INDIANAPOLIS – Three different schools were represented for new Great Midwest Athletic Conference Football Players of the Week honors for Week 5 announced on Monday morning.
With both teams embarking in non-conference action, Tiffin and Hillsdale still remain the lone unbeatens in the conference schedule. The Dragons made life rough for visiting Saint Anselm while Hillsdale controlled the tempo against Concord (WV).
With both opponents from the NE-10 and the Mountain East, each game had Super Region 1 implications.
Walsh climbed into the win column in a close one against Lake Erie. The Cavaliers grounded the Storm defensively and engineered three different scoring drives after being held off the scoreboard for consecutive weeks.
Findlay and Ohio Dominican each rolled with big offensive numbers and put a footnote in the conference record books as each team had a player record three interceptions in a single game.
Offensive Player of the Week
Nick Watson
Tiffin
Quarterback
RS Junior
Cincinnati, OH (LaSalle HS)
Watson was the driving catalyst behind a 600+ yard day of total offense by the Dragons as they put up 55 points against Saint Anselm at home.
Earning his second player of the week of the season, the talented QB accounted for six total touchdowns, including five through the air.
Watson’s big day included four scoring strikes with talented WR’s Stanley Jackson (twice), Gavin Woods and Devin Butler, alone in the first half.
He connected with Week 4 Great Midwest Offensive Player of the Week JaQuan Hardy with a 29-yard pass play in the third quarter and took it in himself from the 1-yard line to open the fourth quarter scoring.
Watson’s scoring run gave Tiffin a 41-0 cushion. With him under center, the Dragons are the league’s top scoring offense now averaging 38 points per game.
Watson also took over as the league leader in a number of passing categories, including touchdowns (14), and average yards per game (309.6). He is second in the conference in completions and completion percentage.
Defensive Player of the Week
Alessio Amato
Ohio Dominican
Linebacker
Senior
Zanesville, OH (Zanesville HS)
Previously in conference history, only one player (Tiffin’s Daijohn Isbell) had recorded three interceptions in a single game. On Saturday, there were two times the rare feat happened, and Amato put the finishing touches on a career game as the Panthers routed Alderson Broaddus on the road.
The rangy senior had seven tackles, including two for a loss, three picks for a total of 98 return yards and one brought back for a pick six.
Amato set the conference record for return yardage in a game, breaking former teammate/Great Midwest Defensive Player of the Year Ross Thompson and Isbell’s mark of 73 yards, both in 2018.
Amato also tied Isbell and most recently, Findlay’s Christopher Jefferson, for the single-game milestone of 3 INT’s in regulation.
Amato’s effort limited the AB offense to just over 300 yards on the day and his 44-yard return for a score gave ODU a more than comfortable 49-10 advantage in the third quarter.
Amato is now ranked 13th in the conference in tackles with 32 and he is second in the league to UF’s Jefferson with four INT’s on the season. He is also tops in the league in passes defended with nine, tied with Hillsdale’s Alex Anschutz.
Special Teams Player of the Week
Mitch Hebenstreit
Findlay
Freshman
Punter
Fishers, IN (Hamilton Southeastern HS)
Hebenstreit gave Findlay a huge lift in the field position battle as the Oilers downed Kentucky Wesleyan on Saturday, 38-13.
The Oilers possess two of the best booming legs in the kicking game, including former player of the week Chris Demler, who is utilized also on kickoffs.
Just a freshman, Hebenstreit came through with an average of almost 45 yards per punt on five attempts. He also placed three balls inside the 20-yard line and had two touchbacks.
Two of his boots were over 50 yards, including a long of 51 on the day. Hebenstreit is a big reason why the Oilers are the best team in the Great Midwest in punting, both net and gross yardage.