Indiana State and Rose-Hulman both broke into the win column Saturday, thus multiple Sycamores and Engineers got recognition in the college football world as a result.
The Sycamores (1-2) won 42-35 at Eastern Illinois , paced by an early scoring surge fueled by quarterback Elijah Owens' three passing touchdowns and two rushing TDs. ISU gained 492 total yards in 71 plays.
Meanwhile, Rose traveled to Michigan and beat host Kalamazoo 27-7, powered by pesky defense and a school-record five-sack effort from junior defensive end William Fleck.
This week, Owens received honorable mention for the Stats Perform FCS National Offensive Player of the Week honor, which ultimately went to fellow Missouri Valley Football Conference QB Beau Brungard of Youngstown State on Monday.
Later Monday, ISU offensive left tackle Griffin Hile was named MVFC Offensive Lineman of the Week.
For Rose, Fleck picked up the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Defensive Athlete of the Week and teammate Rudy Griffing earned HCAC Special Teams Athlete of the Week on Monday. Also Monday, Fleck was named to the D3football.com Team of the Week.
ISU's Owens was one of six national players receiving honorable mention for the weekly FSC award, along with former Sycamore running back Plez Lawrence (now at North Carolina Central ), Montana running back Eli Gillman , Stonehill quarterback Jack O'Connell and Alcorn State quarterback Jaylon Tolbert.
Owens delivered his best performance as a Sycamore in Indiana State's 42-35 win at Eastern Illinois on Saturday night. The redshirt junior quarterback threw for 284 yards, ran for 98 yards and accounted for five touchdowns (three passing, two rushing). Overall, Owens was 21 of 33 through the air for 284 yards and three passing touchdowns while adding 18 carries for 98 yards and two additional scores.
Meanwhile, Lawrence — who played at ISU from 2023-25 and rushed for 1,164 total yards in 270 carries — ran for 210 yards and three touchdowns in North Carolina Central's 30-22 win against North Carolina A&T on Saturday in Durham. Lawrence also had a 200-plus-yard game as a Sycamore, gaining 203 yards in 29 carries at Murray State on Sept. 30, 2023.
In Indiana State's victory at Eastern Illinois on Saturday, Hile — a 6-foot-5, 310-pound redshirt sophomore from Jasper — played every snap for the Sycamores at left tackle and received the team's top performance grading. His MVFC honor was ISU's first for an offensive lineman since former Sycamore Keagen Trost (now with the Los Angeles Rams ) won it Nov. 14, 2022, after facing Western Illinois.
In Rose-Hulman's win at Kalamazoo, Fleck finished the game with seven tackles and a forced fumble, along with his five sacks. Fleck, a junior from Chillicothe, Ohio, had back-to-back sacks on third and fourth downs in one instance, preserving the Engineers' lead. Fleck leads the NCAA Division III with six sacks.
Griffing delivered a key special-teams play in the win. With Rose leading 21-7 in the fourth quarter, the junior from Plano, Illinois recovered a muffed punt in the end zone for an Engineers touchdown and the final 27-7 margin. The HCAC honors are a career first for both Fleck and Griffing.
Rose-Hulman (now 1-1) plays host to Albion at 1 p.m. Saturday in Cook Stadium. ISU plays host to Valparaiso at 1 Saturday in Memorial Stadium. Both are nonconference matchups.
