Stutts earns LSC honor
10/1/2006 4:00:00 AM | Football
RICHARDSON -- ACU middle linebacker Cody Stutts was named the Lone Star Conference South Division Defensive Player of the Week on Sunday after his performance in the Wildcats' 21-0 win Saturday at Eastern New Mexico.
Stutts finished the game with 13 games, two tackles for loss and one sack as the Wildcat defense stretched it scoreless streak to 10 straight quarters. Stutts spearheaded an ACU defense that limited the Greyhounds to just 181 yards of total offense and held explosive quarterback Michael Benton to minus-4 yards rushing on 15 carries. Benton entered the game averaging a league-best 162.7 yards per game on the ground.
The ACU defense is the top-ranked unit in the LSC, giving up just 214.0 yards and 8.0 points per game, and it pitched back-to-back shutouts for the first time since 1976. Stutts is the third Wildcat defender to earn the league's weekly award in the season's first five weeks, joining Marcus Brown (Sept. 10) and Travis Carpenter (Sept. 17) on the list.
ACU FOOTBALL NOTES
The Wildcats are 4-0 on the season for the first time since 1983. ... With the shutout of Eastern New Mexico, ACU ran its scoreless streak to 10 straight quarters. ... The ACU defense hasn't allowed a score since SOSU scored with 4:26 left in the first half on Sept. 16. Since then, ACU has gone 154 minutes, 26 seconds without giving up a score. ... During the defense's scoreless streak, the ACU offense has outscored its opponents 73-0. ... The last time ACU pitched back-to-back shutouts was 1976 when it blanked four straight opponents (Texas A&M-Commerce, Angelo State, Cameron and Sam Houston State). ... The Wildcats forced three more turnovers Saturday night to give them a plus-11 turnover ratio (13 takeaways, 2 giveaways) through four games. ... The ACU defense is allowing just 214.0 yards and 8.0 points per game through four games, both of which rank at the top of the LSC and among the top 10 in NCAA Division II football.
