Sep 23 min read

SEC Announces Players of the Week for Week 1

The Southeastern Conference revealed its weekly award winners on Sept. 2, honoring the standout performances by players from their respective season openers.

Here is what those players did to earn the SEC Players of the Week honors during Week 1.

Offense

QB Diego Pavia (Vanderbilt)

Pavia and senior offensive advisor Jerry Kill came over from New Mexico State after leading the Aggies to a 10-3 season last year and made an immediate impact as Vanderbilt upset Virginia Tech in overtime.

The Vanderbilt offense put up 371 yards, and Pavia was responsible for 296 yards and 3 touchdowns — including the game-winning touchdown run. He was also the only Power Four quarterback to throw and run for over 100 yards during the opening weekend.

QB Carson Beck (Georgia)

Georgia steamrolled Clemson in the second half, reasserting its status as top dog in the SEC.

For his part, Beck was 23 of 33 passing for 278 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also did not turn the ball over and exhibited solid mobility in the run game.

Defense

DB Keon Sabb (Alabama)

Alabama was another SEC team that rolled over an inferior opponent with a 63-0 win over Western Kentucky.

Sabb was a major factor defensively with 2 interceptions and 2 tackles.

Special Teams

K Peyton Woodring (Georgia)

Woodring had a great day on Aug. 31, making all 6 of his kicks (2 field goals and 4 extra points) in the Georgia win.

He hit a career-long 55-yard field goal before halftime, his first career make from beyond 50 yards, and the longest for a Georgia kicker since 2018.

K Tyler Keltner (Oklahoma)

Keltner got a chance to handle primary kicking duties in a game for the first time since his days at East Tennessee State. After transferring from Florida State, the senior made 9 kicks for the Sooners on Saturday, with the longest coming from 50 yards.

That kick made him just the second player in program history to hit a 50-yarder on his first kick and the only SEC kicker of the past week to make at least 3 field goals in a game, with one of them a 50-yarder.

Offensive Line

OT Cameron Williams (Texas)

The Texas right tackle helped the Longhorns put up 545 yards of offense and did not allow any sacks or quarterback pressures as they cruised to a 52-0 shutout victory.

OT Fernando Carmona Jr. (Arkansas)

Carmona Jr. was part of an Arkansas offensive line that paved the way for 687 yards of offense, including 279 yards on the ground, in a season-opening 70-0 win.

According to the SEC, he was the highest-graded offensive lineman on the team as the Razorbacks became the first FBS team in 20 years to score on all 10 of their offensive drives.

Defensive Line

DE Kyle Kennard (South Carolina)

Kennard had 2.5 sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss (TFL) including a forced fumble on the game's opening drive as the Gamecocks avoided disaster against Old Dominion.

DE Dylan Stewart (South Carolina)

In his college football debut, the true freshman was all over the field with 4 tackles, 1.5 sacks, a QB hurry, and 2 forced fumbles.

One of the forced fumbles came late in the game and set up the winning touchdown.

SEC Freshmen

QB Nico Iamaleava (Tennessee)

Tennessee's offense clicked on all cylinders against Chattanooga. Iamaleava threw for 314 yards in the first half, setting a new program record. He also threw 3 touchdown passes and completed his first 10 pass attempts.

WR Ryan Williams (Alabama)

Williams only caught two passes, but both went for touchdowns, as he led the team with 139 receiving yards. The Crimson Tide obliterated Western Kentucky 63-0 with 600 yards of offense in head coach Kalen DeBoer's team debut.

Stay tuned to College Football Dawgs for continued reporting on the SEC and its standout players in the exciting 2024 season.