WALNUT CREEK, Calif.
-- Running back
DeAnthony Thomas
of OREGON, cornerback
Damante Horton
of WASHINGTON STATE and kicker
Jake Smith
of ARIZONA have been named Pac-12 Players of the Week in football.
Thomas, a junior from Los Angeles, Calif., had 11 carries for a game-high 124 yards rushing and three touchdowns in the Ducks 59-10 road win over Virginia on Saturday. He had touchdown runs of one, 40 and eight yards and reeled in one catch for another 28 yards. Thomas is averaging 8.7 yards per carry and is tied for 20th in the nation in rushing yards per game (126.0 ypg).
Horton, a senior from Oakland, Calif., led a spirited defensive effort by Washington State in the Cougars 10-7 win over No.22/25 USC Trojans in the first Conference game of season. The cornerback stepped in front of a USC pass and returned it 70 yards for a touchdown to even the score at 7-7 just before halftime. Horton collected his second interception with less than a minute remaining to seal the victory for Washington State, ending the game with two interceptions for 75 return yards and a career-best two tackles for a loss for 12 yards. He was also tasked with covering USC All-American receiver Marquise Lee, who was limited to 27 yards on seven catches.
Smith, a senior place-kicker Philadelphia, Pa., set a school record with 16 points by kicking to help lead Arizona past UNLV 58-13 on Saturday night in Las Vegas. The first-year kicker collected his first made field goal from 41 yards to put Arizona up 3-0 and went on to convert three of four on the night in addition to making all seven extra points he attempted. Smith also kicked off 11 times in the game with five touchbacks and a 63.3-yard average.
Also nominated for offensive player of the week honors were quarterbacks
Travis Wilson
of UTAH,
Taylor Kelly
of ARIZONA STATE,
Sean Mannion
of OREGON STATE, and
Jared Goff
of CALIFORNIA; running backs
KaDeem Carey
of Arizona,
Tre Madden
of USC and
Tyler Gaffney
of STANFORD; and wide receiver
Paul Richardson
of COLORADO. Also nominated for defensive player of the week honors were linebackers
Jake Fischer
of Arizona,
Grandville Taylor
of Arizona State, and
Hardy Nickerson
of California, safeties
Jared Bell
of Colorado,
Ed Reynolds
of Stanford and
Dion Bailey
of USC; defensive end
Tony Washington
of Oregon and defensive tackle
Tenny Palepoi
of Utah. Also nominated for special teams player of the week honors were kickers
Vincenzo DAmato
of California and
Andrew Furney
of Washington State and Oregon State punter
Keith Kostol
.