This week's Missouri Valley Football Conference players of the week include QB Cam Miller of North Dakota State;  QB Theo Day of UNI; LB Zeke Vandenburgh of Illinois State; DJ Hart of North Dakota State; LB Garret Ollendieck of Indiana State; and LG Nash Jensen of North Dakota State.

Co-Offensive Player of the Week
QB Theo Day, UNI
6-5, 231, R-Jr., Canton, Mich. (Divine Child HS/Michigan State)
Day recorded another career performance with a career-high 380 passing yards in UNI’s 58-14 rout of South Dakota … The Panther passer accounted for a career-best six touchdowns, including five through the air to five different receivers … Day also completed 21-of-30 passes (70%) his second highest pass competition rating in a game this year … The redshirt junior was also named the College Football Performance (CFPA) FCS National Performer of the Year for the second time this season for his standout game.



Co-Offensive Player of the Week
QB Cam Miller, North Dakota State
6-1, 212, Jr., Solon, Iowa (Solon HS)
Miller had the only five-touchdown game in the FCS this season with a school record-tying five rushing touchdowns in North Dakota State’s 42-21 victory over North Dakota. He scored on runs of 4, 7 and 3 yards in the first half as the Bison opened a 28-7 lead and added TDs from 5 and 30 yards in the third quarter. Miller finished with a career-high 16 carries and 93 yards while averaging 5.8 yards per carry. He also went 8-for-12 passing for 159 yards including a career-long 76-yard passing play to convert a 3rd-and-7 from the Bison 6 and set up NDSU’s second touchdown of the day for a 14-0 lead.



Defensive Player of the Week
LB Zeke Vandenburgh, Illinois State
6-3, 235, Sr., Freeport, Illinois (Freeport HS)
In a season that has been filled with superlatives, senior linebacker Zeke Vandenburgh saved his best performance of his career for his final game in a Redbird uniform. The Freeport, Illinois, native set career highs with 17 tackles and 3.5 sacks and tied a career-best with 4.0 TFLs against the Leathernecks. It marked his second-straight game with 3 sacks or more and marked his third performance of the year with 3 or more sacks. Vandenburgh also a forced a fumble on one of the sacks of WIU quarterback Henry Ogala.



Special Teams Player of the Week
DJ Hart, North Dakota State
5-11, 191, Jr., Atlanta, Ga. (North Gwinnett HS)
Hart averaged 24.3 yards on three kickoff returns and had a career-high 156 all-purpose yards in North Dakota State’s 42-21 victory over North Dakota. He went 28, 47 and 27 yards on his three returns but finished with 73 yards after two penalties negated 29 yards. Hart also led the Bison in receiving with two receptions for 83 yards including a 76-yard play to convert a 3rd-and-7 from the Bison 6 and set up NDSU’s second touchdown of the game for a 14-0 lead.



Newcomer of the Week
LB Garret Ollendieck, Indiana State
6-2, 230, So., Cresco, Iowa (Crestwood HS/Iowa Central CC)
Ollendieck saved his best performance of the 2022 season for ISU’s final game of the year as the sophomore linebacker posted a career-high 14 tackles, a sack, and an interception against Missouri State. The Cresco, Iowa native posted a game-high 10 tackles in the first half of the game against the Bears, including a clutch sack late that led to a MSU missed field goal. Ollendieck added four more stops in the second half on the way to his first double-digit tackling performance with the Sycamores. He added his first interception of the season in the third quarter to set up a short field for ISU. Ollendieck added two tackles on the ISU punt team that resulted in negative return yards for the Bears. 



Offensive Lineman of the Week
LG Nash Jensen, North Dakota State
6-4, 329, Sr., Maple Grove, Minn. (Osseo HS)
Jensen graded out at 95 percent with no penalties and no sacks or quarterback hits allowed in North Dakota State’s 42-21 win over North Dakota. NDSU rushed for 363 yards and averaged 6.6 yards per carry while controlling the ball for more than 35 minutes. The Bison scored six rushing touchdowns and had a season-high 522 yards of total offense.


OTHERS NOMINATED

DB Marcus Hooker, Youngstown State -- Hooker came on the in the second quarter and made a huge impact for the Penguins finishing with two interceptions in YSU's 28-21 come-from-behind win over Southern Illinois. Hooker also had four tackles in the game. His first interception came just before halftime to stop a potential SIU scoring drive. He picked off Nic Baker to seal the win with 28 seconds remaining. Hooker had not been in the lineup since mid-October.

PK Matthew Cook, UNI -- Cook finished the season making history with three second half field goals in UNI’s commanding win at South Dakota … His 26-yard field goal in the early third quarter set a new UNI and MVFC record for career field goals, finishing his career with 67 total field goals made … Cook also concluded his career by staying perfect in PAT attempts, notching a perfect 124-for-124 mark.

RB Erin Collins, Western Illinois -- Ran for 163 yards (most since 2016) on 33 carries (most since 2015) in Western Illinois' 20-13 OT loss to Illinois State. Collins ran for a touchdown and set season team-highs for carries and rushing yards.

ATH Kevon Latulas, Missouri State -- In his second straight start at running back, Latulas averaged 11.1 yards per carry and posted 100 yards on just 9 carries to lead the Bears to a conference road win at Indiana State. His 43-yard run from scrimmage in the opening quarter set up MSU's first score of the game four plays later. He then put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter, toting the ball twice on a two-play touchdown drive for rushes of 25 and 1 yard to secure the victory. Latulas eclipsed 1,000 career rushing yards on the afternoon while securing his third career 100-yard rushing game.

WR Bryce Oliver, Youngstown State -- Oliver set a school record with 12 receptions, finishing with 145 yards and two touchdowns as the Penguins rallied for a 28-21 win over Southern Illinois on Saturday at Stambaugh Stadium. Oliver scored on touchdown receptions of 48 and seven yards in the fourth quarter as YSU rallied to tie the score from down 21-7. His previous high in receptions was eight and yards was 143. Oliver now has 18 receiving touchdowns in his career to the tie the YSU FCS record. He has 10 touchdowns this season the most by a Penguin since 1983.

LB Von Young, Missouri State -- Young racked up a team-high 11 tackles in MSU's win at Indiana State, accounting for three solo tackles in a dominant Bears second-half performance. Missouri State allowed just one first down and 27 total yards on 14 second-half plays against the Sycamores.

LB Juan DelaCruz, Western Illinois -- Had a career-high 13 tackles in WIU's 20-13 loss to Illinois State. Recorded a sack and forced a pair of fumbles. Also registered a pass break up.

OL Nick Ellis, UNI -- Ellis concluded his collegiate career in dominant fashion, helping the UNI offense flourish in its 58-14 rout of South Dakota … The Panthers recorded a season-high 593 yards of total offense, the eighth time this year UNI has notched 400+ total yards … UNI posted a season-best 380 yards through the air with five passing touchdowns from quarterback Theo Day … The Panther running game also recorded 213 yards on the ground, the most this season against an MVFC opponent.

QB Tommy Rittenhouse, Illinois State -- Rittenhouse led the Redbirds to an overtime win over Western Illinois. The Geneva, Illinois, native scored the game-winning touchdown in overtime for the Redbirds and picked up his first win as a starter at ISU. On a windy and cold day at Hancock Stadium, Rittenhouse completed 13-of-22 pass attempts for 77 yards and also rushed 30 yards on the ground. Late in the game, a couple of great runs set up a potential game-winning field goal as time expired, but it was his call to pull the ball down and run 8 yards for a touchdown in OT that secured the Redbird victory over the Leathernecks.

RB Jacardia Wright, Missouri State -- The transfer from Kansas State also was prominent in MSU's season-high 247-yard rushing effort at Indiana State. Wright carried 19 times for 85 yards (4.5 yards per carry) and two touchdowns. He carried 7 times for 36 yards on MSU's first fourth-quarter touchdown drive, consuming a season-high 6 minutes, 53 seconds of clock on a TD drive that gave the Bears a 17-7 lead at the time. He then capped the drive with a 5-yard TD carry. He also had MSU's first score of the game from one yard out.