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Through the first eight games of the 2019 season, Ashland University sophomore Austin Brenner not only is the Eagles' starting quarterback and punter, but also their second-leading rusher.
What Brenner has been able to accomplish so far this fall has been rare:
- He leads the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference with 1,573 passing yards as a quarterback, paces the conference with a 42.7-yard average and 15 punts inside the 20-yard line as a punter, and also has the most rushing yards for a quarterback in the league with 601.
- In NCAA Division II through Saturday (Oct. 26), Brenner is the only player to rush for at least 600 yards, pass for at least 1,500 yards and average at least 42.5 yards per punt.
- In fact, Brenner is only player at all NCAA levels to accomplish that trifecta so far in 2019.
WASHINGTON MAKING A NAME FOR HIMSELF
Eagle freshman tailback Gei'vonni Washington has moved into the No. 1 spot in the GLIAC in both rushing yards (857) and carries (185), and it's not close. Washington has 63 more carries than Wayne State's James Hill (122), and 170 rushing yards more than Saginaw Valley State's Nate McCrary (687).
Washington has ascended up the GLIAC rushing ladder thanks to a current five-game stretch in which he has racked up 723 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground on 145 carries (5.0 ypc.).
"I just want to help my team," Washington said. "If they believe in me that much, I'm going to just give them everything I've got every time I get the ball."
Said Brenner, "Having a good run game really opens up the pass. It takes off a ton of pressure. Every time I give him the ball, I know we're going to get his all. He's going to make a play. Just his attitude on and off the field, he's always staying humble, his head's in the right place."
Of the Ashland football program's 21 1,000-yard rushing seasons from 1920-2018, only one – Matt Otero in 1997 (1,030) – was accomplished in a freshman campaign.
Said Ashland head coach Lee Owens, "He fights for every yard, and playing beyond the freshman year at this point."
ROUPE STEADY AT END FOR AU "D"
Sophomore defensive end Curtis Roupe had five total tackles, a half-sack, a half-tackle for loss and two quarterback hurries in Saturday's 21-12 home win over Michigan Tech.
Roupe leads Ashland with 2½ sacks this season, and has 32 total stops and four tackles for loss in 2019.
"He's one of those guys you know you can count on," Owens said. "You know he's going to give great effort. It's always good to see him out there and make as many plays as he did today."
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