This week's Missouri Valley Football Conference players of the week feature QB Nathan Mays of Youngstown State; WR/FB Dominique Dafney of Indiana State; LS Dalton Godfrey of South Dakota; and DE Justus Reed of Youngstown State.
Co-Offensive Player of the Week
QB Nathan Mays, Youngstown State
6-3, 220, Sr., Urbana, Ohio (Urbana)
Mays played the final snap of the Penguins' season finale against Illinois State on Saturday. Mays came on the field less than three weeks following surgery after he suffered a career-ending injury against North Dakota State on Nov. 2. Mays left the Stambaugh Stadium turf that evening against the Bison on a golf cart. On Saturday, he put on his YSU uniform to be honored during Senior Day then sat on the bench for the next two-plus hours. With the Penguins' impressive 21-3 win over Illinois State clinched, YSU called timeout with 10 seconds left. Mays was carried to the Penguins' huddle by Myles Douglas and Matt Jones. He took a snap from Jones and with the assistance of two teammates took a knee as the clock ran out. It wasn't planned entering the game, but it happened. Mays went to Coach Pelini during the game and said if it's a possibility, can we make it happen. Coach said "yes". Mays then dressed on the sidelines and went out to finish off his career under center and not on a golf cart. That's football. That's sports. The end-game scene has been shown throughout social media and on TV across the country.
Co-Offensive Player of the Week
& MVFC Newcomer of the Week
WR Dominique Dafney, Indiana State
6-5, 235, R-Sr., West Des Moines, Iowa (Valley HS/Iowa)
Dafney put together the fourth-best single game rushing performance in program history after going for 244 yards on the ground and five touchdowns out of the wildcat. An Iowa naïve, Dafney rushed the ball 20 times for a 12.2 yards per carry average to lead the team. His four rushing touchdowns were the most since Ja’Quan Keyes hit the mark against Eastern Illinois in 2018. Dafney caught one pass – a touchdown from 19 yards out - from Michael Haupert in the first quarter to put the Sycamores in front.
Defensive Player of the Week
DE Justus Reed, Youngstown State
6-3, 270, Jr., Clearwater, Fla. (Clearwater Central Catholic)
Reed capped off an impressive season with six solo tackles, including a pair of sacks in the Penguins' 21-3 win over Illinois State. Reed finished the game with four tackles for losses against the Redbirds. He also forced a fumble and had a pass breakup. Reed finished the season with 13 sacks in 12 games and 19 TFLs. He ended the regular season tied for the conference lead with 13 sacks.
Special Teams Player of the Week
LS Dalton Godfrey, South Dakota
6-2, 215, So., Cedar Falls, Iowa (Cedar Falls HS)
A long snapper? Absolutely. He forced and recovered a fumble while covering a punt in the first quarter that set the Coyotes up at the SDSU 20. He then downed back-to-back punts at the 5- and 1-yard lines. All three plays led to empty possessions for the SDSU offense.
OTHERS NOMINATED
Offensive
QB Austin Simmons, South Dakota
Simmons passed for 252 yards, ran for 47 and accounted for all three touchdowns in South Dakota’s 24-21 upset of No. 5 South Dakota State. His 252 yards are the second-most posted against the Jacks’ eight-ranked defense all season. Simmons passed Wesley Beschorner for second place on USD’s all-time passing list with 6,487 yards and also surpassed 1,000 yards rushing for his career.
QB Trevor Allen, UNI
Allen ran for a season-high 94 yards and tied his career-high with two touchdowns to lead UNI to a 38-7 win over Western Illinois. He rushed the ball 24 times to lead the Panthers to a season-high 201 yards on the ground.
RB Javon Williams Jr., Southern Illinois
Williams rushed for 117 yards and a touchdown against top-ranked North Dakota State on Saturday. Williams averaged 5.1 yards per carry and exploded for a 28-yard touchdown to give SIU a 7-7 tie at halftime. The redshirt freshman was just the third player to rush for 100+ yards against NDSU this season. He also caught one pass for nine yards.
WR Jimmy Kepouros, North Dakota State
Kepouros had a career-high six catches and 80 receiving yards in North Dakota State’s 21-7 win at Southern Illinois. He made catches of 12 and 20 yards both on third down to twice extend a 10-play, 91-yard scoring drive on NDSU’s first possession. Kepouros also had an 11-yard catch on third-and-8 in the third quarter leading to NDSU’s final touchdown. Five of his six catches were good for first downs, and five came on third-down situations. He has a team-high 13 third down receptions for first down conversions.
Defensive
DB Isaiah McDaniels, South Dakota
McDaniels earned his first career start at safety, posted a career-high nine tackles including one for loss and forced two turnovers (fumbles) in Saturday’s 24-21 upset of No. 5 South Dakota State. His first big hit that caused a turnover set the Coyotes up for a 34-yard touchdown drive just before half that put USD ahead 10-7. His second occurred inside the USD 25 with the Coyotes clinging to a three-point lead with 6:34 remaining.
FS James Hendricks, North Dakota State
Hendricks had seven tackles including a half tackle for loss in North Dakota State’s 21-7 win at Southern Illinois. He made his 12th career interception in the first quarter at the 3-yard line to keep NDSU ahead 7-0, and was in on two goal-line tackles late in the fourth quarter to keep it a two-possession game before the Bison ran out the clock for their 33rd straight victory.
DB Michael Thomas, Indiana State -- Thomas led all players with 12 tackles during a 51-24 win at Missouri State. The redshirt sophomore recorded four solo stops as well as a half tackle for loss for three yards. Thomas also forced a fumble in the second half that was picked up by the Sycamores.
DB Jeremy Chinn, Southern Illinois
All-American safety Jeremy Chinn piled up 12 tackles and a sack to limit No. 1 North Dakota State to a season-low 21 points on Saturday. Chinn’s 12 tackles were a game high, and his sack pushed NDSU out of field goal range and kept the Bison off the scoreboard on that drive. It was the second-straight game and the fourth time in his career that Chinn recorded 10 or more tackles.
LB Chris Kolarevic, UNI
Kolarevic tallied five tackles, including a tackle for loss and scored on a 28-yard interception return for a touchdown to help UNI pick up a 38-7 win over Western Illinois Saturday in the UNI-Dome. The touchdown is the first of his career and the interception was the second of career, but first of the season. Kolarevic has 72 total tackles, surpassing last year’s total of 65. He also has 5.0 TFLs, 2.0 sacks and a 40-yard fumble return on the season.
LB Tom Rehfeld, Western Illinois
Rehfeld recorded a career-high 11 tackles in his final collegiate game at Northern Iowa. The senior had seven solo stops with two TFLs.
Special Teams
WR Dante Hendrix, Indiana State -- Hendrix recorded the first punt return touchdown of the year for the Sycamores Saturday at Missouri State. His 70-yard return just before halftime pushed the Indiana State lead to 21-7 over the homestanding Bears. Hendrix finished with 157 all-purpose yards after recording 87 yards through the air, including a 70 yard catch in the second quarter.
PK Matthew Cook
Cook went 1-1 from the field, hitting a 25-yard field goal to give UNI a lead that they would not concede. He is now 16-19 on the season. He leads the MVFC in makes and percentage.
P Jack Colquhoun, Southern Illinois
Colquhoun averaged 44.8 yards on four punts against NDSU on Saturday. He had a long of 53, pinned two of the punts inside the 20-yard line, including one at the 1-yard line.
Newcomer
DB Zaire Jones, Youngstown State -- Jones returned an interception for a touchdown and had five total tackles against Illinois State. His 30-yard interception return for touchdown in the fourth quarter helped clinch the Penguins' 21-3 victory. It was his third interception of the season and first since the season-opening contest against Samford. He finished the season with 60 total tackles, including 35 solo stops.
WR Logan Wolf, UNI
Wolf caught three passes for 82 yards including a 61-yard touchdown pass from Will McElvain. The true freshman, playing in just his second game, gave UNI a much-needed deep threat while Isaiah Weston recovers from his injury.
QB Trey Lance, North Dakota State
Lance had 203 yards of total offense with one touchdown in North Dakota State’s 21-7 win at Southern Illinois. He went 13 of 23 passing for 146 yards and also rushed 10 times for 57 yards. His 34-yard touchdown run on third-and-7 gave NDSU a two-possession lead with 11:36 left in the game. The Bison had zero turnovers for the fourth straight game and Lance extended his streak to 220 consecutive pass attempts without an interception.
RB Javon Williams Jr., Southern Illinois (also nominated for Player of the Week)