Safron, Samoodi, Johnson Earn ROOT SPORTS Player of the Week Honors
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OGDEN, Utah (Nov. 4, 2013) - The Big Sky Conference has selected the ROOT SPORTS football Players of the Week for games played on Saturday, Nov. 2. Sacramento State quarterback Garrett Safron is the Offensive Player of the Week. Cal Poly cornerback Bijon Samoodi is the Defensive Player of the Week. Montana State returner Shawn Johnson is the Special Teams Player of the Week.
Safron, a 6-foot-2, 190-pound junior from Santa Monica, Calif., amassed a school-record 505 yards of total offense in Sacramento State’s 51-48 overtime loss to Montana. Safron completed 41-of-58 passes for 412 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions. His 41 completions and 412 passing yards were also single-game school records. Safron also rushed 20 times for a team-high 93 yards with two touchdowns. He scored on runs of 1 and 10 yards, and threw TD passes of 25, 5, 4 and 5 yards. His final TD pass to Cole Hikutinti came with 23 seconds remaining in regulation and tied the game at 45-45. This is Safron’s second ROOT SPORTS Player of the Week honor this season, and the fourth of his career.
Samoodi, a 5-foot-9, 190-pound senior from Anaheim, Calif., intercepted a pass, recovered a fumble, and tallied six tackles in Cal Poly’s 34-16 victory over UC Davis. Late in the first quarter, Samoodi tipped a ball in the air and dove to make an interception. The turnover led to a Cal Poly touchdown. With five minutes to play and Cal Poly holding an 11-point lead, Samoodi recovered a fumble. Seven plays later, Cal Poly scored again to seal the victory. Samoodi had four solo tackles. Cal Poly held UC Davis to one touchdown and 188 passing yards. This is Samoodi’s first career ROOT SPORTS Player of the Week honor.
Johnson, a 5-9, 175-pound junior from Bakersfield, Calif., had a pivotal 99-yard kick return for a touchdown in Montana State’s 35-28 road win over Northern Colorado. With the score tied 14-14, Johnson put the Bobcats back on top with his 99-yard return. Johnson had 175 total yards on four kick returns and 15 yards on one punt return. He finished the game with 254 yards of total offense, also scoring on a 13-yard run. Johnson has returned two kicks for touchdowns this season. He ranks fourth in the nation with an average of 33.4 yards per kick return. This is Johnson’s second career ROOT SPORTS Player of the Week honor.
ROOT SPORTS, the official television partner of the Big Sky Conference, will televise Saturday’s showdown between fourth-ranked Montana State and third-ranked Eastern Washington. Coverage begins at Noon, Pacific. The game will be televised live on ROOT SPORTS, DIRECTV’s Audience Network Channel 101 and Dish Network’s Blockbuster Channel 102.
Others Nominated
OFFENSE
Chris Brown, QB, Cal Poly
Cooper Kupp, WR, Eastern Washington
Luke Austin, WR, Idaho State
Jordan Canada, RB, Montana
Cody Kirk, RB, Montana State
Kenny Golladay, WR, North Dakota
Zach Bauman, RB, Northern Arizona
Seth Lobato, QB, Northern Colorado
DJ Adams, RB, Portland State
Gabe Manzanarez, RB, UC Davis
Shaydon Keyano, WR, Weber State
DEFENSE
Ronnie Hamlin, LB, Eastern Washington
Cody Sorensen, S, Idaho State
Matt Hermanson, S, Montana
De’onte Flowers, CB, Montana State
Will Lewis, S, North Dakota
Ryan Reardon, LB, Northern Arizona
Max Flores, S, Northern Colorado
David Edgerson, S, Portland State
Charles Boyett, S, UC Davis
SPECIAL TEAMS
Kevin Miller, K, Eastern Washington
Brendon Garcia, K, Idaho State
Ellis Henderson, Ret., Montana
Shawn Johnson, Ret, Montana State
Andy Wilder, P/K, Northern Arizona
Kyle Loomis, P, Portland State
Brad Cornish, K, Sacramento State
Brady Stuart, K, UC Davis