Penn State's Ji'Ayir Brown, Nick Singleton earn Big Ten Weekly Honors
Nittany Nation
Staff
A pair of Nittany Lions have been honored by the Big Ten for their performances in week three against Auburn. Senior safety Ji'Ayir Brown and true freshman running back Nick Singleton were named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week and Big Ten Freshman of the Week.
Brown put together one of the best games of his career as a Nittany Lion against the Tigers on Saturday afternoon. He totaled five tackles, including one sack and one tackle for a loss. He also forced a fumble that was recovered by defensive end Chop Robinson and brought in one interception.
It's the second time Brown has earned Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors after also earning the honors last year in the Nittany Lions' win over Maryland. A turnover machine, Brown has in one way or another contributed to 10 takeaways in his Penn State career including seven interceptions.
Singleton, on the other hand, has now earned two Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors in his first three career games. After 10 carries for 179 yards and two touchdowns against Ohio in week two, the Shillington (PA) native put together a tremendous performance in the national spotlight with 10 carries for 124 yards and two more scores.
In the game, Singleton had two runs for 50 or more yards including a 54-yard touchdown in the third quarter that gave Penn State a comfortable 21-6 lead. The former four-star prospect now has, five, 40+ runs this season. Through three games, Singleton leads the country in yards per carry at 11.1 and is 16th in the country with 334 rushing yards.
No. 14 Penn State will look to improve to 4-0 on Saturday afternoon against the Central Michigan Chippewas.
