Nzeocha Wins MWC Award

University of Wyoming senior linebacker Mark Nzeocha was named the Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Monday in an announcement made by the conference office.

Nzeocha led the Wyoming Cowboys with 12 tackles, including eight solo tackles, 1.0 sack for six yards, 1.0 tackle for a loss and three pass breakups as the Cowboys captured a 17-12 home win over Montana in their season opener.

The senior from Neusitz, Germany, was part of a Wyoming defense that gave up only 253 yards of total offense to Montana, including allowing only 42 rushing yards on the day.

Nzeocha’s sack came on a critical series in the third quarter, with the Cowboys trailing 6-3.  Montana was on the Wyoming 36-yard line and decided to go for it on fourth down and eight yards.  Nzeocha came up the middle on a blitz, and sacked Montana quarterback Jordan Johnson for a six-yard loss, giving Wyoming the ball back at the Wyoming 42-yard line.  That field position led to the UW offense scoring on the ensuing drive to take a 10-6 lead on way to its 17-12 victory.  One of Nzeocha’s three PBUs came on the final play of the game to seal the Cowboy win.

This is the first MW Player of the Week honor of Nzeocha’s career.