Football Southern Conference

SoCon Football Players of the Week, Sept. 30, 2002

SPARTANBURG, SC - The Southern Conference today named its football players of the week for games played on Saturday, September 28. Appalachian State quarterback Joe Burchette was named the Offensive Player of the Week, defensive end Josh Jeffries of Appalachian was named the Defensive Player of the Week and Georgia Southern running back Jermaine Austin was the Freshman of the Week.

Burchette, a 6-3, 235-pound senior from Clemmons, NC, had one of his finest outings as a collegian, completing 29 of 45 passes for 357 yards in a 37-28 win over The Citadel. He threw a pair of touchdown passes and equaled the school record with his fourth career 300-yard passing game. Burchette is now fourth on the Mountaineers' all-time passing list.

Jeffries, a 6-2, 265-pound senior from Rougemont, NC, made seven tackles in the win over The Citadel. He had three sacks and a total of four tackles for loss. His three sacks for a loss of 23 yards tied his career high and he added a pair of quarterback hurries as well. Perhaps his most important play was recovering a fumble while holding ASU was holding on to a slim 28-24 fourth quarter lead. Jeffries holds ASU's record for career sacks with 29.5.

Austin, a 5-7, 200-pound redshirt freshman from Darien, GA, turned in his second 100-yard rushing effort with 114 yards in a 38-10 win at Chattanooga. Austin carried the ball 23 times and averaged 5.0 yards per carry. He also made his first career reception, taking a screen pass and converting it into a 69-yard touchdown that gave the Eagles a 21-0 lead in the second quarter.

Also receiving consideration on offense was Georgia Southern quarterback Chaz Williams who rushed for 120 yards and threw for 116 yards. Defensively, East Tennessee State safety Gerald Sensabaugh had four tackles, a fumble recovery and an interception return for a touchdown in a win over Western Carolina. Wofford freshman linebacker Jim Thurman received consideration for Freshman of the Week after making 13 tackles against Maryland, as did Appalachian State offensive lineman Grant Oliver who played all 85 snaps at right tackle.