BYU Football’s Grimes, Kaufusi, and Wilson all Recieve National Honors

BYU Football, the coaching staff, and players all received national honors after a dominant performance in Annapolis.

BYU Football’s Grimes, Kaufusi, and Wilson all Recieve National Honors

BYU Football, the coaching staff, and players all received national honors after a dominant performance in Annapolis, Maryland against Navy. The Cougars were named the Athlon Sports College Football Team of the Week following the 55-3 victory. Junior Zach Wilson was named the Manning Award Quarterback of the Week while offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes and senior linebacker Isaiah Kaufusi also received honors from Athlon Sports.

BYU offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes was named the Athlon Sports Coordinator of the Week and senior linebacker Isaiah Kaufusi was named the Athlon Sports Defensive Player of the Week. Kaufusi was also named the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week – Kai Nacua (2015) is the only other BYU player to receive this honor.

The six-foot-three junior quarterback received the honors over seven other nominees following a Facebook contest held by the Allstate Sugar Bowl. Wilson received just over 1,000 votes in the contest while Grant Wells of Marshall – who came in second place – received 901 votes. Wilson and Wells were the clear favorites in the competition.

Zach Wilson – who was replaced by Baylor Romney late in the third quarter - led the formidable Cougar offense completing 13 of 18 pass attempts for 232 yards, 2 touchdowns, and an overall quarterback rating of 206.0.

The Navy coaching staff gave Wilson’s throwing ability high praise leading up the Monday night matchup. Navy defensive coordinator Brian Newberry said. “He can make just about any throw on the field and spread the ball around,” while Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo compared Zach Wilson’s ability to throw the ball from a variety of angles and release points to that of Super Bowl LIV MVP Patrick Mahomes.

BYU’s 55-3 victory over the Midshipmen was the Cougars largest margin of victory in the Kalani Sitake era.

Athlon Sports also awarded several awards to BYU football players, the coaching staff, and players following the massive victory. The Cougars were named the Athlon Sports College Football Team of the Week.

BYU offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes was named the Athlon Sports Coordinator of the Week and senior linebacker Isaiah Kaufusi was named the Athlon Sports Defensive Player of the Week. Kaufusi was also named the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week – Kai Nacua (2015) is the only other BYU player to receive this honor.

Kaufusi was a huge proponent in holding the Navy’s triple-option offensive to just three points in Annapolis. The six-foot-two senior linebacker had five solo tackles, two sacks, and one forced fumble helping keep the Midshipmen to just 149 yards of total offense.