Courtesy of the Southeastern Conference
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
CAM NEWTON
Quarterback
AUBURN
6-6 • 250 • Jr. • College Park, Ga.
• Newton completed 16-of-21 passes for 158 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for a team-high 176 yards on 25 carries and three touchdowns in Auburn’s 35-27 win over #12/15 South Carolina.
• Newton accounted for 334 yards of total offense and five touchdowns. Of his 46 offensive plays, only six did not gain any yardage and only one lost yardage.
• 11 of his 25 rushing attempts were for first downs and also threw for eight first downs, making him responsible for 19 of Auburn’s 29 first downs in the game.
• Newton is the first quarterback in school history to throw for two or more TDs in the first four games this season. He is also the only player in the SEC this season to have two 170+ rushing yardage performances.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
ROBERT LESTER
Safety
ALABAMA
6-2 • 206 • So. • Foley, Ala.
• Lester recorded seven total tackles (five solos) and a career-high two interceptions in Alabama’s 24-20 win at #10/11 Arkansas.
• Lester’s second interception of the game came at the 4:40 mark in the fourth quarter at the Arkansas 45-yard line and was returned 33 yards to the Arkansas 12-yard line to set up the Tide’s game-winning touchdown.
• His first interception of the game was in the second quarter in the endzone to stop an Arkansas drive.
• The Alabama defense held Arkansas to 15 points under its season average (35.3 points) with just three coming in the second half.
• Lester’s four interceptions leads the SEC and tied for second in the NCAA.
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
PATRICK PETERSON
Return Specialist / Cornerback
LSU
6-1 • 222 • Jr. • Pompano Beach, Fla.
• Peterson returned a punt 60 yards for a touchdown and partially blocked a field goal in LSU’s 20-14 win over #22/21 West Virginia.
• He also had a 26-yard punt return that gave LSU possession at the WVU 37-yard line.
• The 60-yard punt return for a score came in the second quarter and gave LSU a 17-0 lead.
• Peterson’s partially blocked field goal came in the first quarter on a 28-yard attempt.
• Peterson had one tackle on defense as LSU held West Virginia to just 177 yards of total offense.
• He leads the SEC with 28.1 yards per punt return and became the first Tiger to have multiple punt returns for a TD since 2003 (had 87-yarder for TD against North Carolina).
OFFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE WEEK
DEREK SHERROD
Tackle
MISSISSIPPI STATE
6-6 • 305 • Sr. • Columbus, Miss.
• Sherrod helped pave the way for Mississippi State to gain 314 total offensive yards and gave up no sacks in the Bulldogs’ 24-12 win against Georgia.
• The Bulldog offensive line controlled the second half, with five drives lasting a total of 19:21.
• Three of the five second-half drives went for 10-plays or more, all lasting more than five minutes of clock. In the two other drives, one was a touchdown and the other ran out the clock.
• The Bulldog offense has eclipsed the 100-yard rushing mark in all four games this season and 15 of the last 16 contests.
DEFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE WEEK
MIKE BLANC
Defensive Tackle
AUBURN
6-4 • 297 • Sr. • Pompano Beach, Fla.
• Blanc recorded a season-best seven total tackles (three solos) and one fumble recovery in Auburn’s 35-27 win over #12/15 South Carolina.
• Blanc’s fumble recovery led to a touchdown drive in the fourth quarter that gave the Tigers a 35-27 lead.
• He helped lead an Auburn defensive line that held South Carolina to just 79 yards rushing, 119 yards below the Gamecocks season average (198.3).
FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
TREY BURTON
Quarterback / Wide Receiver
FLORIDA
6-2 • 222 • Venice, Fla.
• Burton scored an SEC freshman record six total touchdowns in Florida’s 48-14 win against Kentucky.
• The six scores are one shy of the national freshman record and the SEC single-game record of seven.
• Burton surpassed the Florida record for most touchdowns in a single game, topping Tim Tebow’s mark of five set in 1997.
• Burton scored touchdowns on all five of his rushing attempts (40 yards total) and caught an 11-yard TD pass as well.
• He was 1-for-1 passing for 42 yards and caught five passes for 37 yards.
OTHER OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCES FROM WEEK FOUR
RB MARK INGRAM (Alabama) -- Led the Tide with 157 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries and added two receptions for 27 yards against Arkansas.
LB JERRY FRANKLIN (Arkansas) -- Had a game-high 11 total tackles (9 solos) against Alabama.
C MIKE POUNCEY (Florida) -- Had 83 percent grade for Gators and graded out as a Champion.
QB AARON MURRAY (Georgia) -- Completed 18-of-31 passes for 274 yards and a touchdown and also rushed for 32 yards against Mississippi State.
WR CHRIS MATTHEWS (Kentucky) -- Had six catches for 114 yards and two touchdowns against Florida.
LB KELVIN SHEPPARD (LSU) -- Led Tigers with 11 tackles as the LSU defense held West Virginia to just 2-of-13 on 3rd-down attempts.
RB BRANDON BOLDEN (Ole Miss) -- Rushed for a career-high 228 and two touchdowns and had two catches for 15 yards and another score against Fresno State.
LB ALLEN WALKER (Ole Miss) -- Posted a career-high 10 tackles with 2.5 for losses, including two sacks, a forced fumble and a blocked kick against Fresno State.
LB K.J. WRIGHT (Mississippi State) -- Posted seven tackles with 0.5 sack, team-high four pass deflections and three quarterback pressures against Georgia.
WR ALSHON JEFFERY (South Carolina) -- Caught eight passes, matching career-best, for a career-high 192 yards and two touchdowns against Auburn.
LB NICK REVEIZ (Tennessee) -- Led all SEC tacklers for second straight week with 14 stops, including two for losses, against UAB.
WR DENARIUS MOORE (Tennessee) -- Had six catches for 68 yards and tied career-high with two TD receptions, including game-winner in second OT, over UAB.