Welton, Williams, Allen and Sullivan Receive Weekly Honors

SPARTANBURG, S.C. ? The Southern Conference named its football players of the week for the games played on Saturday, Sept. 6. Appalachian State running back Robert Welton was named Offensive Player of the Week, Furman linebacker Brandon Williams was selected Defensive Player of the Week, Wofford quarterback Mitch Allen was tabbed Freshman of the Week and Elon return specialist Karlos Sullivan was voted as the Special Teams Player of the Week. The players of the week were selected by the league’s sports information directors.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Robert Welton, Appalachian State, RB, So.

Welton set career highs with 161 rushing yards on 10 carries (16.1 ypc) and three touchdowns in Appalachian State’s 56-7 win over Jacksonville. Welton’s three touchdowns came on runs of 44, 2 and 72 yards. His three touchdown runs mark the eighth time in the past 13 games that a Mountaineer has rushed for three or more touchdowns.

Other Nominees: Andre Roberts (The Citadel), Antonio Henton (Georgia Southern), Tony Pastore (Chattanooga), Scott Riddle (Elon), Jordan Sorrells (Furman), Richie Fordham (Samford), Marquel Pittman (Western Carolina) and Andy Strickland (Wofford).

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Brandon Williams, Furman, LB, Sr.

Williams led Furman in tackles against Virginia Tech with 11 and headlined a Paladin defense that registered four quarterback sacks in a 24-7 loss. Williams had two tackles for loss and one sack in addition to seven solo tackles. Furman limited the Hokies to three points in the first half, and of Virginia Tech’s three touchdown drives, only one was longer than 31 yards.

Other Nominees: Chris Covington (Georgia Southern), Seth Goldwire (Wofford), Travis Dowda (Appalachian State), Brandon Wiggins (Elon), Ty Levie (Samford), Tony Swafford (Chattanooga) and Abram Scott (Western Carolina).

FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK: Mitch Allen, Wofford, QB, Fr.

The redshirt freshman led the team with 135 yards on eight carries with a pair of touchdowns. Allen averaged 16.9 yards per carry as the Terriers’ offense registered 434 rushing yards in a 41-23 win over Charleston Southern. His fourth quarter touchdown runs came from 29 and 42 yards out. Allen was also 1-for-1 passing for eight yards.

Other Nominees: Rod Harland (The Citadel), J.B. Shippy (Georgia Southern), Richie Fordham (Samford), Jason Jones (Appalachian State) and Quan Warley (Western Carolina).

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Karlos Sullivan, Elon, Jr., RS

Sullivan amassed a career-high 130 return yards ? 106 on five punt returns and 24 on a kickoff return ? to go with his interception despite playing in a torrential downpour courtesy of Tropical Storm Hanna. Sullivan averaged 21.2 yards per punt return, powered by a career-long 81 yard return for a touchdown in the second quarter of Elon’s 30-20 win at Stony Brook.