Advertisement
football Edit

Clayborn earns player of the week honors

IOWA CITY, Iowa - University of Iowa senior defensive end Adrian Clayborn has been named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week following Iowa's 24-3 win over Penn State last Saturday. The announcement came today from the Big Ten office.
Clayborn (6-4, 285) is a native of St. Louis, MO (Webster Groves HS). He collected 10 tackles in the win over Penn State, including a quarterback sack for minus 15 yards and three tackles for loss. Iowa held Penn State to 54 net rushing yards and just three points while collecting its third straight win over the Nittany Lions.
Advertisement
Iowa has not allowed a touchdown in its last two games and has not allowed a rushing touchdown this season. The Hawkeyes currently rank second nationally in scoring defense (10.2) and rushing defense (63.2), and fourth in total defense (242.2).
The Big Ten honor is the third for Clayborn and the third for Iowa this season. Clayborn earned the recognition for special teams in Iowa's 2009 win at Penn State and he was defensive Player of the Week in Iowa's 2009 win at Michigan State.
Earlier this season, RB Paki O'Meara earned the special teams honor vs. Eastern Illinois and DT Mike Daniels was defensive Player of the Week vs. Ball State.
The nationally-ranked Hawkeyes moved to 15th in both the Associated Press and the coaches' poll after opening Big Ten Conference play with the win over Penn State. Iowa is idle this weekend and returns to action Oct. 16 at No. 17/18 Michigan (2:35 p.m. CT, ABC).
Iowa had eight players named Big Ten Players of the Week last year (four on defense, one offense and three special team winners).
Here is the full list of honorees from the Big Ten Conference this week.
OFFENSE:
Denard Robinson, Michigan
SO, QB, Deerfield Beach, Fla./Deerfield Beach
Robinson accounted for 494 yards of total offense and five touchdowns, including the game-winning score with 17 seconds left at Indiana. The sophomore quarterback completed 10 of 16 passes (62.5 pct.) for a career-best 277 yards and three touchdowns and added 19 carries for 217 yards (11.4 avg.) and two more scores against the Hoosiers. He is the first player in Football Bowl Subdivision history to pass and rush for 200 yards in a game twice during the regular season, also accomplishing the feat at Notre Dame on Sept. 11. The Florida native averaged 14.1 yards on each of his 35 touches in Bloomington, including a 72-yard touchdown run on the Wolverines' first offensive possession. After Indiana tied the score at 35-35 with only 1:15 left in the game, Robinson led Michigan on a five-play, 73-yard drive, capped by his four-yard scoring run for the victory. His 494 total offensive yards ranks second in school history behind only his 502-yard performance at Notre Dame. Robinson has earned offensive accolades in three of the first five weeks of the season, the first weekly awards of his career.
LAST MICH OFFENSIVE POW: QB Denard Robinson on Sept. 13, 2010.
DEFENSE:
Adrian Clayborn, Iowa
SR, DE, St. Louis, Mo./Webster Groves
Clayborn registered a game-high 10 tackles, including three tackles for loss and a sack, to help hold Penn State to a field goal in a 24-3 victory on Saturday. The senior defensive end's 10 tackles were two shy of a career high. His three tackles for loss pushed the Nittany Lion offense back 19 yards, including a 15-yard sack. Clayborn was part of a Hawkeye defense that limited PSU to only 54 rushing yards and allowed only three of 13 third-down conversions. Trailing 17-3 at halftime, Penn State took its opening drive of the third quarter to the one-yard line, only to be stopped short on third and fourth down to force a turnover. Clayborn earns weekly laurels for the third time in his career, including nabbing defensive honors on Oct. 25, 2009, and special teams accolades on Sept. 27, 2009.
LAST IOWA DEFENSIVE POW: DT Mike Daniels on Sept. 27, 2010.
SPECIAL TEAMS:
Keshawn Martin, Michigan State
JR, WR, Inkster, Mich./John Glenn
Martin accounted for 190 all-purpose yards, including a 74-yard punt return for a touchdown, to help lead Michigan State past nationally ranked Wisconsin. The junior wide receiver returned three kickoffs for 71 yards (23.7 avg.) and two punts for 83 yards (41.5 avg.) while hauling in two passes for 34 yards and adding a two-yard run. With the Spartans trailing 10-6 in the second quarter, Martin fielded a punt and broke loose for a 74-yard touchdown to give MSU a lead it would not relinquish. The Michigan native averaged 27.1 yards on his seven touches against the Badgers. He has now scored touchdowns five different way during his career - receiving, rushing, passing, punt return and kickoff return. Martin collects his second player of the week award after being honored on special teams on Nov. 1, 2009.
LAST MSU SPECIAL TEAMS POW: P Aaron Bates on Sept. 20, 2010.
FRESHMAN:
James White, Wisconsin
FR, RB, Fort Lauderdale, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas
White collects his second straight Big Ten Freshman of the Week award after compiling 235 all-purpose yards at Michigan State. The freshman running back averaged 9.8 yards on the ground, amassing 98 yards on just 10 carries with two touchdowns. He added a career-high seven kickoff returns for 131 yards and caught a six-yard pass. White gave the Badgers an early 7-3 lead with a 16-yard scoring run in the second quarter. He added a 34-yard touchdown to cap Wisconsin's first drive of the second half and pull the Badgers within 20-17.
LAST WIS FRESHMAN OF WEEK: RB James White on Sept. 27, 2010.
Advertisement