Evan Byers, C.J. Williams Honored with Weekly Awards
9/29/2014 4:57:00 PM | Football
LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell football team improved to 4-0 with a 20-7 win over Cornell on Saturday and the weekly awards continue to roll in for the undefeated Bison as senior LB Evan Byers (Raleigh, N.C./Wyoming Seminary/Trinity Pawling (N.Y.)) was named the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week and sophomore RB C.J. Williams (Cockeysville, Md./Calvert Hall/Navy Prep) was recognized as the Bison Athlete of the Week on Monday.
Five different Bison have earned a total of six Patriot League weekly awards this year with Byers being cited twice as Defensive Player of the Week. Williams is the third different football player to earn Bison Athlete of the Week honors this fall.
Byers posted a game-high 14 tackles in the win over the Big Red. He also added one sack, one fumble recovery and one pass breakup. He is ranked second nationally in both tackles (13.0/game) and solo tackles (7.8/game) and his 52 total stops tops the Patriot League.
A two-time All-Patriot League player, Byers has 14 career double-figure tackle games and his 315 career stops puts him 12 away from breaking into the program's top-five list. Byers ranks third among all active FCS players in career tackles.
Byers was part of a Bucknell defense that limited Cornell to 233 yards of total offense, including just 65 after halftime.
Williams posted his third 100-yard rushing game of the young season against Cornell, piling up a career-high 188 yards. He scored the game's first touchdown on a 28-yard run in the first quarter and his career-long 58-yard run late in the fourth quarter essentially sealed the outcome.
A veteran of 14 games during his two-year Bison career, Williams has posted seven 100-yard outings. He has 1,461 yards in his career, including a team-high 562 this year.
A Second Team All-Patriot League choice as a freshman, Williams has scored five touchdowns this year and 16 in his career.
Byers, Williams and the rest of the Bison will be back in action this Saturday, Oct. 4, when they travel to Smithfield, Rhode Island, for a 1 p.m. game at Bryant. It will be the final non-league contest for Bucknell, which opens Patriot League play Oct. 11 at Lehigh.
