Coverboy of the Week: Mason Fine, North Texas

When you throw for seven touchdowns in a conference game and pass both Russell Wilson and Drew Brees on the career passing yardage list, you earn coverboy of the week. Those are the rules! We can’t say enough about how good Mason Fine is, and what he’s meant to the program. 

Defensive Player of the Week: Terrel Bernard, Baylor (La Porte)

Baylor had a strong performance across the board, but Bernard deserves attention for his big game against West Virginia.

He posted 10 tackles, two quarterback hurries, 1.5 tackles for loss and a critical sack in a tight 17-14 win over the Mountaineers. West Virginia managed just 205 yards against the Bears’ sturdy defense – and 83 came on one play. 

The Rookie: Isaiah Spiller, Texas A&M (Klein Collins)

Spiller exploded for 217 yards against UTSA, which tied Trayveon Williams for the most yards by any freshman running back. The Aggies need a strong run game in the worst way, and Spiller showed that he can create opportunities for himself. 

Remember the Name: Mulbah Car, Houston (Austin Northeast)

Usually we go with a young player with this slot, a new guy who will play a bigger role heading forward. This one is a little different. The senior Car exploded for the second 100-yard performance of his career – in as many games. 

He’s redshirting this season, so we won’t see Car until next year. But after his performances this season, keep an eye on Car as a featured running back next season. 

Michael Dickson Award: Shane Buechele, SMU (Arlington Lamar)

SMU’s special teams were horrible against Memphis, with one notable exception. Buechele is a pretty dang good punter. He kicked a pair of pooch punts against Memphis, and both fell at the 2-yard line. 

Memphis only started with the 30 four times all day on 14 drives, but Buechele was the best one at pinning them there. With the rest of the special teams unit struggling, who knows, maybe Buechele will play a bigger role. 

Small College Star: Daniel McCants, Tarleton State (Killeen)

I’m scared of Tarleton State. The Texans play in a state with Mary Hardin-Baylor, and they still might be the most dominant team in Texas, as they proved in a crushing 66-7 win over typical strong rival Midwestern State. 

No player contributed more to the domination than running back Daniel McCants, who exploded for 202 yards on just 18 carries and added two scores. McCants didn’t have a single rush go for negative yardage. In fact, the Texans only had five negative yards all day long. That’s dominance. 

Dave’s Pick: Rashee Rice, SMU (Richland)

SMU couldn’t quite pull off the upset, but whoa boy, Rashee Rice tried his best. With Reggie Roberson out of the lineup, Rice exploded for 122 yards on seven catches against a good Tigers secondary. His performance nearly doubled up his short career production. 

Roberson should hopefully be back this season, but Rice proved in the biggest game of the year that he can be a star receiver in the AAC. With James Proche graduating, Rice can become a featured receiver next season. We’re curious to see how Rhett Lashlee uses him heading forward.