#UACFOOTBALL -- Lions... Texans... and T-Birds (and Wolves)... Oh My! For the second consecutive week, the honorees for United Athletic Conference (UAC) Football awards consisted of first-time selections. Week 3 Player of the Week performances recognized by the league office on Monday included West Georgia's Latrell Murrell (Offensive), Yasir Holmes of Tarleton State (Defensive), North Alabama's Ian Vachon (Specialist) and Southern Utah's Ran Sawyer.
Murrell, a sophomore running back for UWG, had another standout showing on Saturday with 20 carries for 116 yards (5.8 yards/carry). He also collected three catches for 92 yards and two receiving TDs in the Wolves big comeback win over ETSU.
The Texans' senior linebacker Holmes made his presence felt in the team's UAC opener, finishing with a team-leading seven total tackles (five solo stops) in TSU’s road win at Central Arkansas. He also recorded three tackles for loss and a sack against the Bears. Holmes became the first Tarleton State player with 3-plus TFLs since 2022.
A redshirt-junior kicker for the Lions, Vachon made all three of his field goal attempts from 22, 27 and 55 yards in the squad's home-opening victory. The 55-yarder set a new school record for longest field goal. Vachon added four successful PATs on the night, tallying 13 points for UNA.
Sawyer, a true freshman running back/kick returner from St. George, Utah, lived up to his first name as he Ran and kept running with two long kick returns, featuring a 95-yard dash to the endzone late in the second half. He accumulated 158 yards on three returns (52.7 yards/return) including his touchdown. Sawyer also helped on the kickoff team, picking up a pair of tackles.
| DATE |
OFFENSIVE |
DEFENSIVE |
SPECIALIST |
FRESHMAN |
| Sept. 1 |
Joshua Dye
(Southern Utah) |
Kasyus Kurns
(Tarleton State) |
Brad Larson
(Tarleton State) |
Tre Page III
(Tarleton State) |
| Sept. 8 |
Luther Richesson
(Central Arkansas) |
Sebastian Adamski
(Southern Utah) |
Simon Zeidan
(West Georgia) |
TJ Lester
(West Georgia) |
| Sept. 15 |
Latrelle Murrell
(West Georgia) |
Yasir Holmes
(Tarleton State) |
Ian Vachon
(North Alabama) |
Ran Sawyer
(Southern Utah) |
Other Nominees
Offensive:
Stone Earle (ACU); Chandler Kirton (APSU); Jayden West (EKU); Jayvian Allen (UNA); Joshua Dye (SUU); Caleb Lewis (TSU)
Defensive:
Demoris Jenkins (APSU); Cam Junior (EKU); Tae Martin (UNA); Sebastian Adamski (SUU); Jay Carter (UWG)
Specialist:
Carson Smith (APSU); Caleb Lewis (TSU); Ilya Uvaydov (UTU); Tommy Holden (UWG)
Freshman:
Isaiah Groves (APSU); Tae Martin (UNA); TJ Lester (UWG)