FRISCO, Texas – UIW quarterback Zach Calzada, UIW linebacker Dune Smith, and Southeastern wide receiver and return specialist Darius Lewis are the winners of the Jersey Mike's Southland Conference’s football weekly awards for the seventh week of the season, as announced by the conference office Monday.
Offensive Player of the Week: Zach Calzada, UIW – QB – Gr. – Buford, Ga. (Auburn/Texas A&M/Lanier HS)
Zach Calzada continues to put up impressive numbers, leading No. 15 UIW to a 55-10 victory over Nicholls last Saturday night. He finished the night going 25 of 33 for 270 passing yards and five touchdowns as the Cardinals took care of business in the FCS National Game of the Week. His incredible 71-yard bomb to Jalen Walthall, with the Nicholls defense on his heels, made SportsCenter's Top 10 plays, coming in at No. 6 on Sunday morning.
Defensive Player of the Week: Dune Smith, UIW – LB – Jr. – Miami, Fla. (Southern Illinois/Northwestern HS)
Dune Smith capped off the 55-10 victory over Nicholls, returning an interception 55 yards and diving into the endzone to cap the win with three minutes to go in the fourth. This marked his first defensive touchdown of the year and was the icing on the cake in a dominant win in the FCS National Game of the Week. Smith added 10 total tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss to go with his INT.
Special Teams Player of the Week: Darius Lewis, Southeastern – WR – SR. – New Orleans, La. (Del Valle HS)
Darius Lewis set a new single-game school record with 39.3 yards per punt return in Southeastern's 37-7 league victory at HCU. The senior preseason All-American had punt returns of 62 and 55 yards – the latter of which set up a touchdown that helped Southeastern add onto the lead and pull away for victory.
2024 Southland Football Players of the Week
| Date |
Offensive |
Defensive |
Special Teams |
| Sept. 2 |
Jalen Walthall, UIW |
Eli Ennis, Nicholls |
Stephen Johnson, McNeese |
| Sept. 9 |
Ron Peace, Texas A&M-Commerce |
Blake Gotcher, Northwestern State |
Chase Leon, Lamar |
| Sept. 16 |
Clifton McDowell, McNeese |
DeJuan Lewis, Lamar |
Christian Booker, Lamar |
| Sept. 23 |
DeKalon Taylor, UIW |
Mister Williams, UIW |
Cody Smith, McNeese |
| Sept. 30 |
Antonio Martin, Jr., Southeastern |
Marques Caldwell, HCU |
Finn Lappin, McNeese |
| Oct. 7 |
Eli Brickhandler, HCU |
Laurence Sullivan Jr., Nicholls |
Dillon Fedor, HCU |
| Oct. 14 |
Zach Calzada, UIW |
Dune Smith, UIW |
Darius Lewis, Southeastern |
Southland weekly award winners are nominated and voted upon by each school’s sports information director. Voting for one’s own athlete is not permitted. To earn honorable mention, a student-athlete must appear on 25 percent of ballots.