By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – The Ohio Valley Conference revealed its weekly award winners for football this afternoon as the University of Tennessee at Martin earned a pair of winners. Peyton Logan was voted as OVC Offensive Player of the Week and John Ford claimed OVC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
Today’s announcement marks the sixth and seventh OVC weekly winners for the Skyhawks in 2021, including the second consecutive Offensive Player of the Week mention for Logan. Overall, Logan has won four OVC weekly awards while today marks the first such accolade for Ford.
The two dynamic playmakers helped UT Martin to its biggest nonconference win in terms of margin of victory since 2006 as the Skyhawks soared past Northwestern State by a 35-10 margin on the road Saturday night.
A 5-8, 190-pound running back, Logan piled up a career-best 179 rushing yards on just 14 carries, posting a staggering 12.8-yards-per-rush average. He ran for one touchdown – a 53-yard tote with 1:24 remaining in the fourth quarter for his third score of the season. The speedster from Horn Lake, Miss. garnered 88 of the team’s 92 yards on the final drive of the contest and also accounted for a 41-yard run in the first quarter that set up a score.
Logan currently leads the OVC and ranks in the top-15 nationally in yards per carry (10.03, fourth), all-purpose yards (156.67 per game, fifth) and rushing (100.3 yards per contest, 13th).
Ford made one of the biggest plays of the game last night, snagging an interception at the goal line with the Demon offense threatening to make it a one-score game. With UT Martin ahead by a 21-10 margin in the third quarter, Ford was there for his third career pick – sprinting 66 yards to put the Skyhawk offense in good field position. The 6-3, 230-pound graduate also ranked second on the team with five tackles.
A Nashville, Tenn. native, Ford ranks in the top-20 in the OVC in interceptions (one, third), passes defended (two, seventh) and tackles (15, 16th).
UT Martin is back at it next Saturday, Sept. 25 when it heads to Jacksonville, Ala. for a 3 p.m. matchup at No. 10 Jacksonville State.
Graphic Courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information