East Division
Offensive Player of the Week
Teon Dollard, Akron, RB
Junior, Lake City, Fla.
Dollard rushed for a game-high 185 yards on 26 carries to propel the Zips to a 31-3 victory over Bowling Green on Saturday, Dec. 5. Dollard found the endzone twice, including a 50-yard TD scamper in the fourth quarter, as well as a nine-yard score in the third quarter. He has now rushed for a 150 or more yards three times this season and has a pair of touchdown runs of 50 or more yards. Dollard rushed for 58 yards in the opening half before going for 127 in the second half. He now owns six touchdowns and 641 yards on the year.
Defensive Player of the Week
Bubba Arslanian, Akron, LB
R-Junio, Aurora, Ohio
Arslanian had a dominant performance to help lift the Zips to a 31-3 victory over Bowling Green on Saturday, Dec. 5, with a 16-tackle performance. His 16 total tackles represented a season-high mark, while he equaled a career-high mark with 11 solo stops, to go along with five assists. He also played a key role on special teams, forcing a fumble in the third quarter that was recovered by Corey Thomas. On a second-quarter punt, he knocked the ball back off the goal line to see the ball downed at the two-yard line. He then tackled the Bowling Green RB for a one-yard loss that nearly resulted in a safety. Three plays later, Akron blocked the punt and recovered the ball for a touchdown. Arslanian also recorded a pair of tackles for a loss, including a key fourth-quarter sack on a 4th-and-7 play from the Akron 32-yard line that resulted in an 11-yard loss.
Special Teams Player of the Week
Gavin Blunt, Akron, WR
R-Sophomore, Aurora, Ohio
Blunt turned in a huge day in the Zips' 31-3 victory over Bowling Green on Saturday, Dec. 5. Blunt recovered a Bowling Green fumble at the 11-yard line off a punt by Kyle Romenick on what would have been the Falcons opening drive of the game. Later in the game, Burton recovered a blocked punt by Michiah Burton in the second quarter and fell on the ball in the endzone for a touchdown that gave Akron a 17-3 lead.
West Division
Offensive Co-Players of the Week
Drew Plitt, Ball State, Quarterback
R-Senior, Loveland, Ohio (Loveland)
Plitt threw for a season-high 366 yards and accounted for five total touchdowns in a 45-20 victory at Central Michigan kept Ball State in control of its own destiny for a MAC West Division championship. Plitt threw for a season-best four touchdowns -- two to Jalen McGaughy and one each to Yo'Heinz Tyler and Dylan Koch -- while also rushing for a score for the second straight week. With 29 yards on the ground, Plitt accounted for 395 total yards in the win. He moved into a tie for fifth with his head coach Mike Neu on BSU's career touchdown passes list with 43.
Preston Hutchinson, Eastern Michigan, QB
Junior, Mason, Ohio (Mason)
Hutchinson threw for over 300 yards for the second time this season when he completed 19-of-30 pass attempts against Western Michigan, Dec. 5, to lift the Eagles over the MAC West-leading Broncos, 53-42. The effort saw Hutchinson rack up 315 yards through the air. He made first-half history against the Broncos as he finished the 30-minute stretch with 267 passing yards on 15-of-22 passing. That performance is the best by an Eagle in the first half of a game since Andy Schmitt went 38-of-52 for 354 yards and five touchdowns against Central Michigan, Nov. 28, 2008. Hutchinson shined in his first-ever start for the Eagles on Oct. 19, 2019. In that game, which happened to be against Western Michigan, Hutchinson tossed for 357 yards and three TD's on 31-of-36 pass attempts. He added one rushing score in that game as well. The anniversary magic was real in Hutchinson's second meeting with the Broncos on Saturday, as he improved to 2-0 against EMU's in-state foe. In his second contest against WMU, his numbers were equally as good. He once again tossed for three touchdowns. In matching fashion to his 2019 performance, he also added a score with his legs.
Defensive Player of the Week
Jose Ramirez, Eastern Michigan, Defensive End
Junior, Lake Alfred, Fla. (Auburndale Arizona-Riverside City)
Ramirez had a breakout game in a win over MAC West Division leader Western Michigan, 53-42. The Lake Alfred, Fla. native set new personal bests in tackles (7), tackles-for-loss (2.0), sacks (2.0), and forced fumbles (1.0). Each number in the previous categories, with the exception of his total tackles, led or tied for the team lead against Western. Ramirez was an anchor for the EMU defense that held Western Michigan's D'Wayne Eskridge, the nation's leader in all-purpose yards coming into the game (255 yards per game average) to a season-low 99 yards on Saturday. The game was Eskridge's first without at least 230 all purpose yards.
Special Teams Player of the Week
Chad Ryland, Eastern Michigan, Kicker
Junior, Lebanon, Pa. (Cedar Crest)
Junior kicker Chad Ryland was perfect for Eastern Michigan vs. Western Michigan on Dec. 5. Ryland had a career-high four field goal makes on four attempts against WMU, Dec. 5. Ryland added a perfect 5-for-5 mark on extra-point attempts and finished the game with a career-best 17 points for EMU.
