INDIANAPOLIS – Kentucky Wesleyan, Findlay and Walsh, produced award-worthy performances in their wins to headline the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Football Players of the Week selections as announced on Monday.
Week 7 has come and gone with all three teams above collecting wins in the conference standings.
Findlay (6-1, 3-0 G-MAC) toppled Hillsdale (3-4, 1-2 G-MAC) in front of a national audience on the road at Frank “Muddy” Waters Stadium to move into a first-place tie with Ohio Dominican as the Panthers were idle.
The Oilers welcomed back the return of quarterback Rhys Gervais and controlled a 31-13 contest. The defense clamped down and held the Chargers scoreless in the first half while gaining almost more than 200 yards of total offense than its opponent.
Kentucky Wesleyan (2-4, 1-2 G-MAC) pulled out a close one at the Hall of Fame Stadium over Malone (0-6, 0-3 G-MAC) in a 34-30 shootout. Four of the Pioneers’ six defeats have now been at a seven-point margin or less.
KWC’s Alex Gray and Ladarrius Dunn each had over 100 yards receiving while Malone’s Ashton Dulin continued to break out as a big-play threat with 199 yards receiving and a pair of TD’s.
The other Week 7 Great Midwest matchup was another nail-biter as Walsh (2-5, 2-1 G-MAC) edged out Alderson Broaddus (2-5, 1-2 G-MAC) in another high-scoring affair.
The Cavaliers’ confidence is soaring and they have now won two in a row under first-year head coach Dan Pifer after tackling a tough non-conference schedule with DI’s Central Connecticut State and Jacksonville.
Great Midwest Offensive Player of the Week
Mike McGee
Kentucky Wesleyan
Quarterback
RS Sophomore
Crestwood, KY (South Oldham HS)
The talented Panthers’ gunslinger picked up his second career conference weekly honor after his arm helped guide Kentucky Wesleyan to a road win over Malone.
McGee picked apart the Malone defense for 410 yards of passing on 23 completions, the second highest yardage total in a single game in conference history. He threw for four touchdowns, including the game-winning score with 8:25 to play on a 63-yard strike to Alex Gray.
McGee also had a pair of TD throws in the second quarter and threw his third touchdown of the afternoon on KWC’s first drive to open the second half.
McGee has now completed almost 61 percent of his passes on the season with 1,471 yards and 13 TD’s in six games. He is averaging over 245 yards of passing per game.
Great Midwest Defensive Player of the Week
Issac Miles
Findlay
Linebacker
Sophomore
Indianapolis, IN (Lawrence Central HS)
Miles and the Oilers’ defensive unit was near impenetrable once again as they slowed down Hillsdale in a game that was showcased on ESPN3 as part of the NCAA DII Football Showcase.
He collected eight tackles and finished with 1.5 tackles for a loss and a sack. He also forced a fumble and recovered one in the winning effort.
Miles is Findlay’s second defensive player of the week this season after teammate Johnny Hopkins won honors in Week 4.
The Oilers have now won five straight and are allowing just under 14 points per game along with 309 yards of total offense, both numbers ranking as tops in the conference this season.
Miles now has 31 tackles and three sacks on the year.
*Due to a statistical change that was incorrectly assigned to Issac Miles, Findlay's Justice Jenkins was awarded Great Midwest co-Defensive Player of the Week honors*
Great Midwest Special Teams Player of the Week
Koby Adu-Poku
Walsh
Running Back
Freshman
Youngstown, OH (Boardman HS)
Adu-Poku was a major factor on special teams and on the offensive side of the ball as Walsh earned its second consecutive win against Alderson Broaddus. The rookie speedster turned in a Darren Sproles-like outing as he accounted for 327 all-purpose yards, including 242 on kick returns.
But no return was more critical than a 93-yard return in the third quarter to set up a three-yard TD run on the next play by Deondre Cook. His effort led to a 35-24 Cavaliers’ lead.
Adu-Poku also had 54 yards receiving and 31 yards of rushing, including a touchdown on the ground and through the air.
Adu-Poku’s all-purpose yardage total ranks fourth in the single-game conference records. Malone’s Ashton Dulin had 367 earlier this year vs. Missouri S&T.