LOCK HAVEN, Pa. - The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference announced its Football Athletes of the Week for Week 10 of the 2024 season. In the Western Division, Gannon's Jayden Whitaker was honored as Offensive Athletes of the Week while California's Julien Laventure (Defensive Athlete) and Slippery Rock's Kylon Wilson (Special Teams) were also selected. In the Eastern Division, Bloomsburg's KJ Riley is the Offensive Athlete of the Week and is joined by Kutztown's Freddie Retter (Defensive) and East Stroudsburg's Adam Noll (Special Teams).
PSAC Western Division Offensive Athlete of the Week
Jayden Whitaker
Gannon
Quarterback
Redshirt Freshman
Brownsburg, Ind. / Brownsburg
Whitaker led Gannon to a 34-28 win at Clarion while enjoying the finest game of his career. setting career records for completions (27), attempts (36), yards passing (366) and total offense (408). He threw touchdown passes of 34 and six yards while running for scores from four yards out and 26 yards out. The redshirt freshman has now accounted for 17 of Gannon's 20 touchdowns, with nine TDs passing and eight more rushing. The 366 yards is the 13th-highest GUI single-game total while the 408 yards in total offense ranks 12th. In addition, the 27 completions are tied for ninth. He has rushed for eight touchdowns which is tied for fifth-most in a Gannon season by a quarterback.
PSAC Western Division Defensive Athlete of the Week
Julien Laventure
California
Defensive Line
Sophomore
Upper Darby, Pa. / Upper Darby
Laventure set a career high with 3.0 TFL and tied his career high of 2.0 sacks on Saturday, as the Vulcans posted a 28-14 win over Edinboro to secure their first outright PSAC West title since 2016. He finished the game with six tackles and made 1.5 sacks on the final drive of the game for the Fighting Scots. Laventure helped anchor a defense that totaled six sacks and limited Edinboro to only 54 rushing yards. California finished undefeated in divisional play for the first time in eight years.
PSAC Western Division Special Teams Athlete of the Week
Kylon Wilson
Slippery Rock
KR/WR
Sophomore
Farrell, Pa. / Farrell
Wilson opened the second half with a 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to ignite a 28-point second half as SRU pulled away for a 38-20 win over Seton Hill. He finished the game with a game-high 143 all-purpose yards with 123 kick return yards on two returns, 10 receiving yards, four rushing yards and six punt return yards. Wilson leads all players in the PSAC averaging 28.5 yards per kickoff return this season.
PSAC Eastern Division Offensive Athlete of the Week
KJ Riley
Bloomsburg
Quarterback
Junior
Danville, Pa. / Danville Area
Riley had a career-day for the Huskies to lead them to a 35-27 win over Millersville on Senior Day. Riley went 13-for-22 for 321 yards and two passing touchdowns.. Riley ran for additional 87 yards and three touchdowns as he accounted for all 35 points for the Huskies. Riley was 5-for-5 on extra-point kicks as well. He got the Huskies on the board first with a 2-yard run into the end zone before completing the scoring drive with his first extra point in the first quarter. Riley then hit Jerry Griffen-Batchler for a 59-yard touchdown pass on the first play of Bloomsburg's next drive before hitting another extra point. Riley ran in a pair of touchdowns in the third quarter before finding Griffen-Batchler again for a 68-yard pass for his fifth total touchdown of the game and his fifth extra point. Riley did all of the punting as well with 154 total yards, averaging 38.5 yards per punt and one inside the 20. Millersville was able to return just one of his four punts for just 13 yards. Riley had 353 kick off yards on six kickoffs, two went for a touchback. His 321 yards passing are the most by a Husky quarter back since at least 2011.
PSAC Eastern Division Defensive Athlete of the Week
Freddie Retter
Kutztown
Defensive Line
Redshirt Sophomore
Quakertown, Pa. / Quakertown
Retter had five tackles (four solo), two sacks and a blocked field goal as No. 3 Kutztown completed its fourth unbeaten run through the PSAC East in the last five seasons with Saturday's 31-13 victory over West Chester. Retter and the Golden Bear defense seized all momentum with a massive defensive stand after WCU had driven to the doorstep of the end zone midway through the second quarter. KU stuffed Juke Peaker on 1st-and-goal from the 1-yard line before a penalty and two incomplete passes forced a 29-yard field goal attempt from Golden Ram kicker Sean Henry. Retter blocked the kick to keep WCU off the board and Kutztown took advantage at the other end of the field to go up 21-0 with 1:46 left before halftime. For the season, Retter has 38 tackles (19 solo). He leads the team in tackles for loss (11.0), sacks (6.5), quarterback hurries (7), blocked kicks (2), fumbles forced (2) and fumble recoveries (2).
PSAC Eastern Division Special Teams Athlete of the Week
Adam Noll
East Stroudsburg
Punter
Redshirt Freshman
Robesonia, Pa. / Conrad Weiser
Noll booted four punts for an average of 38.7 yards in last Saturday's 28-7 win over Shepherd, the first win for Warriors over the Rams since 2003. Three of Noll's punts pinned Shepherd inside their own 20-yard line and he had a long of 48 yards in the contest.