Isabel Gonalez
@cisabelg
The Mountain West announced that University of New Mexico safety Marcus Hayes had been named Defensive Player of the Week on Monday morning.
Hayes, a redshirt freshman, is the first Lobo football player to receive this honor during the 2018 season. He earned it after his performance during UNM’s 42-25 victory over the New Mexico State Aggies on Saturday. The Lobos intercepted a total of five passes that night, with Hayes being responsible for two of them. The official UNM notes list the 148 yards in interception returns for UNM that night as a school record (previous record: 126 against Air Force on October 2, 1982).
The Rockford, Ill native also recorded four tackles, and helped with New Mexico’s first touchdown of the night with a 27-yard punt return.
The Offensive Player of the week is also named Marcus, but his last name is McMaryion and he’s the Fresno State quarterback. Kicker John Baron II is the Special Teams Player of the Week. Hayes was the only freshman honored, as the other two players are seniors.
Hayes was also was named to the Paul Hornung Award Honor Roll by the Louisville Sports Commission.
New Mexico is currently enjoying a 2-1 record. Their two wins came against Incarnate Word and NMSU, while their loss came from the then-No. 5 Wisconsin. This week the Lobos get to enjoy a bye week as they prepare to return to the field on Sept. 29 when they host Liberty at DreamStyle Stadium.
Watch as @JKurtz_MWN showcases this week's @MountainWest Football Players of the Week! #MWFB pic.twitter.com/94ZRqaBpZb
— Mountain West (@MountainWest) September 17, 2018
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