This week's Missouri Valley Football Conference players of the week include Pierre Strong Jr. of South Dakota State; DB Darius Joiner of Western Illinois; WR Izaiah Hartrup of Southern Illinois; and QB Jason Shelley of Missouri State.
 
Offensive Player of the Week
RB Pierre Strong Jr., South Dakota State
5-11, 205, Sr., Little Rock, Ark. (McClellan High)
Strong did a little bit of everything in South Dakota State’s 44-0 victory over Indiana State, rushing 20 times for a season-high 150 yards, catching two passes for 23 yards and throwing a 22-yard touchdown pass. His touchdown pass to quarterback Chris Oladokun was the first score of the game for the Jackrabbits, who improved to 3-0.  A Walter Payton Award candidate, Strong has now topped the 100-yard mark in all three games this season and 13 times in his career.
 


Defensive Player of the Week
DB Darius Joiner, Western Illinois
6-2, 200, Sr., Roanoke, Ala. (Handley High / Jacksonville State)
Joiner had a career day at Youngstown State -- setting new career-highs of solo (14) and total tackles (23). That mark for total tackles ranks sixth-best in program history for a single game, is the best in the MVFC this season, and third-best nationally. His efforts helped WIU rally from a 35-7 deficit to win 38-35. The 28-point deficit to win was the biggest comeback in a league game in MVFC history, surpassing the previous record of 23 (set by Western Illinois in 1988).
 


Special Teams Player of the Week
WR Izaiah Hartrup, Southern Illinois
6-0, 179, Fr., O’Fallon, Mo. (Fort Zumwalt North)
With Southern Illinois trailing 17-0 in the third quarter, WR Izaiah Hartrup pumped life into the Salukis by returning a kickoff 70 yards, setting up the first of five touchdowns in in SIU’s 35-17 comeback win over Illinois State. Hartrup also caught a career-high seven passes for 82 yards, including an incredible one-handed grab on a key, 47-yard reception in the fourth quarter.
 


Newcomer of Week
QB Jason Shelley, Missouri State
5-11, 197, Sr., Frisco, Texas (Lone Star High, Utah State)
The Bears signal caller posted his third straight 200-yard passing game and third straight game with no interceptions to help lead the Bears to a 31-23 come-from-behind win over South Dakota. Shelley accounted for 4 touchdowns -- 2 passing and 2 rushing -- while engineering three scoring drives in the Bears first five second-half possessions to ignite the 17-0 Bears run to end the game. Shelley was 19-for-29 for a season-high 281 yards through the air and also racked up a career-high 62 ground yards on 17 carries (94 rushing yards when factoring out sack yardage), including touchdown runs of 26 and 12 yards. His 12-yard TD run in the fourth quarter gave the Bears an eight-point cushion and helped complete the comeback. He was 4-for-5 passing in the 4th quarter for 66 yards while racking up 21 rushing yards in the final period.
 
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES

TB Jaleel McLaughlin, Youngstown State -- McLaughlin finished with 136 yards on 23 carries and scored three touchdowns for the Penguins against Western Illinois. He had three rushing scores in the first half.

WR Landon Lenoir, Southern Illinois -- Caught 7 passes for 86 yards in SIU’s 35-17 comeback win over Illinois State. The Salukis trailed, 17-0, midway through the third quarter, before exploding for 35 unanswered points. The first SIU touchdown was caught by Lenoir on a seven-yard pass from a scrambling Nic Baker. During the game, Lenoir surpassed 2,000 career receiving yards, becoming just the fourth player in school history to reach the plateau.

QB Connor Sampson, Western Illinois -- Connor continued his stellar season play in the MVFC opener on Saturday (Sept. 25) at Youngstown State. The quarterback threw 33-48 (68.8%) for 316 yards, four passing touchdowns, and one interception. His 33 completions rank fourth-best in program history for a single game; a mark he first totaled last season at North Dakota (3/13/21). His four passing touchdowns tied as a personal career-high, matching his mark from last week versus Eastern Washington (Sept. 18).

DE Kevin Ellis, Missouri State -- Ellis matched a career-high with 9 total tackles in Saturday's Valley opener against South Dakota, while notching 3.0 sacks, also a career high. He also recorded a pair of QB hurries in the contest. His three sacks all came in key situations with two stopping second-down plays and one coming on a key third down in the third quarter -- all of which resulted in USD punts directly thereafter. Ellis also had a critical third-down tackle in the fourth quarter that also resulted in a Coyotes punt and helping MSU secure its longest home winning streak since 2010.

S Qua Brown, Southern Illinois -- Led SIU with 11 tackles, including a tackle for loss in SIU’s 35-17 comeback win over Illinois State. The Salukis trailed, 17-0, midway through the third quarter, before exploding for 35 unanswered points. Trailing, 17-7, late in the third quarter, Southern’s defense mounted a critical goal line stand, stopping the Redbirds on 4th-and-1 at the SIU 6.

LB Adam Bock, South Dakota State -- Bock tallied 10 tackles and intercepted a pass to help lead a South Dakota State defense that pitched a shutout in a 44-0 league-opening win at Indiana State on Sept. 25. One of Bock’s stops was a half-tackle for loss on fourth down that ended a Sycamore drive deep in SDSU territory and his interception and ensuing 16-yard return set up a Jackrabbit touchdown. As a team, the Jackrabbits held Indiana State to 226 yards of total offense. 

LB Shanon Reid, Illinois State -- Locked in a defensive battle, junior Shanon Reid led Illinois State with 15 total tackles, nine of those solo, against No.7 Southern Illinois. Reid came up with a big pass breakup in the first quarter on 3rd and 8 to draw an offensive pass interference against the Salukis and force a punt. His interception at the end of the second quarter allowed the Redbirds to enter the locker room at half with a lead.
 
LB Damien Jackson, Illinois State -- Jackson made his first collegiate start for the Redbirds as he was called upon to step up for the injured Brandon Simon. The Elkhart, Ind. native used his opportunity to the fullest as he helped Illinois State put the first points on the board against No. 7 Southern Illinois with a blocked punt in the second quarter.  
 
PK Cole Frahm, South Dakota State -- Frahm kicked a career-best three field goals in South Dakota State’s 44-0 victory at Indiana State on Sept. 25. After having a 50-yard attempt blocked earlier in the game, Frahm connected from 45, 32 and 27 yards. He also made all five extra-point tries to finish the afternoon with 14 points and added five touchbacks on nine kickoffs. 

KR/WR Wesley Eliodor, South Dakota -- Eliodor became the first Coyote in 13 years to return a kickoff for a touchdown. His 99-yard return near the end of the first half broke a 14-14 tie and helped USD to a 23-14 halftime lead. Eliodor totaled 133 yards on three returns overall.

DL Gavin Dineen, Indiana State -- Dineen highlighted the Indiana State special teams unit on Saturday afternoon in their MVFC home opener against South Dakota State. Trailing 7-0 in the first quarter, the Sycamores kick defense set up for a 50-yard attempt the SDSU FG unit. On the attempt, Dineen went up the middle and got a hand on the kick, deflecting the ball for his first blocked kick and the Sycamores’ first blocked FG since the 2019 season. Dineen added three tackles in the loss.

PK Jose Pizano, Missouri State -- The Bears kicker knocked through his seventh consecutive field goal attempt of the season in the third quarter, a 42-yarder, to help ignite MSU's second-half comeback vs. South Dakota in the Valley opener. His 7 consecutive FG makes matches the fifth-best streak in program history. Pizano was also 4-for-4 on extra points, extending his career streak to 28 consecutive makes to begin his MSU career.

PK Mason Laramie, Western Illinois -- Mason came in the clutch to score the game-winning field goal against Youngstown State -- a 20-yard attempt. He is the first WIU player to kick a game-winning field goal since Sam Crosa did versus Southern Illinois in 2018.

RB Donnavan Spencer, Southern Illinois -- Western Carolina transfer Donnavan Spencer led the Salukis with 69 yards rushing including a 40-yard touchdown run in SIU’s 35-17 comeback win over Illinois State. The Salukis trailed, 17-0, midway through the third quarter, before exploding for 35 unanswered points. Spencer’s run cut the deficit to 17-14.

QB Demeatric Crenshaw, Youngstown State -- Crenshaw rushed for 134 yards on 20 carries and scored two touchdowns while completing 13-of-22 passes for 76 yards against Western Illinois.