UCLA's Brett Hundley and Ishmael Adams earn PAC-12 Player of the Week honors

September 29, 2014

Following the UCLA Bruins breakthrough 62-27 blowout win on the road at Arizona State last Thursday, quarterback Brett Hundley and defensive back Ishmael Adams have been named offensive and special teams Pac-12 Players of the Week in football.  Stanford linebacker Peter Kalambayi also was named defensive Player of the Week.

Hundley, a junior, threw for four touchdowns and ran for a fifth to lead UCLA to a 62-27 win over No. 15 Arizona State. The four scoring passes tied Hundley’s personal best and two of his scoring tosses went for 80 yards to Jordan Payton and Eldridge Massington.  The touchdowns made him the first UCLA player to ever complete two passes of at least 80 yards in one game.

For a Bruins offense that has been MIA much of the year, Hundley's outstanding performance justified a lot of the team's preseason hype generated earlier this offseason.

Hundley, who arguably might have put himself back into the Heisman discussion, connected on 18-of-23 attempts for 355 yards. Hundley’s 427 yards of total offense were the fifth-most in school history and extended his own school record to 13 games with 300 yards of total offense. He also became the first UCLA player in school history to have three career games with 400 yards total offense, moving past Cade McNown who had two.

Adams, a junior, earned honors as the special teams Player of the Week for the second time this season after returning a kick 100 yards for a touchdown to push UCLA to victory over Arizona State. It was UCLA’s first kickoff return for a score since 2007 (Matthew Slater). Adams also had additional kick returns of 25 yards, 44 yards, and 20 yards.  His total of 201 kick return yards is just short of the single-game school record total of 206 (Terrance Austin, 2008).  Adams also returned a game-changing interception 95 yards for a touchdown to put UCLA ahead 27-17 with two seconds remaining in the half.

Kalambayi, a sophomore, became the first Stanford player to record three sacks in a game since 2011 to help the Cardinal defeat Washington 20-13. Kalambayi accounted for 35 negative yards on tackles for loss. He finished the game with six total tackles (five solo).  Kalambayi leads a Stanford defense that ranks first in the nation in total defense, surrendering only 198.0 ypg, and is first in the nation in scoring, only giving up 6.5 ppg. The Cardinal have allowed opponents into the red zone only three times this season.

Also nominated for Offensive Player of the Week: Jared Goff, QB, CAL; Sefo Liafau, QB, COLO; Cody Kessler, QB, USC; Devontae Booker, RB, UTAH; and Vincent Mayle, WR, WSU.

Also nominated for Defensive Player of the Week: Eric Kendricks, LB, UCLA; Su’a Cravens, S, USC; Jared Norris, LB, UTAH; and Jeremiah Allison, LB, WSU.

Also nominated for Special Teams Player of the Week: James Langford, PK, CAL; Ryan Murphy, KOR, OSU; Kaelin Clay, PR/KR, UTAH; and Korey Durkee, P, WASH.

2014 Pac-12 Football Players of the Week

Sept. 1
Offense: Cody Kessler, USC
Defense: Eric Kendricks, UCLA
Special Teams: Kaelin Clay, UTAH

Sept. 8
Offense: Marcus Mariota, ORE
Defense:  Leonard Williams, USC
Special Teams: Andre Heidari, USC

Sept. 15
Offense: Jerry Neuheisel, UCLA
Defense: Shaq Thompson, WASH
Special Teams: Ishmael Adams, UCLA

Sept. 22
Offense: Cayleb Jones, ARIZ
Defense:  Gionni Paul, UTAH
Special Teams: Andy Phillips, UTAH

Sept. 29
Offense: Brett Hundley, UCLA
Defense: Peter Kalambayi, STAN
Special Teams: Ishmael Adams, UCLA


PAC-12 News and Notes

  • Pac-12 Defenses Shine in Non-Conference Action:  In 33 non-conference games, Pac-12 teams have given up 14 or fewer points 10 times . . . The Pac-12 has a chance to improve its 25-1 record in non-conference play on Saturdays when STANFORD visits Notre Dame this week. The Cardinal have won four of the last five meetings and this one should be a defensive struggle as Stanford is first in the FBS in scoring defense (6.5 ppg), while Notre Dame is fourth (11.5 ppt) . . . Pac-12 opponents have a record of 52-39 (57.1 percent) in games against non-Pac-12 teams.  

  • The Undefeated:  17 FBS teams remain undefeated this season, with three of those coming from the Pac-12. That number will be reduced by at least four after this week’s games. Undefeated matchups this week feature ARIZONA at OREGON, Oklahoma at TCU, Alabama at Ole Miss, and Texas A&M at Mississippi State.

  • Pac-12 QB Ratings Among Nation’s Best:  Six Pac-12 quarterbacks are among the nation’s top 16 in passing efficiency. OREGON’s Marcus Mariota leads the FBS at 218.0, followed by CALIFORNIA’s Jared Goff (No. 5, 190.2), UCLA’s Brett Hundley (No. 9, 176.5), ARIZONA STATE’s Taylor Kelly (No. 14, 168.1), STANFORD’s Kevin Hogan (No. 15, 167.6), and USC’s Cody Kessler (No. 16, 167.4).  Mariota’s career passing efficiency is at 171.74, trailing only Sam Bradford (175.62, Oklahoma 2007-09) for NCAA career record.

By Staff of TheDailySportsHerald.com and news services

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