Offensive Player of the Week: Noah Fifita, QB, Arizona and Jeff Sims, QB, Arizona State
Defensive Player of the Week: Fred Perry, DB, West Virginia and Jacob Rodriguez, LB, Texas Tech
Special Teams Player of the Week: Mana Carvalho, Returner, Utah and Stone Harrington, K, Texas Tech
Freshman of the Week: Scotty Fox Jr., QB, West Virginia
Offensive Line of the Week: Arizona State
Defensive Line of the Week: Utah
Sims became the first Big 12 quarterback to throw for at least 175 yards and eclipse 200 yards on the ground in a game since Texas’ Vince Young in the 2006 Rose Bowl. He guided a short-handed Sun Devil offense to a 24-19 victory at Iowa State, amassing 405 total yards and three touchdowns. His 88-yard touchdown run in the third quarter was the second-longest rush by an ASU quarterback in program history behind Mark Malone’s 97-yard rush against Utah State in 1979. It was also the longest run by any Sun Devil player since 2020.
Quarterbacking Arizona to a big day on offense in its 52-17 victory at Colorado,
Fifita threw for 213 yards and four touchdowns on just 19 pass attempts. Two of his four touchdown passes were completions of 57 yards and 60 yards as he did not throw an interception for the second straight game. Fifita became the sixth FBS quarterback this season to throw four touchdowns in three different games.
Perry led the Mountaineers with 13 total tackles in addition to his sack in WVU’s 45-35 win at then-No. 22 Houston. Nine of his 13 tackles were solo and contributed to his third double-digit tackle performance of the season. Perry was part of a West Virginia defense that held Houston to just 82 yards rushing and forced four turnovers.
Forcing a pair of key fumbles with five tackles in Texas Tech’s win at K-State,
Rodriguez continues to impact games for the Red Raider defense and climb up the Big 12 record book. He played a role in two of Tech’s five forced turnovers and both of his forced fumbles led to Texas Tech touchdowns. Rodriguez is now the FBS leader with seven forced fumbles, and he is only the fourth Big 12 player in conference history to reach that total in a season.
Carvalho tallied three punt returns for 94 yards, which included running one back 75 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter. It marked Utah's first punt return for a touchdown since the 2021 season and the first by a freshman since 2015. Carvalho is also the first Big 12 player to return a punt for a score this season.
Becoming the first Texas Tech player with multiple field goals from 55 yards or farther in a season,
Harrington tallied a total of 13 points in the Red Raiders’ 43-20 win at K-State. He made all three of his field goal attempts, connecting on two kicks from 29 yards out before a 55-yard make. Harrington previously made a 58-yarder at Utah and is one of four kickers nationally to connect on multiple successful field goal attempts from 55 yards or longer this season.
Fox Jr. helped guide West Virginia to its first road win versus a top-25 opponent since 2018. In the 45-35 victory at then-No. 22 Houston, Fox threw for 157 yards, rushed for 65, and accounted for three total touchdowns. The Mentor, Ohio native became the first freshman quarterback in school history to find the endzone three times in a game. Fox Jr. also became WVU’s first true freshman quarterback to rush for two scores in a game since Fred Wyant in 1952.
Arizona State’s offensive line was pivotal in its 24-19 win at Iowa State, blocking for a historic performance by quarterback Jeff Sims. The Sun Devils ended their day with 467 total yards of offense that included 290 rushing yards and did not allow a sack. The unit’s excellent play also came without the services of starting QB Sam Leavitt and wideout Jordyn Tyson.
Helping limit then-No. 17 Cincinnati to just 14 points, the
Utah defensive line was key in the Utes’ 45-14 win. The unit battered a number of passes and pressured the Bearcats, limiting them to just 11 completions on 33 pass attempts in addition to recovering a fumble. Utah did not allow a Cincinnati drive to reach the endzone, and its 33.3% completion rate allowed was the team’s best mark in eight seasons when facing a quarterback with at least 30 pass attempts.