CO-OFFENSE:
Alex Daniels,
Minnesota, SO, RB, Columbus, Ohio/Brookhaven
In his first game as a running back
after playing on defense last season, Daniels broke loose for a game-high 155
yards on 24 carries (6.5 yards per rush) and scored three touchdowns to lead the
Gophers to a road victory at Kent State. The 6-3, 255-pounder played in 12 games
and recorded 14 tackles as a linebacker last season before moving to the
offensive side of the ball due to the loss of several running backs in the
offseason. The Columbus, Ohio, native scored his first rushing touchdown from
three yards out in the first quarter to give the visitors a 14-0 lead. He opened
the second half by carrying all seven times on a 56-yard scoring march,
culminating with a one-yard score, and added a six-yard touchdown run later in
the third quarter. Daniels picks up his first conference weekly laurel and
became the fifth different Minnesota rusher to earn Offensive Player of the Week
honors in the last three seasons, joining teammate Amir Pinnix (2005) and former
Gophers Marion Barber III (twice in 2004), Laurence Maroney (2003 and 2005) and
Gary Russell (2005).
Troy Smith, Ohio State, SR, QB, Cleveland, Ohio/Glenville
Smith opened the 2006 season by
completing his first five passes, including three for touchdowns, as Ohio State
rocketed out to a 28-0 lead on its way to a victory over Northern Illinois. The
senior quarterback left the game in the fourth quarter after completing 72
percent of his passes (18-for-25) for 297 yards and three scores, the seventh
time in his last eight games he has surpassed 200 yards through the air. The
Preseason Big Ten Player of the Year led OSU to touchdowns in each of its first
four possessions, connecting with high school teammate Ted Ginn Jr. on scoring
strikes of five and 58 yards to open the game before hitting Anthony Gonzalez
for a 15-yard touchdown later in the opening stanza. Smith collects the second
weekly conference accolade of his career after earning Co-Offensive Player of
the Week honors on Nov. 21, 2005.
DEFENSE:
Dan Connor, Penn State, JR, LB, Wallingford, Pa./Strath Haven
Connor led the Nittany Lions defense
with a career-high two sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss as Penn State limited
defending Mid-American Conference champion Akron to only 33 rushing yards on 34
attempts in the season opener on Saturday. The junior linebacker added a
game-high 13 tackles, including seven solo stops, and a forced fumble while his
TFLs led to 23 yards of loss (including 21 yards on the two quarterback drops).
He racked up 10 or more tackles for the seventh time in his career. Connor
garnered his first weekly honor.
CO-SPECIAL
TEAMS:
Erryn Cobb,
Northwestern, SR, TE/FB, Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove
North
Following a scoreless first half on
the road at Miami (Ohio), in the first game since the passing of head coach
Randy Walker, Cobb blocked a punt and returned it 23 yards for a touchdown and a
7-0 advantage early in the third quarter. The Wildcats would score on their next
two offensive possessions to build a 21-3 advantage on their way to an emotional
season-opening victory on the campus where Walker both played and coached. This
is the first weekly conference honor of Cobb’s career.
Jonathan Casillas, Wisconsin, SO, LB, New Brunswick, N.J./New
Brunswick
Casillas gave Wisconsin its first
lead of the game against Bowling Green, 14-7, after blocking a punt in the
second quarter and recovering it in the endzone. The sophomore linebacker has
now blocked three punts in 13 career games, including a blocked punt at
Minnesota last season to conclude a 10-point comeback in the final minutes.
Casillas, who added 12 tackles on defense, picks up his first career Big Ten
weekly laurel.