Week 8 (games of Oct. 19-20)
Previous weeks: 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1
Previous seasons: 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999

The Team of the Week is selected by D3football.com staff and contributors from players nominated by SIDs, coaches and conference offices. Nominations are due Mondays at 9 p.m. ET.

Offense
QB Tim Connell, Sr., Central
Connell directed the game-tying scoring drive in final two minutes -- including a 15-yard TD pass with one minute remaining -- then led Central to a 37-34 triple-overtime victory. He was 6-of-8 passing for 66 yards on the final drive of the fourth quarter. Connell finished with 277 passing yards, three scores through the air, and one touchdown on the ground.

OL Tim Hackmann, Jeremy McKinney, Tom Healand, David Preston, Chris Reeves, Salisbury
The Salisbury offensive line helped the Gulls run for a school and conference record 596 yards and 10 touchdowns, as SU defeated Becker 79-20. The 671 total yards of offense is also a new record. The line did not give up a sack, and averaged 10.8 per carry on the ground.

RB Jarvis Thrasher, Sr., Mary Hardin-Baylor
Trasher set UMHB and ASC records for single-game rushing yardage and did not carry the ball after the 7:03 mark of the third quarter. He finished with 324 yards on only 12 carries (27.0 ypc) and also set a school record with four rushing touchdowns. Thrasher paired with Quincy Daniels, set an NCAA All-Divisions record for combined rushing yardage between two teammates at 523 yards.

RB Zach Howard, Sr., Howard Payne
Howard scored the winning touchdown in overtime to give Howard Payne the 48-47 victory over Hardin-Simmons. His 117 yards rushing is the first time this season a Howard Payne has rushed for over 100. Howard also added four rushing TDs to his performance.

WR Stephen Asay, Sr., Albright
Asay caught touchdown passes of 12, 29, and 64 yards in Albright's 35-25 win at Wilkes. He finished the day with 179 yards on 11 receptions.

WR Jared Manzer, So., Alfred
Manzer had touchdown receptions of 7, 54, and 57 yards. He also returned a punt 90 yards for a score.

WR Royce Winford, Jr., Augsburg
Winford set an Augsburg and MIAC single-game record for receptions, catching 20 passes for 235 yards and three touchdowns, as Augsburg scored a 38-16 victory at Carleton. He collected 15 passes for 184 yards in the first half.
 
Defense
DL Alex Fitch, So., DePauw
Fitch blocked an extra point in the second overtime which helped the Tigers to the eventual 41-40 win against Colorado College on its ensuing overtime possession. He forced a fumble which the defense recovered at the DePauw 39 with 19 seconds left in regulation and the game tied 27-27. Fitch also had six tackles (three solo), three tackles for a loss, and one sack.

DL Mike Czerwien, Sr., Waynesburg
Czerwien registered all three of sacks on one second-half Thiel drive as the Yellow Jackets held off the Tomcats for a 25-20 win. He finished with nine tackles (six solo), 4.5 tackles for a loss (23 yards), and one pass breakup.

DL Joe Troia, Jr., UW-La Crosse
Troia led UW-La Crosse's defense with nine tackles (seven solo) in the Eagles’ 24-0 win over UW-Oshkosh. He also had three tackles for loss and two quarterback sacks. Troia and the Eagles’ defense held UW-Oshkosh to zero first downs and minus one yard of total offense in the second half.

DL Jared Lange, Sr., Wabash
Lange's 4.5 tackles for losses helped the Little Giant defense hold Oberlin to 14 points -- 18 points under its points-per-game average coming in. He recorded seven tackles (four solo) on the day.

LB Kyle Gesswein, Fr., Delaware Valley
Gesswein recorded six tackles (three solo), four pass break ups, three tackles for a loss, one sack, and a fumble recovery as Del Val defeated Lycoming 31-0. His all-around effort helped the Aggies hold Lycoming to just 159 yards of total offense.

LB Clarence Goodman, Sr., Kean
Goodman collected a career-high 16 tackles (eight solo), including a pair of sacks for a loss of 20 yards, in the Cougars' 35-28 come-from-behind overtime victory over Rowan. One of his two sacks pushed the Profs back 11 yards in a key fourth quarter sequence which sparked Kean to its first victory against Rowan since 1994.

LB Ashton Clarke, Sr., Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
Clarke had 26 tackles (12 solo), 3.5 tackles for a loss, and one sack, as the Stags lost to Redlands 49-21. His 26 tackles are the second-most in Division III this season.

DB Michael Terranova, Jr., Olivet
Terranova returned two of the three interceptions for touchdowns, as the Comets beat Tri-State University, 21-14. The returns for a touchdown were 23 and 4 yards. On his third interception, a shoestring tackle prevented him from scoring.

DB Franko Shenault, Sr., Carthage
Shenault recorded a Division III season-high 28 tackles (14 solo) in a 33-28 win over Augustana.

DB Phil Poetter, Sr., Mt. St. Joseph
Poetter tied Mount St. Joseph single-game records with his three interceptions and two interceptions TD returns in a 45-24 conference win at Manchester. He started the scoring in the game with a 26-yard INT return, and added his second score -- to complete the game's scoring -- when he raced in from 33 yards out with a pick.

DB Darius Roberts, Fr., East Texas Baptist
Roberts had a team-high nine tackles (four solo), a pass break up, and a forced fumble that came late in the fourth quarter to preserve a 27-23 road win over Louisiana College. With the Tigers leading only 27-21, Roberts stripped the ball away from LC receiver Taylor Huffman at the 2-yard line and it was recovered in the end zone by ETBU.

Special Teams
AP Neil Suckow, Sr., Wartburg
Suckow scored touchdowns in three different ways in the first half of No. 17-ranked Wartburg's 27-3 win over Coe. He hauled in a five-yard pass scoring reception, rushed in a touchdown from eight yards, and took a punt return back 66 yards. The three touchdowns came on only nine touches of ball.

RET Tim Acker, So., RPI
Acker returned two punts for touchdowns in RPI's 41-3 Liberty League win against Merchant Marine. His first score was a school record 85-yard return -- RPI's first punt return for a touchdown since the record of 83 yards was set in 1973 -- and his second was from 82 yards. A defensive back with four tackles in the game, Acker finished with four punt returns for 195 yards.

K Brandon Raciborski, Jr., UW-Stout
Raciborski kicked the game-winner from 52 yards out with 45 seconds remaining to lift UW-Stout to a 28-27 win against UW-River Falls. The kick hit the left upright and bounced through. It was Raciborski's first made field goal of the year.

P Tim Bartucca, Sr., Worcester State
Bartucca punted the ball seven times for an average of 46 yards per boot, landing two inside the 20-yard line, as Worcester State fell to Coast Guard, 46-10. He also had seven tackles (four solo) at the linebacker position.