FARMINGTON, Utah (Sept. 30, 2024) – After a pair of standout performances that helped guide the Northern Arizona football team to a 36-14 win over No. 10/10 Sacramento State on Saturday in Flagstaff, kicker
Marcus Lye and safety
Alex McLaughlin have earned the Big Sky Conference's Special Teams and Defensive Player of the Weeks, the league office announced this morning.
Lye earns the Special Teams Player of the Week nod after a career day between the posts that included a career-long 52-yard field goal. McLaughlin recorded a pair of sacks, forced a fumble that was recovered for a touchdown, and led the team with nine tackles to earn the Defensive Player of the Week honor.
McLaughlin also earned Stats Perform FCS National Defensive Player of the Week Honorable Mention, as the Lumberjacks officially checked in at No. 25 in the FCS Stats Perform Top-25 for the first time since Sept. 10, 2018.
It's the second nod of McLaughlin's career, also earning weekly defensive honors in 2023. It's the first honor of Lye's career, and the pair join Lumberjack quarterback
Ty Pennington as the other 'Jack to earn the honor this year, receiving Offensive Player of the Week earlier this season after a win at Utah Tech.
Lye made two field goals in a game for the first time in his career. The junior first connected on a career-long 52-yard field goal to help tie the game 3-3 at the end of the first quarter. Later, Lye hit a 30-yard attempt to help NAU fire off 17-unanswered points in the third quarter.
The Parkes, Australia, native also went 4-for-4 on extra point attempts for 10 kicking points on the day. Lye kicked off seven times, all touchbacks, for 455 yards to average 65.0 yards per attempt.
So far this season, Lye has made four of his five field goal attempts. He's kicked off 30 times with 23 touchbacks for 1,891 yards. He is also a perfect 18-for-18 on extra point attempts.
McLaughlin and the Lumberjacks kept the Hornets, who averaged 30.5 points per game and 173 rushing yards per game coming into Saturday, without a touchdown until the fourth quarter. The Lumberjacks only allowed 231 yards of total offense, including just 51 on the ground.
The sophomore led the way with nine tackles, four of which were solo. He racked up two sacks and two tackles for a loss of 31 yards. In the third quarter, McLaughlin forced a fumble that was recovered by
Ammon Allen and returned for a touchdown.
The Chandler, Ariz., native leads the Lumberjacks with 34 total tackles – good for sixth in the Big Sky. He has recorded 3.5 sacks to go with a pass breakup so far this season.
Northern Arizona (3-2, 1-0 Big Sky) heads out on the road to play at No. 10/12 Idaho (3-2, 0-1) next Saturday, Oct. 5 with kickoff set for 2 p.m. Mountain Standard time from the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho.
