Pac-12 football players of the week announced

SAN FRANCISCO - Quarterback Marcus Mariota of OREGON, linebacker Scooby Wright III of ARIZONA and cornerback Adoreé Jackson of USC have been named offensive, defensive and special teams Pac-12 Players of the Week in football.

Mariota, a junior from Honolulu, Hawaii, threw for 326 yards and five touchdowns in Oregon’s 59-41 win over California. After the Golden Bears went ahead 14-7 in the first quarter, Mariota led Oregon to score 17 straight points to take the lead. In the first half, he completed 11-of-18 passes for 190 yards and three touchdowns. It was Mariota’s 34th consecutive game with a touchdown pass. He finished 18-of-30 for 326 yards and became Oregon’s all-time passing leader with 8,299 yards. On the year Mariota has thrown for 2,283 yards on has completed 24 TD passes while throwing only one interception.

Wright, a sophomore from Windsor Calif., forced three fumbles and tallied three sacks to lead Arizona to a 59-37 win over Washington State. Wright led an Arizona defense that held WSU to 106 yards of total offense on its first five possessions of the game, which resulted in the Cougars punting three times, turning the ball over on downs once (Wright recorded the tackle for no gain on the fourth down play) and throwing one interception. Wright has now forced five fumbles this season, becoming just the third Wildcat since 1973 to have done so (Rick Hunley and Chris Singleton). He ranks second in the nation, averaging 2.0 tackles for loss per game, and third in the nation with 1.29 sacks per game.

Jackson, a freshman from Belleville, Ill., matched the USC record (with Anthony Davis and Marqise Lee) with a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown in USC’s 24-21 loss at Utah. Jackson ranks fifth in the nation in kickoff returns averaging 33.7 yards per return. Jackson, who also plays offense and defense for the Trojans, also recorded 4 tackles (one for loss) and forced and recovered a fumble.

Also nominated for Offensive Player of the Week: Anu Solomon, QB, ARIZ; Paul Perkins, RB, UCLA; Nelson Agholor, WR, USC; Travis Wilson, QB, UTAH. Also nominated for Defensive Player of the Week: Kenneth Olugbode, LB COLO; Troy Hill, CB, ORE; Blake Martinez, LB, STAN; Erick Kendricks, LB, UCLA; Leonard Williams, DE, USC; Jason Danaika, DE, UTAH. Also nominated for Special Teams Player of the Week: DaVonté Neal, WR/PR, ARIZ; Mat Haack, P, ASU; Will Oliver, PK, COLO; Charles Nelson, PR, ORE; Ty Montgomery, PR, STAN; Ka’imi Fairbairn, PK, UCLA; Kaelin Clay, PR, UTAH

2014 Player of the Week History