Pac-12 football players of the week announced

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SAN FRANCISCO - Running back Nick Wilson of Arizona, linebacker Eric Kendricks of UCLA and punter Drew Riggleman of ARIZONA, have been named offensive, defensive and special teams Pac-12 Players of the Week in football.

Wilson, a freshman from Fresno, Calif., ran through Utah to lead the Wildcats to a 42-10 victory, on the road in Salt Lake City. Wilson carried the ball 20 times for a career-high 218 yards and added three rushing touchdowns (17,75 and 19 yards) to hold off the Utes while Arizona played the second half without its starting quarterback Anu Solomon. In a three minute span in the fourth quarter, Wilson rushed for 114 yards and two touchdowns on six carries. With Arizona leading 21-10, and pinned at its own 5-yard line, Wilson carried five-straight times as the Wildcats marched 95 yards in just over two minutes on their first possession of the fourth quarter. Wilson’s 75-yard touchdown capped the pivotal drive, which gave UA some breathing room. It was Wilson’s third-straight 100-yard game and his first 200-yard game. The game pushed his season rushing total to 1,085 yards, making him the first Arizona freshman to rush for over 1,000 yards in a single season.

Kendricks, a senior from Fresno, Calif., led UCLA with 14 tackles, a tackle for loss and an interception in the Bruins 38-20 win over USC. His interception, the third of this season, helped to set up a late second quarter touchdown scoring drive which handed the Bruins a huge momentum lift and a 24-14 halftime lead. He has led or tied for the team tackles lead in all games this season. Kendricks now ranks second on the all-time school list for tackles, just eight shy of matching Jerry Robinson’s total of 468 set in 1975-78. He recorded the ninth double-digit tackle effort of the season, one short of the school record, and the 23rd of his career. Kendricks leads the Pac-12 with a total tackle average of 11.6 per game (5th in the nation) and in solo tackles with a mark of 8.1, which ranks first in the nation.

Riggleman, a junior from Tucscon, Ariz., played a key role in Arizona’s 42-10 win over Utah.  Riggleman punted seven times for an average of 52.0 yards, including a booming 67-harder that nearly matched his career-long of 70 yards, and downed three punts inside of the 20-yard line.  Riggleman’s punts helped Arizona to a five-yard advantage in starting field position. The Utes went three-and-out three times after Riggleman punts and gained only 183 total yards with no points on the seven drives after he punted. Arizona is second in the Pac-12 in punting and Riggleman’s 46.5-yard punting average currently ranks second-best in school history and is tied for third-best in the nation.

Also nominated for Offensive Player of the Week: Taylor Kelly, QB, ASU; Marcus Mariota, QB, ORE; Redmound Wright, RB, STAN; Brett Hundley, QB, UCLA; Jaydon Mickens, WR, WASH; Vince Mayle, WR, WSU; Also nominated for Defensive Player of the Week: Tra-Mayne, Bondurant, LB, ARIZ; Marcus Hardison, LB, ASU; Troy Hill, CB, ORE; Blake Martinez, LB, STAN;  Also nominated for Special Teams Player of the Week: Bryce McGovern, S, CAL; Ahmaad Harris, WR, UCLA

2014 Player of the Week History