Ole Miss senior quarterback Jordan Ta’amu (Pearl City ’15) and UCF junior QB McKenzie Milton (Mililani ’16) won awards on Monday after putting up big numbers over the weekend.
Ta’amu led the Rebels to a come-from-behind 37-33 road win over Arkansas on Saturday and was named the Southeastern Conference co-offensive player of the week.
Ta’amu accounted for 528 total yards with three touchdowns and engineered a game-winning, 97-yard drive with 2:02 remaining in the fourth quarter. He completed passes of 20 and 48 yards and then broke off a 15-yard run to set up the winning TD run with 42 seconds remaining.
Ta’amu’s 528 total yards are the second-most in school history behind Archie Manning’s 540-yard game against Alabama in 1969. Ta’amu finished 26-for-35 for 387 yards and two passing touchdowns and rushed for a career-high 141 yards and another score.
“The majority of his runs came on the quarterback draw,” Ole Miss coach Matt Luke said after the game to reporters. “We had a lot of screens on the outside and a lot of draws on the inside. Some of them were called, but some were scrambles (by Ta’amu).”
Ta’amu already ranks 10th all-time in career passing yards at Ole Miss and owns five of the top 10 single-game total offense performances. The Rebels are 5-2 overall and 1-2 in SEC play heading into Saturday’s game against Auburn.
Milton was named the American Athletic Conference player of the week for the fourth time in six games this season and eighth time in his career.
The 2016 Mililani alumnus led the Knights to their 19th consecutive victory with a come-from-behind 31-30 win over Memphis.
Milton was 17-for-29 for 296 yards and a touchdown and led the team back from a 30-17 halftime deficit with a 7-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter that ended up the game-winner.
Milton has thrown 16 touchdown passes and rushed for six TDs this season, but more importantly, he helped the Knights avoid their first loss in two years.
“I think it shows that we’re a resilient group,” Milton told reporters after the game. “Second half it was pouring rain, kind of cold, some stuff we’re not used to, but you know, when adversity hit, we responded well.
“You’ve got to win games like this to be a champion.”
Tagovailoa not bad either
There wasn’t an award handed out to Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa this week, but the 2017 Saint Louis alumnus did just fine once again.
The Crimson Tide sophomore threw for 265 yards and three touchdowns in a 39-10 win over Missouri to keep No. 1 Alabama undefeated at 7-0 overall and 4-0 in the SEC.
Tagovailoa, who has been dealing with a strained right knee for the past two games, is expected to be a full participant in practice this week, coach Nick Saban told reporters on Monday.
The front-runner to win the Heisman Trophy according to betting odds, Tagovailoa still hasn’t taken a snap in the fourth quarter this season. Through seven games, he has completed 71.5 percent (88-for-123) of his throws for 1,760 yards and 21 touchdowns without an interception. He’s also rushed for 117 yards and two scores.
