This week's Missouri Valley Football Conference players of the week include QB Beau Brungard of Youngstown State; LB Ben Bogle of Southern Illinois; QB Elijah Owens of Indiana State; PK C.J. Elrichs of North Dakota; and Evan Beerntsen of South Dakota State.



Offensive Player of the Week
QB Beau Brungard, Youngstown State
6-0, 215, So., New Middletown, Ohio (Springfield HS)
Brungard accounted for five touchdowns with three rushing and two passing in the 59-25 win over Valparaiso. He finished the game with 194 yards on 10 carries, which was one yard shy of the school record for rushing yards in a game by a QB. He completed 11-of-14 passes for 125 yards. He scored on runs of four, 65 and 66 and had scoring throws of eight and 73 yards in the win.



Defensive Player of the Week
LB Ben Bogle, Southern Illinois
6-2, 225, So., Ponte Vedra, Fla. (Nease HS)
Bogle had a career-high 12 tackles, including 5.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks, as SIU beat Austin Peay, 31-17, on Saturday. Southern’s defense played lights-out in the fourth quarter, holding the Governors to just eight total yards. Bogle led the fourth-quarter dominance, twice making tackles that forced turnovers on downs. He also had 2.5 sacks in the decisive fourth quarter. SIU had eight sacks in the game.



Newcomer of the Week
QB Elijah Owens, Indiana State
6-2, 225, R-Fr., Jacksonville, Ill. (Jacksonville HS)
Owens put together the best performance of his collegiate career on Saturday evening as the redshirt freshman quarterback went 30-of-37 through the air for 260 yards, three touchdowns, and three interceptions. Owens completed passes to nine different receivers while adding a team-high 44 rushing yards in the loss. The quarterback was at his best late in the game completing 12-of-13 passes in the final Indiana State drive of the game, connecting with five different receivers before keeping his composure and his pants on his way to finding Taylor for a nine-yard touchdown reception to cut the game down to a one-score contest. Owens’ 30 completions were the most by an Indiana State quarterback since the 2016 season.



Special Teams Player of the Week
PK C.J. Elrichs, North Dakota
6-2, 205, So., Olathe, Kan. (Olathe Northwest HS)
In North Dakota’s 27-24 win over No. 4 Montana, C.J. Elrichs drilled what would be the game-winner on a 40-yard field goal with 2:16 remaining to put the Hawks on top for the first time of the game. Elrichs also booted home a 19-yard field goal to knot the game up at 24-24 with 11:12 left in the game. Elrichs went 2-for-2 kicking and 3-for-3 on extra points in the win.



Offensive Lineman of the Week
RB Evan Beerntsen, South Dakota State
6-4, 300, Sr., De Pere, Wis. (Appleton North HS)
Beerntsen graded at 85 percent and recorded 11 pancake blocks in South Dakota State's 45-24 victory over Incarnate Word on Sept. 7. The Jackrabbits racked up 31 first downs and 515 yards of total offense, passing for 385 yards and rushing for 230 more.


OTHERS NOMINATED

DL Nick Gaes, South Dakota -- Gaes was one of two Coyotes to record 10+ tackles with eight of them being solo. He recorded two tackles for loss (12 yards) and picked up his second sack of the season for a loss of seven yards. Gaes currently sits top-20 in the FCS in both sacks (14th) and tackles for loss (18th). Despite falling on the road to Wisconsin, Gaes and the Yotes battled late into the fourth quarter against the Badgers, falling by just 14 points, 27-13.

DB Mark Cannon Jr., Illinois State -- Cannon led the Redbird defense with 10 total tackles (6 solo stops) and was credited with 1.5 tackles for loss. Cannon also forced one of two turnovers in the contest, when he intercepted a pass late in the second quarter and returned the ball 14 yards to the UNA 26 yard line. The interception for Cannon was the fourth in his career at ISU.

DE Toby Anene, North Dakota State -- Anene was disruptive up front in North Dakota State’s 52-3 home win over Tennessee State. He made three total tackles with one sack fumble, another tackle for loss, and one pass breakup as the Bison held TSU to just 200 yards of total offense and 4 of 14 on third down. Anene leads NDSU in tackles for loss and is fifth on the team in total tackles after making just three tackles in limited action over 11 games last season.

LB Wyatt Pedigo, North Dakota -- Pedigo recorded a sack with less than a minute to go which helped decide the ball game and forced the Griz to attempt a longer field goal at the end, which fell short. Pedigo had two sacks in the contest and led the team with seven stops, six of them being solo.

S Todric McGee, Missouri State -- McGee logged a game-high 16 tackles in Missouri State's game at Ball State for a career high. The junior standout accounted for 6 solo stops and 10 assists to go with a tackle for loss (3 yards). It marked McGee's eighth career double-figure tackle game and second in as many games this season.

LB Tyson Meiguez, Murray State -- Meiguez led the Racers defense racking up 13 tackles with a half tackle-for-loss in the defeat to Butler. Meiguez now leads the Racers with 18 tackles on the year with 10 solo stops.

QB Tommy Rittenhouse, Illinois State -- Rittenhouse rushed for a career-high 94 yards and accounted for 236 yards of total offense in the Redbirds’ win over the Lions. Rittenhouse was also responsible for three touchdowns in the win, two coming on the ground and one through the air. He wasted little time getting the offense going, leading the team down the field on the first drive of the game which he capped off with an 18-yard touchdown pass to Mitch Bartol. Early in the second quarter, he called his own number on a scramble in the red zone and ran it in for three yards out for his second touchdown of the game. Later in the contest, after coming out of the game with some cramping issues, he returned to break off a 71-yard rushing touchdown that would prove to be the game winner for the Redbirds, who won 24-17.

UNI's Tye Edwards recorded back-to-back 100+-yard performances for the first time in his career with 141 rushing yards at St. Thomas.  Notably, Amauri Pesek-Hickson recorded his first rushing touchdown of the season and the third multi-touchdown game of his career with two rushing touchdowns against the Tommies.

WR Bryce Lance, North Dakota State -- In his first career start, Lance had a career-high seven receptions and 106 yards including his first two career touchdown catches as North Dakota State defeated Tennessee State 52-3. He scored on passes of 14 and 6 yards and had a career-long catch of 42 yards to set up another NDSU touchdown on the next play. After making just one reception in his first two seasons, Lance leads the Bison with 10 catches for 138 yards after two games.

WR Griffin Wilde, South Dakota State -- For the second week in a row, Wilde set a single-game career high in receptions and topped the 100-yard mark by hauling in 10 receptions (on 10 targets) for 106 yards and two touchdowns in South Dakota State's 45-24 home victory over No. 11/12 Incarnate Word on Sept. 7. It was the first two-touchdown game for Wilde, who scored on pass plays of 11 and 25 in the second half. His first touchdown gave the Jackrabbits the lead for good at 24-17 midway through the third quarter, while his second touchdown ended a streak of four consecutive drives ending in a touchdown by SDSU.  Through two games this season, Wilde has 17 receptions for 256 yards and three touchdowns.

RB Gaven Ziebarth, North Dakota -- Ziebarth rushed 22 times for 88 yards and a touchdown in North Dakota’s 27-24 win over No. 4 Montana. Ziebarth averaged 4.0 yards per touch and 58 of his yards came in the second half alone.

WR Jmariyae Robinson, Missouri State -- Robinson scored 2 touchdowns and racked up 105 all-purpose yards in Missouri State's narrow loss at FBS Ball State on Saturday. Robinson snagged 7 passes for 102 yards and a touchdown and also scored on a 3-yard touchdown run. Both of his scores came in the final two minutes of the game with the Bears working to erase a 15-point deficit. It marked his second-career 100-yard receiving game and his second straight game scoring on a rushing play.

WR Rashad Rochelle, Indiana State -- Rochelle put together 157 all-purpose yards including his first touchdown at Indiana State to highlight the game on Saturday night at Eastern Illinois. The junior wide receiver posted 45 receiving yards, 34 punt return yards, 73 kickoff return yards, and five rushing yards over his 11 touches in the contest. Rochelle highlighted the game with his first touchdown of 2024, a 16-yard score in the second quarter to highlight the contest.

OL Ben Buxa, North Dakota -- Buxa helped the Fighting Hawks rack up 340 yards of offense in the 27-24 win over No. 4 Montana, including 204 yards in the second half alone with the help of his blocking. The Grizzlies were only able to get to Simon Romfo once for a sack in the game. Buxa’s blocking helped North Dakota have a 16-play, 67-yard drive that ate up 8:11 of clock early in the fourth quarter and a 14-play, 43-yard drive that consumed 7:44 of clock late in the fourth quarter. On those two drives, C.J. Elrichs booted home a 19-yard field goal to knot the game up at 24-24 and a 40-yard field goal which would be the eventual game-winner. The time of possession consumed allowed UND to outgain UM in offensive yardage in the second half by a 204-34 margin.

DB Stephon Hall, Youngstown State -- Hall started the YSU scoring onslaught by returning a fumble four yards for a score in the win over Valparaiso. On the games first snap, YSU forced a fumble and Hall scooped it up and carried it into the end zone from four yards out. It was YSU’s first fumble return for touchdown since August 24, 2019.  He finished the game with four tackles, including three solos, and a pass breakup

DE Jamond Mathis, Southern Illinois -- Mathis had four tackles and 1.5 sacks and played a key role in the decisive fourth quarter, when SIU’s defense held Austin Peay to eight total yards. Mathis had both of his sacks in the fourth quarter. SIU had eight sacks in the game.

RB CharMar Brown, North Dakota State -- Brown had 13 carries for 42 yards including his first career touchdown in North Dakota State’s 52-3 home win over Tennessee State. Brown scored on a 3-yard run to help NDSU open up a 21-0 lead midway through the second quarter. He has led all Bison running backs in carries and yards each of the first two games.

K Eli Ozick, North Dakota State -- Ozick made a 51-yard field goal on his first career attempt in North Dakota State’s 52-3 home win over Tennessee State. It was the longest field goal by a Bison kicker in eight years. He also added two extra-point kicks. NDSU’s primary kickoff specialist, Ozick has booted 14 of 15 kickoffs into the end zone with 13 touchbacks helping the Bison limit opponents to just 13 return yards through two contests.

OL Seth Anderson, North Dakota -- Anderson’s blocking helped North Dakota pick up 340 yards of offense in the 27-24 win over No. 4 Montana, including 204 yards in the second half alone. The Griz were only able to get to quarterback Simon Romfo once for a sack in the contest. Anderson’s blocking helped UND have a 16-play 67-yard drive that ate up 8:11 of clock early in the fourth quarter and a 14-play, 43-yard drive that consumed 7:44 of clock late in the fourth quarter. On those two drives, C.J. Elrichs booted home a 19-yard field goal to knot the game up at 24-24 and a 40-yard field goal which would be the eventual game-winner. The time of possession consumed allowed UND to outgain UM in offensive yardage in the second half by a 204-34 margin.  Anderson graded out at 87 percent last week with three knock downs.