Wells named Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week!

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Congrats!

Rittenberg/Bennett ‏@ESPN_BigTen

Minnesota S Derrick Wells (2 INTs at UNLV) has been named Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week.
 



Congrats to Derrick! What a way to make an impression in his first career start.
 

Here is the press release via the U of MN:

Sept. 4, 2012

MINNESOTA'S WELLS IS BRONKO NAGURSKI NATIONAL DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

DALLAS (FWAA) - Minnesota safety Derrick Wells has been named the FWAA/Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week for games of the weekend of Sept. 1.

Wells, a 6-0, 205-pound sophomore from Lehigh Acres, Fla., made the most of his first career start with two critical interceptions to boost the Golden Gophers to a 30-27 triple overtime victory at UNLV last Thursday. The two interceptions were also the first for Wells, who played cornerback last season.

Wells' first interception in the middle of the fourth quarter set up Minnesota's go-ahead field goal. His second interception on the third overtime possessopm put the Golden Gophers in position for the game-winning field goal. Wells tied for the team lead with eight tackles on the evening.

Wells will be added to the 2012 Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List. Five finalists for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy will be announced by the Football Writers Association of America on Nov. 15. The winner will be revealed on Dec. 3 during a banquet that the Charlotte Touchdown Club sponsors at the Westin Hotel in Charlotte, N.C. Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly will be the keynote speaker at the banquet.

Each Tuesday during the 2012 season the FWAA All-America Committee will select a national defensive player of the week from nominations made by the 11 Division I Bowl Subdivision conferences and major independents.

The FWAA has sponsored a National Defensive Player of the Year award since 1993 and has named a National Defensive Player of the Week since the 2001 season. Last year, Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly won the coveted Bronko Nagurski Trophy at season's end.

The Bronko Nagurski Trophy is given in memory of the legendary All-American lineman at Minnesota (1927-29). Nagurski dominated college football at Minnesota as a bruising fullback and defensive tackle and could have been an All-America at any position. He then became a star for professional football's Chicago Bears in the 1930s.

The Charlotte Touchdown Club is a non-profit organization founded in 1990 for the purpose of promoting high school, collegiate, and professional football in the Charlotte, N.C., region. The club's activities and services focus community attention on the outstanding citizenship, scholarship, sportsmanship, and leadership of area athletes and coaches. For more information, contact John Rocco (704-347-2918 or [email protected]). The official website of the Charlotte Touchdown Club is www.touchdownclub.com.

The Football Writers Association of America, a non-profit organization founded in 1941, consists of more than 1,300 men and women who cover college football for a living. The membership includes journalists, broadcasters and publicists, as well as key executives in all the areas that involve the game. The FWAA works to govern areas that include gameday operations, major awards and its annual All-America team. For more information about the FWAA and its award programs, contact Steve Richardson at [email protected] or 972-713-6198.
 



Now it is time to come down from Cloud Nine, come back to earth, play another game like that and help the Gophers annihilate New Hampshire.
 

I'm happy for the young fella but I would be lying if didn't admit saying " Bronko Nagurski watch list after one fing game against sorry ass UNLV?!".... lol.

Good for him. Well's is a humble kid that suffered and over came adversity long before he became a great football player.
 

Very cool...and to think we have him for a few more years....I hope.
 




I think that his 2 picks are being blown a bit out of proportion. While certainly he put himself in a position to make the plays and catching an oddly tumbling ball can be tricky the real successes on those 2 plays were Stoudermire and Baltazar (sp?). In fact I think the coverage by Baltazar was one of the best defensive plays of the night. He had the UNLV receiver absolutely smothered.

That's not to say Wells didn't play well. I just think those 2 picks aren't the highlight of his night. I think his best play was the open field tackle at the goal line late in the game. That was a truly impressive stop.
 

When the entire team got 4 interceptions last year one player getting two in one game is certainly a big deal.
 

I think that his 2 picks are being blown a bit out of proportion. While certainly he put himself in a position to make the plays and catching an oddly tumbling ball can be tricky the real successes on those 2 plays were Stoudermire and Baltazar (sp?). In fact I think the coverage by Baltazar was one of the best defensive plays of the night. He had the UNLV receiver absolutely smothered.

That's not to say Wells didn't play well. I just think those 2 picks aren't the highlight of his night. I think his best play was the open field tackle at the goal line late in the game. That was a truly impressive stop.

Well it's not just the two picks (though the close he put on that first one was great to watch), but he was just involved so greatly on the field. It felt like he was always around the ball, and then, when the most critical play comes up, he makes a great pick. It was just great to see safeties allowed to play like that, since we didn't get to see it much the last few years since the rest of the D was kinda struggling too.
 






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