INDIANAPOLIS – Findlay and Lake Erie collected Week 2 accolades as Great Midwest Athletic Conference Football Players of the Week honors were announced on Monday morning by the league office.
It was a tough week around the league as marquee matchups filled the schedule, including a place on NCAA’s Division II Showcase that streamed on ESPN3. Ohio Dominican went on the road in a tough environment at No. 1 nationally ranked Valdosta State.
The Panthers (1-1, 0-0) held their own against the defending national champs, making VSU uncomfortable in the first half as QB Evan Ernst and former conference freshman of the year WR Devanaire Conliffe showcased their talents on ESPN3.
Findlay (1-1, 0-0) beat Northwood at home for the league’s victory in non-conference action. UF and ODU will link up in Week 3 on ESPN3 in the DII National Showcase in Columbus.
Tiffin (1-1, 0-0) found it tough sledding against Saginaw Valley State, taking on a GLIAC opponent for the second straight week. Walsh (0-2, 0-0) started out strong against an angry Ashland program, knocked out of the top 25 after Week 1 defeat vs. UIndy. The nationally-ranked Greyhounds had the upper hand on Great Midwest preseason favorite Hillsdale (0-2, 0-0). Alderson Broaddus (0-2, 0-0) struggled on the road vs. Chowan despite only trailing 7-6 after the first quarter.
Kentucky Wesleyan (0-2, 0-0) and Lake Erie (0-2, 0-0) both acquitted themselves well at home vs. Quincy and Davenport, respectively, going into conference play.
Offensive Player of the Week
Matt Winzeler
Findlay
Quarterback
Junior
Toledo, OH (St. John’s Jesuit HS/Toledo/ASA College Miami)
Winzeler nearly piloted the Oilers to a stunning upset over No. 2 Ferris State in Week 1, announcing his arrival to the league in a big way.
This time, Winzeler engineered the UF offense to 31 points and over 400 yards of total offense against Northwood. The junior signal caller threw for three touchdowns and had 236 passing yards in Findlay’s home opener at Donnell Stadium.
Winzeler completed 15 of his 25 attempts through the air and all three of his TD passes were in the first half. He got the Oilers on the board first capping a 6-play, 78-yard scoring drive in his first offensive series.
After his 36-yard connection with William Morehand, he hooked up with Ruben Flowers in the red zone from 4 yards out. Flowers, a transfer from Independence CC featured on Netflix’s Last Chance U, had a big Week 1 against Ferris State.
Winzeler then gave UF a 21-7 lead early in the second quarter on a 30-yard scoring play to Tanner Schroeder. His efficiency rating of over 170 led all QB’s in the league during Week 2.
Through two games, Winzeler has thrown 5 TD’s vs. just 1 INT on his way to 461 yards and a near 52 percent completion percentage.
Defensive Player of the Week
Justin Growel
Lake Erie
Defensive Lineman
RS Junior
East Troy, WI (East Troy HS)
Like a custom-created beast in Madden playing on rookie mode, Growel put up video game-like numbers in Lake Erie’s valiant home effort against Davenport.
The 6-4 interior lineman wreaked havoc on the Panthers front five, racking up nine tackles, include four behind the line of scrimmage. Growel was credited with two sacks, two forced fumbles – one of which he pounced on.
Growel’s four tackles for a loss are tied for the second most in a single game in conference history. The redshirt junior had already recorded four before, doing so against Kentucky Wesleyan last year.
Growel also has the single-season conference record for tackles for a loss and over the weekend, passed Alderson Broaddus’ Quade Raley as the all-time league career leader in that category.
It was the second week in a row that the Storm finished with the final outcome less than a touchdown of margin of defeat. It was also the second straight game where the LEC defense pitched a second-half shutout.
Lake Erie continues to make noticeable strides in all three facets of the game under first-year coach Reilly Murphy and his staff.
Special Teams Player of the Week
Chris Demler
Findlay
Kicker
Junior
Clarksville, OH (Clinton-Massie HS)
Demler was like a Swiss Army knife in the Oilers’ victory over Northwood, contributing in a variety of ways to put Findlay in the win column.
Demler made a field goal, a PAT and averaged almost 60 yards on six kickoff attempts – five of which led to scoreless Timberwolves offensive series – in a 31-21 Findlay victory.
His average on kickoffs during the game actually matched league-leading Tiffin on the season at 59.3 yards.
Demler was one of three Findlay players to actually record a made PAT and he put the Oilers up 24-7 with a 36-yard field goal in the second quarter.