BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Fordham and Georgetown split the four Patriot League GEICO weekly football awards when the League office announced the honors on Monday.
Fordham senior quarterback Tim DeMorat captured Patriot League Football GEICO Offensive Player of the Week for the fifth time this season after throwing for 499 yards and four touchdowns in the Rams’ 40-28 victory at Lehigh.
Fordham sophomore linebacker James Conway earned his second Patriot League Football GEICO Defensive Player of the Week honors of the season after recording nine total tackles and 2.0 tackles for loss (TFLs) of five yards in a 40-28 win at Lehigh.
Georgetown freshman running back/return specialist Mason Gudger was voted Patriot League GEICO Special Teams Player and Rookie of the Week after tying a Patriot League single-game, single-season and career record with two kickoff returns for touchdowns against Penn.
Georgetown graduate student linebacker Justin Fonteneaux and wide receiver Joshua Tomas, Holy Cross junior linebacker Dante Bolden, senior cornerback Devin Haskins and junior quarterback Matthew Sluka, Lafayette senior defensive lineman Malik Hamm and senior linebacker Marco Olivas, and Lehigh senior wide receiver Jalen Burbage all received honorable mentions for their performances on Saturday.
The Patriot League football players of the week are selected in a vote by League media members and each school’s sports information directors, who are not eligible to vote for their student-athletes.
PATRIOT LEAGUE FOOTBALL GEICO OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Tim DeMorat, Fordham, Sr., QB, Merritt Island, Fla./Viera
*DeMorat completed 26-of-37 pass attempts for 499 yards, one interception and four touchdowns in Fordham’s 40-28 victory at Lehigh.
*He threw three second-half touchdown passes to help the Rams erase a 4-point halftime deficit.
*He has earned GEICO Offensive Player of the Week honors five times this season and leads NCAA DI FCS in passing yards per game (442.0) and touchdown passes (30).
PATRIOT LEAGUE FOOTBALL GEICO DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
James Conway, Fordham, So., LB, Omaha, Neb./Millard West
*Conway led the Rams with nine tackles and 2.0 TFLs of five yards in a 40-28 victory at Lehigh to improve to 2-0 in League play.
*The sophomore linebacker helped a Fordham defense that limited Lehigh to 14 of the team’s 28 points scored.
*Conway is tied for third in the Patriot League with 9.2 tackles per game this season and second among all active FCS players with 10.9 tackles per game throughout his career.
PATRIOT LEAGUE FOOTBALL GEICO SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER AND ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Mason Gudger, Georgetown, Fr., RB/RS, Greeneville, Tenn./Greeneville
*Gudger tied a Patriot League single-game record held by Bucknell’s Dante Ross (Oct. 2, 1994) with two kickoff returns for touchdowns in the Hoyas’ loss vs. Penn.
*His 94-yard kickoff return for a touchdown is the second-longest in program history against an FCS opponent, while his 89-yard return is the fourth-longest in GU history against an FCS program.
*Gudger’s 227 return yards on five attempts is five yards short of the Patriot League single-game record of 232 held by Georgetown’s Isaac Ellsworth (Sept. 30, 2017).
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Justin Fonteneaux, Georgetown, Gr., LB, Houston, Texas/Lamar
*Fonteneaux registered a game-high 10 tackles, 1.5 TFLs and a half sack in Georgetown’s loss vs. Penn. The graduate student linebacker posted his second double-digit tackles performance of the season.
Joshua Tomas, Georgetown, Gr., WR, University Park, Ill./Crete-Monee
*Tomas finished with eight catches for 91 yards in Georgetown’s 59-28 loss vs. Penn.
Dante Bolden, Holy Cross, Jr., LB, Springfield, Mass./Springfield Central
*Bolden made four tackles, 1.5 TFLs and 1.0 sack for a loss of seven yards to help Holy Cross shutout Bucknell 57-0. The 57-point win is the largest by Holy Cross since 1987 and the largest shutout win since a 60-0 victory vs. Fort Totten in 1942.
Devin Haskins, Holy Cross, Sr., CB, Celina, Texas/Prosper
*Haskins blocked a punt that he returned for an eight-yard touchdown in the Crusaders’ 57-0 victory over Bucknell. He has blocked a punt in each of the last three weeks and tied the Patriot League single-season record of three blocked punts with Colgate’s Brandon Tinson and Georgetown’s Hunter Kiselick. Haskins also recorded three tackles and an interception against the Bison.
Matthew Sluka, Holy Cross, Jr., QB, Locust Valley, N.Y./Kellenberg Memorial
*Sluka threw for 183 yards and three touchdowns while rushing for 72 yards and another score in the Crusaders’ 57-0 victory over Bucknell at Polar Park.
Malik Hamm, Lafayette, Sr., DL, Baltimore, Md./City College
*Hamm blocked a kick for the third-consecutive game in Lafayette’s loss vs. Princeton. The preseason defensive player of the year blocked a PAT attempt that was returned 90 yards for two points. He also recorded two sacks to move to seventh in Patriot League history with 28.5 career sacks.
Marco Olivas, Lafayette, Sr., LB, Fort Worth, Texas/Foss
*Olivas made a game-high 12 tackles with a half TFL against undefeated Princeton. The senior linebacker helped the Leopards’ defense hold the Tigers to a field goal in the second half.
Jalen Burbage, Lehigh, Sr., WR/KR, Lexington, Ky./Bryan Station
*Burbage returned the opening kickoff against Fordham for an 89-yard touchdown, the Mountain Hawks’ first kickoff return for a score since Gatlin Casey (Oct. 8, 2016). Burbage finished with 133 return yards on four attempts and 35 yards on four receptions.
Offensive Player of the Week
9.5 – Tim DeMorat, Fordham, Sr., QB
9.12 – Tim DeMorat, Fordham, Sr., QB
9.19 – Tim DeMorat, Fordham, Sr., QB
9.26 – Fotis Kokosioulis, Fordham, Sr., WR
10.3 – Tim DeMorat, Fordham, Sr., QB
10.10 – Tim DeMorat, Fordham, Sr., QB
Defensive Player of the Week
9.5 – Saiku White, Lafayette, So., S
9.12 – TyGee Leach, Lehigh, Sr., DB
9.19 – James Conway, Fordham, So., LB
9.26 – Mike DeNucci, Lehigh, Jr., LB
10.3 – A.T. Ntantang, Lafayette, Jr., CB
10.10 – James Conway, Fordham, So., LB
Special Teams Player of the Week
9.5 – Brock Biestek, Georgetown, So., WR
9.12 – Derek Ng, Holy Cross, Sr., PK
9.19 – Derek Ng, Holy Cross, Sr., PK
9.26 – Dorrian Moultrie, Georgetown, Sr., WR/RS
10.3 – Derek Ng, Holy Cross, Sr., PK
10.10 – Mason Gudger, Georgetown, Fr., RB/RS
Rookie of the Week
9.5 – Ryan Schuster, Lafayette, Fr., QB
9.12 – Ryan Schuster, Lafayette, Fr., QB
9.19 – Ryan Schuster, Lafayette, Fr., QB
9.26 – Geoffrey Jamiel, Lehigh, Fr., WR
10.3 – Geoffrey Jamiel, Lehigh, Fr., WR
10.10 - Mason Gudger, Georgetown, Fr., RB/RS
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athlete can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes that are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.