SPARTANBURG, SC -- The Southern Conference today announced its football Players of the Week for the week of October 17. Appalachian State’s Kevin Richardson was tabbed the Offensive Player of the Week while Elon’s Chad Nkang earned Defensive Player of the Week honors. Elon’s Joe Baptiste was named the Freshman of the Week.

Richardson, a 5-9, 190-lb. running back from Elizabethtown, NC, led the Mountaineers to a 24-7 win over Georgia Southern on Saturday. The sophomore rushed for 208 yards on 22 carries with no lost yardage. He also caught six passes for a career-high 77 receiving yards to give him 285 yards of offense. Richardson broke off a career-long 73-yard run to set up his two-yard rushing touchdown in the second quarter that gave Appalachian State a 17-0 lead. His 208 rushing yards were the most by a SoCon player since ASU’s Jimmy Watkins amassed 216 yards on the ground in a win over William & Mary in the 2001 NCAA Division I-AA playoffs.

Other top offensive performances from October 15 include Chattanooga’s Eldra Buckley (124 yards, 31

ASU's Kevin Richardson

Nkang, a junior from Hyattsville, MD, collected a career-high 25 tackles, 14 of them solo stops, in Elon’s 10-7 loss to Chattanooga. The linebacker recorded the most tackles by a SoCon player since Chattanooga’s Josh Cain racked up 30 against The Citadel in 2001, and ranks him among the top 10 in most tackles in a game in league history. Nkang leads the nation with 102 total tackles, averaging 14.6 tackles per game.

Other top defensive performances include Appalachian State’s Monte Smith (9 tackles, 2 TFL), Chattanooga’s Chris Johnson (6 tackles, 1 sack, 2 TFL), Georgia Southern’s A.J. Bryant (14 tackles) and Wofford’s Katon Bethay (9 tackles, 4 sacks).

A 5-11, 191-lb. tailback from Virginia Beach, VA, Baptiste rushed for a career-high 148 net yards on 24 carries and one touchdown on Saturday. He gained 149 yards and lost just one yard, averaging 6.2 yards per carry.

Elon's Joe Baptiste