SPARTANBURG, S.C. ? The Southern Conference today named its Football Players of the Week for games played on October 7. Elon’s Wes Pope was tabbed the Offensive Player of the Week while Appalachian State’s Jeremy Wiggins earned the Defensive Player of the Week honor. Appalachian State’s Armanti Edwards earned the Freshman of the Week award.

 

Pope, a junior from Jamestown, N.C., threw for a career-high 296 yards and three touchdowns en route to a 37-19 win over Western Carolina on Saturday. The win was the first SoCon victory for the Phoenix since November 13, 2004.   The quarterback tied his career-best with three scores while completing 24-of-33 passes without an interception, including a career-long 62-yard pass to Terrell Hidgins. Pope leads the league in passing yards per game, total offense and is among the leaders in passing efficiency.

 

Other top performers include Appalachian State’s William Mayfield and Wofford’s Andy Strickland.

 

Wiggins, a senior from Macon, Ga., anchored the Mountaineer defense in a 56-21 win over Chattanooga.

ASU's Jeremy Wiggins

The defensive back intercepted a Chattanooga pass at the Appalachian State 23 yards line that eliminated a scoring opportunity late in the first half. He also recovered a fumble and returned it 15 yards to set up ASU’s sixth touchdown of the night. Wiggins leads the league with five interceptions and is ties for the top spot with two recovered fumbles.

 

Other top performers include Chattanooga’s Wilford Blowe, Elon’s Chad Nkang, Georgia Southern’s John Mohring and Wofford’s James Gonsoulin.

 

Edwards, a freshman from Greenwood, S.C., picks up his third-straight Freshman of the Week award after leading Appalachian State to a win over Chattanooga. The quarterback completed 12-of-14 passes for 311 yards and three touchdowns on Saturday, connecting on 11 of his first 12 passes. His .857 completion percentage was the highest by a Mountaineer since Richie Williams completed an NCAA record 40-of-45 passes in a 30-29 win over Furman in 2004. In just four career starts, the true freshman has 906 yards and seven touchdowns.

Other top freshman performers include The Citadel’s Andrew Roberts, Chattanooga’s Erroll Wynn, Elon’s Terrell Hudgins, Georgia Southern’s Terrione Benefield and Wofford’s Buck Brown.