colorado
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.
Linebacker Carter Daniels (September 1) and quarterback Navi Bruzon (September 15) from Colorado State Pueblo, quarterback Hauss Hejny (September 8 and October 27) from Colorado State, quarterback Joseph Capra (September 22 and October 20) and running back Max Barnes (October 6) of Colorado School of Mines, and quarterbacks Liam Szarka (September 29), Evan Medders (October 13), and Kemper Hodges (November 3) of the United States Air Force Academy were the first nine NFFCC recipients.
Here are this week’s nominees presented to Sarah Meier, coordinator of the Colorado Chapter’s POW program. PAST RECIPIENTS
- Arcuri, a junior from Sacramento, Calif., generated 288 yards of total offense and scored twice on the ground as Adams State fell 42-34 to New Mexico Highlands. He threw for 212 yards without an interception and rushed for 76 yards on 14 carries. His 19- and 25-yard touchdown runs helped the Grizzlies take a second-quarter lead and build a 10-point advantage after halftime.
- The sophomore quarterback from Maxhaw, N. C., rushed for 59 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries in the Falcons’ 24-21 win at Army to win the Commander-in-Chief Trophy for the first time since 2022. Medders recorded career highs in every passing category, hitting 6-8 passes for 84 yards and a touchdown with a long of 25 yards. Medders scored his touchdown to extend Air Force’s lead to a two-score game, 17-7. He threw his touchdown pass, hitting tight end Simon Kibbee from 24 yards to give Air Force the lead for good, 24-21. The touchdown drive was key, not only to giving Air Force the lead, but also because it came after Army scored on two straight possessions to take its first lead of the game. Medders picked up six first downs in addition to his two touchdowns. Air Force’s passing was the difference in the game, helping the Falcons beat Army to secure a record 22nd CIC trophy title. Medders returned from injury after missing last week’s UConn game.
- A fifth-year senior from LaGrange, Ohio, Lampron recorded 18 total tackles (3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks) in the Buffs’ 20-10 setback to Arizona State in Tempe, the most of any Big 12 player in a game this season. He leads the Big 12 with 99 tackles, 11.0 per game, and has 16 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. He is the first inside linebacker to have more than 3 tackles for loss in back-to-back games since Nate Landman in 2020, and he’s the first player to have consecutive multiple-sack games in 33 years since 1993. He’s hit double figures in tackles in five straight games and hit a new career high in four straight, a stretch where he has 61 total tackles, 15.3 per game, 10.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks in those four games. For the second straight game, he had all three tackles in a defensive 3-and-out for the Buffs, something that hadn’t happened since 2019, prior to last week.
- The sophomore from Centennial, Colo., and Mountain Vista High recorded nine total tackles, including three solo stops, and added 1.5 tackles for a loss and one quarterback hurry in the shutout win over the Hardrockers. Daniels and the Pack defense pitched their first shutout of the season against the Hardrockers, holding them to 193 yards of offense on 60 plays and an average of 3.2 yards per game. South Dakota Mines was held to 29 yards rushing on 24 carries, averaging 1.2 yards per carry, and passed for 164 yards. The Pack also held South Dakota Mines’ running back Dawson Dunbar to just 11 yards rushing on nine carries. Dunbar entered the game as the RMAC’s leading rusher, averaging 92.3 yards per game. The Pack also forced SD Mines into a season-high three turnovers (2 interceptions, one fumble). The Hardrockers entered the game with two turnovers on the season. Daniels’ play helped the Pack to its 33rd consecutive RMAC victory, which is tied for the longest conference win streak in school history, while the Pack also extended its NCAA Division II-leading road winning streak to 20 straight games and pushed its regular-season winning streak to 19 consecutive contests.
- A junior from Colorado Springs Doherty High, Latimer caught five passes for 71 yards and a touchdown in Fort Lewis’ 30-13 setback to Colorado Mesa in Durango.
- The fifth-year senior from Colorado Springs Pine Creek High led the Mountaineers into the RMAC title game by completing 21 of 39 passes for 305 yards and two scores in Western Colorado’s 41-20 win over Colorado Mines in Gunnison. Roy led Western to 3-play (88 yards) and 4-play (65 yards) TD drives in the first half, then controlled the clock in the second half with back-to-back 10-play TD drives that marched 92 and 75 yards to ice the win over the Orediggers.
