Marques Watson-Trent Honored By Sun Belt Conference
10/2/2023 2:00:00 PM | Football
Linebacker named defensive player of the week
NEW ORLEANS - Georgia Southern redshirt junior linebacker Marques Watson-Trent was named the Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the Week for his performance Saturday against Coastal Carolina. It marks the first honor for the Pittsburgh native, who now has seven games with 10 or more tackles.
Offensive Player of the Week - Jaylen Raynor, Arkansas State
Finishing with more touchdowns than incompletions in his second career start, true-freshman quarterback Jaylen Raynor was 20-of-25 for 383 yards and six touchdowns in a 52-28 win Saturday at UMass. His six touchdowns are tied for the most in a game this season joining Caleb Williams' (USC) performance at Colorado. His six touchdown passes tied the school record and marked the most by a true-freshman since Caleb Williams (Oklahoma) did so in 2021. Dating back to 2013, Raynor is the fourth true-freshman quarterback with six touchdown passes in a single-game joining Caleb Williams (Oklahoma vs Texas Tech, 2021), Justin Herbert (Oregon at California, 2016) and Patrick Mahomes (Texas Tech vs Baylor, 2014). Five of his six touchdown passes went to a different receiver and he found nine different receivers on the afternoon.
Defensive Player of the Week - Marques Watson-Trent, Georgia Southern
Marques Watson-Trent led a stout defensive effort as Georgia Southern picked off Coastal Carolina quarterback Grayson McCall four times in the 38-28 win in front of a record-setting crowd at Paulson Stadium. Watson-Trent totaled 14 tackles, a quarterback hurry and sealed the win with his first career interceptions. The double-digit tackling performance was his seventh of his career and he now has 49 tackles in five games this season.
Special Teams Player of the Week - Michael Hughes, App State
Michael Hughes nailed a career-long 54-yard field goal as time expired to clinch App State's 41-40 comeback win in its Sun Belt opener at ULM. It was the Mountaineers' first game-ending field goal since 2021 and the longest game-ender in school history. Hughes' blast was also the Mountaineers' longest field goal since 2000. The junior from Charleston, W. Va., made a 28-yarder to pull App State to within two at 40-38 early in the fourth quarter. He connected on all five PATs and had four touchbacks on seven kickoffs a week after he made a career high-tying four field goals at Wyoming. He leads all Sun Belt kickers and ranks tied for fourth nationally with 10 points scored per game.
Georgia Southern (4-1, 1-0 SBC) will head to James Madison (5-0, 2-0 SBC) after its bye week before returning home for a pair of games against ULM (10/21) and Georgia State (10/26). Tickets for the remaining home games may be purchased as GSEagles.com/Tickets.
Offensive Player of the Week - Jaylen Raynor, Arkansas State
Finishing with more touchdowns than incompletions in his second career start, true-freshman quarterback Jaylen Raynor was 20-of-25 for 383 yards and six touchdowns in a 52-28 win Saturday at UMass. His six touchdowns are tied for the most in a game this season joining Caleb Williams' (USC) performance at Colorado. His six touchdown passes tied the school record and marked the most by a true-freshman since Caleb Williams (Oklahoma) did so in 2021. Dating back to 2013, Raynor is the fourth true-freshman quarterback with six touchdown passes in a single-game joining Caleb Williams (Oklahoma vs Texas Tech, 2021), Justin Herbert (Oregon at California, 2016) and Patrick Mahomes (Texas Tech vs Baylor, 2014). Five of his six touchdown passes went to a different receiver and he found nine different receivers on the afternoon.
Defensive Player of the Week - Marques Watson-Trent, Georgia Southern
Marques Watson-Trent led a stout defensive effort as Georgia Southern picked off Coastal Carolina quarterback Grayson McCall four times in the 38-28 win in front of a record-setting crowd at Paulson Stadium. Watson-Trent totaled 14 tackles, a quarterback hurry and sealed the win with his first career interceptions. The double-digit tackling performance was his seventh of his career and he now has 49 tackles in five games this season.
Special Teams Player of the Week - Michael Hughes, App State
Michael Hughes nailed a career-long 54-yard field goal as time expired to clinch App State's 41-40 comeback win in its Sun Belt opener at ULM. It was the Mountaineers' first game-ending field goal since 2021 and the longest game-ender in school history. Hughes' blast was also the Mountaineers' longest field goal since 2000. The junior from Charleston, W. Va., made a 28-yarder to pull App State to within two at 40-38 early in the fourth quarter. He connected on all five PATs and had four touchbacks on seven kickoffs a week after he made a career high-tying four field goals at Wyoming. He leads all Sun Belt kickers and ranks tied for fourth nationally with 10 points scored per game.
Georgia Southern (4-1, 1-0 SBC) will head to James Madison (5-0, 2-0 SBC) after its bye week before returning home for a pair of games against ULM (10/21) and Georgia State (10/26). Tickets for the remaining home games may be purchased as GSEagles.com/Tickets.
Players Mentioned
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