
Eaton, Jackson and Forbes claim week three awards
April 20, 2005 - arenafootball2 (af2) News Release
CHICAGO - Manchester quarterback JAKE EATON, Macon wide receiver/defensive back MATT JACKSON and Quad City defensive specialist MATT FORBES have been named the Offensive Player, U.S. Army Ironman and ADT Defensive Player of the Week, respectively, for Week 3 of the 2005 season.
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Eaton (6-2, 215, University of Maine), in his third season, carried the Wolves to their first win of the season with a nearly flawless outing against the Green Bay Blizzard. The gunslinger completed 25-of-33 passes for 304 yards and seven touchdowns with no interceptions in the 59-41 triumph over the Blizzard. Eaton's 304 passing yards set a league high for Week 3 and his seven passing touchdowns tied for the week's high with South Georgia's Bobby Pesavento and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's Kyle Rowley. Eaton's efficient performance, which calculated to a 143.17 passer rating, tied the Wolves team record for passing touchdowns in a game. His 304 passing yards marks the seventh best single game total in team history. This is Eaton's first weekly award, and he is the first Manchester player to win an award in this season.
U.S. ARMY IRONMAN OF THE WEEK
Jackson (5-11, 200, Florida), in his rookie season, helped the Knights to a 67-50 win over division nemesis Birmingham Thursday night with a solid overall performance. Jackson racked up four tackles (3UA-2AT), one forced fumble, one interception and two pass breakups. Jackson either accounted for, or set up, three Macon touchdowns on three huge plays. Jackson's first big play came as he picked off an Andrew Zow pass early in the second quarter to give the Knights a 28-13 lead. Jackson then took over the third quarter returning a kickoff 57 yards for a touchdown and forcing another Birmingham turnover. Three plays later after the kickoff return touchdown, Jackson forced a fumble, which Hosea Laney recovered for the Knights. The Knights scored just two minutes later extending their lead to 54-36 - the largest of the game. This is the first weekly award of Jackson's career and the first Knight to be honored in 2005.
ADT DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Forbes (5-10, 175, William Penn), a third-year veteran, provided a clutch defensive effort for the Steamwheelers on Saturday night, helping the team secure a 36-29 home-opening win over the Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings. After offensive specialist Bo Smith lit up the Steamwheelers for four first half receiving touchdowns to give his team a 29-27 halftime lead, Forbes and the Steamwheelers buckled down in the second half and kept the Battle Wings scoreless the rest of the way. Forbes led the way for the Steamwheelers by intercepting passes in both of the Battle Wings fourth quarter possessions. Along with the two key interceptions, Forbes tallied 4.5 tackles (4UA-1AT) and two more pass breakups during the game. Forbes last won this accolade during Week 5 of the 2004 season. He is the first Steamwheeler to be honored in 2005.
Offensive Player of the Week candidates included: Macon's Chris Johnson, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's, Kyle Rowley, Bakersfield's Chad Elliott, South Georgia's Adrian Cockfield, Memphis' Brian Jones, Florida's Magic Benton, Oklahoma City's Brandon Daniels, Bossier-Shreveport's Bo Smith.
U.S. Army Ironman of the Week candidates included: Albany's Jeff Higgins, Bakersfield's Nathan Munson, Louisville's Tony Stallings, Memphis' Ryan Karr, Florida's Comone Fisher, Manchester's J.J. McKelvey and William Ferguson, Oklahoma City's Al Hunt, Quad City's Jack Walker, Jr.
ADT Defensive Player of the Week candidates included: Macon's Anthony Collins, Albany's Kyle Kaymore, Bakersfield's Khree Shorter, Louisville's Rob Green, Memphis' Khreem Smith, Florida's Roy Stabler, Manchester's Allistair Sebastian, Central Valley's Clint Merz.
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