COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – UNLV junior wide receiver Ricky White III has been named the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week, while Utah State sophomore safety Ike Larsen has been tabbed MW Defensive Player of the Week. Fresno State junior running back Malik Sherrod earned MW Special Teams Player of the Week honors and UNLV quarterback Jayden Maiava was selected as the MW Freshman of the Week.

The weekly honor is the fifth of Larsen’s career, the third of Maiava’s career and the first for White and Sherrod.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
RICKY WHITE III, UNLV
Junior, Wide Receiver, Marietta, Ga. / Marietta HS / Michigan State

  • Had eight catches for 165 yards and two touchdowns in just two and a half quarters of UNLV’s 56-14 win at New Mexico.
  • Averaged 20.6 yards per catch, with five of his catches going for first downs.
  • On UNLV’s first offensive play of the game, caught a 30-yard touchdown pass to open the scoring.
  • Hauled in a 42-yard catch to the New Mexico 7-yard line in the second quarter, with UNLV scoring two plays later.
  • His final play of the day was a 58-yard touchdown grab in the third quarter.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
IKE LARSEN, UTAH STATE
Sophomore, Safety, Smithfield, Utah / Sky View HS

  • Had eight tackles (six solo), including a tackle for loss, in Utah State’s 32-24 double-overtime win at San Diego State.
  • Also had the game-sealing interception in double overtime, picking off a fourth-down pass at the 15-yard and line and returning it 62 yards.
  • His 2-yard tackle for loss came on a third-down play in the first quarter, forcing an SDSU punt.

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
MALIK SHERROD, FRESNO STATE
Junior, Running Back, Oxnard, Calif. / Pacifica HS

  • Had a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown on the final play of the first half of Fresno State’s 37-30 win over Boise State.
  • The kickoff return TD was the 11th in program history and first since 2008.
  • It was the longest kickoff return for a touchdown by Fresno State since 2007.
  • Also rushed for 132 yards and a touchdown and had four catches for 28 yards, finishing the day with 255 all-purpose yards.

FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
JAYDEN MAIAVA, UNLV
Redshirt Freshman, Quarterback, Las Vegas, Nev. / Liberty HS

  • Went 13-for-18 for 247 yards and a career-high three touchdowns in UNLV’s 56-14 win at New Mexico, despite not playing in the fourth quarter.
  • Threw touchdowns of 30, 43 and 58 yards.
  • Completed 72 percent of his passes and fashioned a 242.5 passing efficiency rating.
  • Ranks second among FBS freshmen in completion percentage (64.9) and third in passing efficiency rating (150.7).
  • Became just the second player in MW history to be named Freshman of the Week at least three times.

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