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NEC Offensive Player of the Week: Brady Olson, Central Connecticut
NEC Defensive Player of the Week: Tyson Meiguez, Duquesne
NEC Special Teams Player of the Week: Jack Hennessey, Central Connecticut
NEC Rookie of the Week: Ryan Petras, Duquesne

Previous NEC Releases: Week 5 | Week 4 | Week 3 | Week 2 | Week 1 | Preseason Poll Release 

NEC/ATLANTIC TOMORROW'S OFFICE OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Brady Olson, Central Connecticut
Quarterback, Senior, 6-4, 205 lbs., Bellingham, MA/Milford (UMass)
Week 6 Stats: 28-for-40, 323 passing yards, 4 passing touchdowns, 0 interceptions, 58 rushing yards, 6 carries, 1 rushing TD
Olson shredded Sacred Heart’s defense to the tune of a career-high 323 passing yards and four touchdown throws, including a game-clinching 25-yard pass to reigning NEC Offensive Player of the Year Elijah Howard in overtime, on Saturday. The senior was running on all cylinders in the 42-35 triumph, accounting for each of the Blue Devils’ five touchdowns after adding a rushing score with 2:54 left to play in the fourth quarter. Most impressively, Olson, who completed 28-of-40 passes and had a career-best 58 rushing yards on six carries to his count, did not commit a turnover for the fifth time this season. His 300-passing yard outing was the first for a Blue Devil since current CFL quarterback Jake Dolegala threw for 341 against Robert Morris on Oct. 16, 2018. A native of Bellingham, MA, Olson boasts the league’s best touchdown/interception ratio with 11 touchdown throws and just one pick in six games. He is averaging 213.0 passing yards per game to rank third in the conference, while his 11 touchdown passes are good for third in the circuit. This is Olson’s first NEC/Atlantic Tomorrow’s Office Offensive Player of the Week honor, and the first for a Blue Devil quarterback since Aaron Winchester was a three-time recipient of the award in 2019.

NEC/ATLANTIC TOMORROW'S OFFICE DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Tyson Meiguez, Duquesne
Linebacker, Graduate Student, 6-2, 220 lbs., Fairburn, CA/Creekside (Georgia Tech/Murray State)
Week 6 Stats: 9 tackles (5 solo), 1.5 TFL (4 yards), 1 forced fumble, 1 pass breakup, 1 quarterback hurry
Meiguez wreaked havoc on the gridiron to lead Duquesne to a 34-14 win over visiting Stonehill in the defending co-champ’s first NEC contest of the 2025 season. Entering the contest with six tackles and one quarterback hurry to his name, the Californian, who landed at Duquesne by way of Georgia Tech and Murray State, stuffed the stat sheet against the Skyhawks. He racked up nine tackles, including five solo stops, and added 1.5 tackles-for-loss, one forced fumble, one pass breakup and a quarterback hurry. In addition, Meiguez was the anchor of a defensive unit that pitched a shutout for more than three quarters of action, as Stonehill was held off the scoreboard until the 11:12 mark of the final stanza. Meiguez is the first Duke to garner NEC/Atlantic Tomorrow’s Office Defensive Player of the Week accolades this season.

NEC/ATLANTIC TOMORROW'S OFFICE SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Jack Hennessey, Central Connecticut
Kicker, Redshirt Freshman, 5-10, 190 lbs., Endwell, NY/Maine-Endwell
Week 6 Stats: 2-2 FG (26, 22 yards), 4-4 PAT, 4 kickoffs, 54.2 yards per kickoff
For the sixth time this season, Hennessey was perfect in each of his six scoring opportunities on Saturday. The redshirt freshman used his right foot to rack up 10 points for the second time this year and lead the Blue Devils to a thrilling 35-28 overtime defeat of in-state rival Sacred Heart. Converting on each of his four PATs, Hennessey kicked a 26-yard field goal in the opening seconds of the second quarter to make it a 10-0 Central Connecticut lead. He then hit a 22-yarder eight minutes later to extend his team’s advantage to 13-0. In addition, Hennessey split the Blue Devils’ kickoff duties, where he averaged 54.0 yards on four attempts. Sinking 1.17 field goals per game on a league-best .875 conversion rate, the Endwell, NY native has scored 40 points this season to rank sixth in the circuit. This is Hennessey’s first NEC/Atlantic Tomorrow’s Office Special Teams Player of the Week award.

NEC/ATLANTIC TOMORROW'S OFFICE ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Ryan Petras, Duquesne
Wide Receiver, Freshman, 5-9, 180 lbs., Bethel Park, PA/Bethel Park
Week 6 Stats: 82 receiving yards, 3 receptions, 2 touchdowns
Petras was the leader of a crop of Duquesne flankers that racked up 239 receiving yards in Saturday’s 20-point NEC-opening win over visiting Stonehill. The first-year wideout from neighboring Bethel Park, PA nearly quadrupled his season receiving yard total of 23 after catching three balls for a team-high 82 yards and two touchdowns for the Dukes, who eclipsed the 30-point plateau for the second-straight week in the 34-14 triumph. Petras extended his team’s lead to 20-0 just before halftime with his first career touchdown catch, a 21-yarder from veteran quarterback Tyler Riddell. The rookie doubled his touchdown total and put his team up by a 27-0 count after he hauled in a 52-yard pass from Riddell in stride and ran into the end zone untouched with 1:50 left in the third. With the win, Duquesne is off to a 1-0 start to NEC play for the third time in as many seasons. Petras became the first Duke to garner NEC/Atlantic Tomorrow’s Office Rookie of the Week accolades this season, and the first since Luke Miller took home the award on Sept. 16, 2024.


#NECFB PRIME PERFORMERS (Week 6)

Brady Olson, CCSU (QB, Sr)
Olson had a hand in each of the Blue Devils’ five touchdowns — including a game-winning 25-yard touchdown pass to classmate Elijah Howard — to lead Central Connecticut past Sacred Heart in overtime by way of a 42-35 final Saturday. Completing 28-of-40 passes, the senior threw for a career-high 323 yards, four touchdowns and zero picks while adding 58 rushing yards. Olson was also named the NEC/Atlantic Tomorrow’s Office Offensive Player of the Week.
 
Elijah Howard, CCSU (RB, Sr)
A running back, Howard was the recipient of a 25-yard touchdown pass from Brady Olson that ultimately sealed a 42-35 overtime win over in-state foe Sacred Heart on Saturday. The senior totaled 171 all-purpose yards in an afternoon that featured a season-best 102-rushing yard outing on 18 carries.
 
Gavin Taylor, CCSU (LB, Sr)
Taylor posted 2.5 tackles-for-loss for a Central Connecticut defense that combined for 8.0 on the afternoon in a thrilling overtime win over visiting Sacred Heart on Saturday. The veteran linebacker had 1.5 sacks to go along with a season-high seven tackles in the 42-35 triumph.
 
Ness Davis, DUQ (RB, R-Sr)
Davis rushed for a season-high 111 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries to lead Duquesne to a 34-14 win over visiting Stonehill in its first game of conference play on Saturday. The performance marked the redshirt senior’s third 100-yard rushing game, and his second of the season. 
 
Tyson Meiguez, DUQ (LB, Gr)
Meiguez, a transfer from Murray State, stuffed the stat sheet with nine tackles, 1.5 tackles-for-loss, one forced fumble, one pass breakup and a quarterback hurry on Saturday. The linebacker anchored a defense that pitched a shutout through three quarters to help the Dukes cruise to an NEC-opening 34-14 win over Stonehill. Meiguez was also named the NEC/Atlantic Tomorrow’s Office Defensive Player of the Week. 
 
Tyler Riddell, DUQ (QB, Gr)
Riddell, a quarterback, piloted Duquesne to the program’s fifth-straight home win against an NEC squad after he registered his fourth multi-touchdown performance of 2025. The graduate student completed 19-of-31 passes for 239 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions in the 34-14 win over Stonehill.
 
Norman Massey, LIU (DB, Sr)
Massey went off for 10 tackles, including nine solo stops, while adding 3.5 tackles-for-loss and 0.5 sacks on Saturday at Mercyhurst. The senior defensive back registered season-best numbers across the boards for the Sharks, who fell short of scoring their first league win of 2025 in the comeback bid.
 
Zaon Laney, NHVN (RB, Sr)
Entering Saturday’s game against Pace with 137 rushing yards, Laney more than doubled that total after he carried the ball 21 times for 142 yards, the most by an NEC rusher in Week 6, in New Haven’s 28-14 home win. The senior ignited a 28-0 Chargers’ run with back-to-back rushing scores of one and six yards in the first quarter.  

  
AROUND THE NEC IN 8 SENTENCES

CENTRAL CONNECTICUT: Of the 21 FCS quarterbacks that have logged 1,200-or-more passing yards this season, senior Brady Olson has thrown the fewest picks (1).

DUQUESNE: Quarterback Tyler Riddell, who eclipsed 9,000 career passing yards on his career against Stonehill, is second among active FCS quarterbacks with 9,117 career yards through the air.

LIU: Entering Week 6 as the only team in the nation to not having a passing touchdown this season, LIU ended that drought with a 24-yard throw from Chris Howell to Jaron Kelley at Mercyhurst on Saturday.

MERCYHURST: Mercyhurst was victorious in its first official game as an NEC member after defeating LIU by a 22-13 final on Saturday.

NEW HAVEN: Zaon Laney, who entered Week 6 with 137 rushing yards, doubled that total against Pace on Saturday when he ran for 142 yards to lead all NEC rushers last week.
 
ROBERT MORRIS: One of three NEC players with a pair of forced fumbles, senior linebacker Jakari Patterson is tied for fifth in the nation with 0.40 per game.

SAINT FRANCIS: Wide receivers DJ Maultsby (141 yards) and Peyton Nelson (131 yards) are the lone NEC teammates this season — and the first since Robert Morris’ Noah Robinson (126 yards) and Shawn Charles (141 yards) did so against LIU last season — to register 100-or-more receiving yards in the same game when they turned the trick last month at Bucknell.
 
STONEHILL: Stonehill has converted on a league-best 72.2 percent of its fourth-down attempts, a figure that ranks 16th in the nation.

WAGNER: Led by Ethan Appolon’s league-best two forced fumbles, Wagner tops the NEC statistics in the category with six total and 1.20 per contest.


2025 NEC FOOTBALL WEEKLY AWARD WINNERS:

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Sept. 1: AJ Duffy (New Haven)
Sept. 8: Luca Stanzani (LIU)
Sept. 15: AJ Duffy (New Haven)
Sept. 22: Elijah Howard (Central Connecticut)
Sept. 29: Tyler Riddell (Duquesne)
Oct. 6: Brady Olson (Central Connecticut)

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Sept. 1: Geno Calgaro (Saint Francis)
Sept. 8: Rafael Fasolino (LIU)
Sept. 15: Christopher Jean (Central Connecticut) & Liam Godwin (New Haven)
Sept. 22: Christopher Jean (Central Connecticut)
Sept. 29: Charles Battaglia (Stonehill)
Oct. 6: Tyson Meiguez (Duquesne)
Oct. 13: 

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Sept. 1: Will Lynch (LIU) & Jayson Jenkins (Robert Morris)
Sept. 8: Jayson Jenkins (Robert Morris)
Sept. 15: Brayden Hall (Central Connecticut)
Sept. 22: Logan Chenette (Stonehill)
Sept. 29: Jadon Turner (Central Connecticut)
Oct. 6: Jack Hennessey (Central Connecticut)
Oct. 13: 

ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Sept. 1: Jack Hennessey (Central Connecticut)
Sept. 8: Jameir Gamble (Mercyhurst)
Sept. 15: Naquan Johnson (LIU)
Sept. 22: Alim Parks, Jr. (Wagner)
Sept. 29: DJ Maultsby (Saint Francis)
Oct. 6: Ryan Petras (Duquesne)
Oct. 13: