Stinson and Vinnedge Named MWC Players of the Week

[MrTitleist]

From the Mountain West Conference Website


COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Harvey Unga (BYU), Julius Stinson (Wyoming) and Billy Vinnedge (Wyoming) are Mountain West Conference Players of the Week for games through Sept. 1. Unga earns the Offensive Player of the Week honor, while Stinson garners the Defensive Player award and Vinnedge receives Special Teams recognition. Stinson garners his second career player of the week honor, while Unga and Vinnedge capture their first weekly accolade.

OFFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

HARVEY UNGA, BYU

Freshman, Running Back, Provo, Utah/Timpview

Harvey Unga helped lead BYU to a 20-7 season-opening victory over Arizona on Saturday, racking up 194 all-purpose yards. The freshman running back had a game high 67 yards rushing on 15 carries and a game best 127 yards receiving on nine receptions. Unga also was credited with two touchdowns, including a 27-yard pass and run with 6:02 left in the first quarter to give the Cougars a 7-0 lead, and an 11-yard run in the fourth quarter to extend BYU's lead to 20-0. Prior to Arizona's final drive of the game, Unga had totaled more offensive yards than the entire Arizona offense combined. For the game, Unga averaged 4.5 yards per carry and averaged over 14 yards per reception.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

JULIUS STINSON, WYOMING

Senior, Cornerback, Victorville, Calif./Silverado

Julius Stinson intercepted two passes, which he returned for 30 yards, and was second on the team with four tackles, including one for a loss of 10 yards as Wyoming's defense held Virginia to a total of 110 yards of total offense. Stinson's first interception of the game stopped the Cavaliers one serious touchdown opportunity of the day. With the ball on Wyoming's 28-yard line early in the third quarter and the Cowboys leading 13-3, Stinson intercepted a Cavalier pass on the Wyoming 10 to end the Virginia threat.

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK

BILLY VINNEDGE, WYOMING

Senior, Place Kicker/Punter, Arroyo Grande, Calif./Allen dna rifle CC

Billy Vinnedge doubled as Wyoming's place kicker and punter against Virginia in the season opener on Saturday afternoon in Laramie. Vinnedge hit field goals of 48, 40 and 39 yards, while averaging 49.7 yards on three punts to fuel the Cowboys 23-3 home win over the Cavaliers. Attempting his first field goal in a college game after serving as Wyoming's punter only last season, Vinnedge put Wyoming on the scoreboard first with a 48-yard field goal at the 4:41 mark of the first quarter. He followed that performance with field goals from 40 and 39 yards in the second half. He also converted both his PAT attempts, giving him 11 of Wyoming's 23 points on the day. Vinnedge netted a 49.7-yard punting average on the day with a long of 59 yards. He also had one punt that he placed inside the Cavaliers 20-yard line.