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| Zack Orr North Central athletics photo by Steve Woltmann |
Presented by 
Games of Oct. 20-21, 2023
The Team of the Week, presented by Scoutware, is D3football.com's weekly honor roll, in its 25th season of recognizing the top performance at each position from the previous week. Players are nominated by schools.
Offense
QB Cade Sheehan, Sr., Augsburg
Cade Sheehan accounted for seven touchdowns in the Auggies' 56-36 victory over St. Olaf. He rushed 17 times for 77 yards and three first-half touchdowns and finished the game 20-of-24 passing with 218 yards and four touchdowns through the air. His rushing numbers are all season-highs, while his completion percentage of 83.3 matched his career-best.
OL Colin Norton, Alex Rice, JoJo Puckey, Joe Arico, Anselmo Farrell, Ithaca
The offensive line led the way for Ithaca as the Bombers rushed for a season-best 317 yards against Rochester on Saturday in a 24-10 win. IC possessed the ball for nearly 33 minutes and picked up 26 first downs (18 rushing). The line only allowed two tackles for loss and all three touchdowns scored by IC were on the ground.
RB Brandon Cade, Jr., Berry
Cade racked up 225 yards on just 12 carries and scored four touchdowns as Berry won at Sewanee, 61-23. His last carry was an 80-yard touchdown less than five minutes into the fourth quarter.
RB Willem Bouma, So., Carnegie Mellon
Bouma turned in a career night in the Tartans' 35-14 win over Washington & Jefferson. He led the Tartans with a career-high 149 yards rushing on 19 carries for an average of 7.8 yards per touch while adding a school record five rushing touchdowns. His scores came from 70 yards, 55 yards 4 yards and two 1-yard runs. The sophomore also completed a 25-yard pass.
WR Talsen Smith, Jr., Merchant Marine
Smith broke his own Academy record for receiving yards, hauling in 14 catches for 324 yards with three touchdowns in the Mariners' 40-28 home NEWMAC win over WPI. All three of Smith's TDs were on receptions over 60 yards - two in the first quarter of 68 and 65 yards, and a third-quarter touchdown of 61 yards. He also had an amazing over-the-shoulder catch on a fourth-down play that extended a USMMA drive early in the second quarter.
WR Collin Brunstein, Sr., Illinois College
Brunstein had another record-breaking performance in a 72-0 shutout victory over Lawrence. Brunstein broke three IC records, including most receiving touchdowns in a game with five, all in the first half. Brunstein also broke the single season receiving yards record with seven catches for 289 yards that brought his season total to 1,417 receiving yards.
TE Christopher Gacayan, Fr., Mary Hardin-Baylor
Gacayan caught five passes for 56 yards in the Cru's victory against Austin College, including three first-half touchdowns.
Defense
DE Brian Pritt, Jr., Benedictine
Pritt set the school and conference record by accumulating 5.5 sacks in a 31-6 win over Lakeland. His sacks accounted for a total loss of 44 yards. Two sacks came on third down to force punts with a third bringing up a fourth down conversion attempt and a fourth one on fourth down. Pritt finished with eight total tackles, seven solo.
DT Ethan Thomas, So., Central
Thomas picked up a loose ball in the backfield and picked it up and ran it back 33 yards for his first collegiate touchdown. He also had an assisted tackle during Central's 72-0 win.
DE Jack Temple, Jr., Merchant Marine
Temple recorded four and a half tackles for loss, including three sacks, in the Mariners' 40-28 home NEWMAC win over WPI. He finished the day with six total tackles (five solo) and one quarterback hurry. Two of his sacks, as well as his quarterback hurry, came in the fourth quarter, as he led the Mariner defense that shut out the Engineers in the final frame of what was a two-point game most of the afternoon.
LB Jaden Shackelford, So., Ripon
Shackelford had a career day in helping Ripon stun league-leading Lake Forest 12-0. He had a career-high 13 tackles, all solo, and chipped in two tackles for loss, a sack, a forced fumble and a pass breakup. Shackelford was part of a Red Hawks defense that held LFC without a rushing touchdown for the first time all season.
LB Zack Orr, Jr., North Central
Matched second-highest single-game quarterback sack total in program history with three in the Cardinals' win against Washington U. Two sacks came in North Central territory, including one in the red zone, to halt potential scoring drives as the Cardinals held a second straight opponent without a touchdown.
LB Thomas Coltrain, Sr., Defiance
With Defiance clinging to a 6-0 lead and Anderson driving in the red zone, the senior snatched the loose ball and returned it 95 yards the other way for a touchdown. The touchdown was the first of his career and the 95 yard return was the longest fumble recovery in program history. On top of that, he finished the day with eight tackles including 1.5 tackles for loss, a forced fumble and one quarterback hurry.
LB Ryan Enright, Sr., Lebanon Valley
Enright had another huge defensive game as the Dutchmen nearly upset 25th-ranked Delaware Valley on Saturday with the Aggies scoring with 14 seconds left for a 21-17 victory. Enright made 15 tackles, including 11 solo tackles. The senior also forced a fumble.
CB Eric Lyons Jr., So., Gustavus Adolphus
Lyons made multiple defensive plays to help the Gusties upset nationally ranked St. John's, 38-35. Lyons made a key tackle at the end of the second quarter to set Gustavus up for a Hail Mary touchdown pass before halftime. He then made a pair of crucial plays in the fourth quarter, breaking up a first-down pass in the end zone and then intercepting the ball at the goal line on the next play from scrimmage with 1:50 left in regulation. The Gusties' victory was the team's first over SJU since 2013 and the third against the Johnnies in the last 35 years.
S Derek Slywka, Sr., Ithaca
Slywka recorded two interceptions and blocked a field goal during Ithaca's 24-10 win at Rochester on Saturday. He also made three tackles. Both interceptions occurred in the fourth quarter, including the final play of the game as he picked off a pass at the IC 1-yard line. Slywka blocked the field goal midway through the third quarter with the score tied at 3-3.
S Keith Green III, Sr., Susquehanna
Green recovered two fumbles, the first of which defused an otherwise promising opening drive for Wilkes early in the game. Also contributed one sack and one tackle for loss in a four-tackle day, including one solo. Susquehanna converted all three fumble recoveries for touchdowns.
CB Gabe Dunlap, Sr., Grove City
Dunlap had an interception and a team-high seven tackles Saturday as Grove City blanked St. Vincent, 49-0. He also returned a third quarter punt 40 yards for a touchdown, marking the Wolverines' first punt return touchdown in 12 years.
Special teams
K Ian Plankenhorn, Sr., Lycoming
Plankenhorn connected on field goals of 36 and 20 yards against Keystone in his only two attempts and went 4-for-4 in extra points in a 34-7 win.
P Jeremy Bours Jr., Sr., Lebanon Valley
Bours had another strong day punting with six punts for 217 yards in a 21-17 defeat at 25th-ranked Delaware Valley. He averaged 36.2 yards per punt with a long of 46 and had two punts inside the 20. The Aggies were only able to return two of his six punts.
RET Ja'Lin Goodman, Sr., Muskingum
Goodman tied the school record for longest kickoff return for a touchdown with his 98-yard return late in the third quarter against Ohio Northern. He ended the game with 136 return yards and averaged 34 yards per return.
ST Sam Secrest, Sr., Denison
Secrest blocked a 47-yard field goal by the Fighting Scots in the final two minutes of the first quarter, and those three points made a difference as Wooster had to go for a touchdown at the end to try and get a win instead of a field goal in what was ultimately a 35-31 win for the Big Red.