ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The Presbyterian College football team has been firm in the spotlight as the 2024 season enters its final stages, receiving a weekly honor from the Pioneer Football League for the second time in eight days. On Sunday, redshirt-freshman QB Collin Hurst was selected as the conference's Offensive Player of the Week.

Completing an entire game without turning the ball over for the fourth straight weekend, Hurst picked apart the Marist Red Foxes yesterday afternoon in a 42-23 pounding. He found his target nearly 80 percent of the time in the team's third consecutive win, responsible for four touchdowns overall.

The Florida native conjured up 280 yards from scrimmage while zipping a pass to eight different receivers, throwing 11 straight completions in the first half as the Blue Hose gained their third consecutive double-digit victory.

Hurst's Offensive Player of the Week selection is PC's sixth weekly award from the PFL over the past two years, and the first for an offensive player. Kicker Peter Lipscombe was named the league's Special Teams Player of the Week on November 3 after thwarting Dayton with four field goals.

This is now back-to-back seasons where one of head coach Steve Englehart's crew was given a weekly honor from the Pioneer League specifically after facing Marist. Then-junior linebacker Alex Herriott was the recipient last year on the defensive end after a stellar day that involved 16 tackles and zero TD's allowed.




 BALLIN' COLLIN
 
Taking the title of starting quarterback early in the season and earning his place as the Scotsmen's signal-caller, Hurst completed 21 of 27 attempts in the Marist blowout and tallied two of his three touchdown tosses from distances of 51 and 36 yards.

He hit 11 straight targets in the first half as PC's lead kept increasing, going 12-of-13 for 162 yards and two scores just in the second quarter.

A benchmark of efficiency at his young age, Hurst has now surpassed a full month without an interception (five out of the last six PFL games). He has not thrown a pick in his last 111 passes dating all the way back to October 12.


 
FULL SPEED AHEAD
 
Thanks partially to Hurst's cool-headedness at QB, the Blue Hose have now achieved their first three-game winning streak since the abbreviated Spring 2021 season.

Prior to the Poughkeepsie win, Presbyterian had never won three conference games in a row during their Division I era (since 2007), last accomplishing that feat in 2006.

PC did claim three straight W's against Pioneer League opponents in that aforementioned spring campaign, however they were still in the transition phase to the conference and thus, those games did not count as league wins.

Coach Englehart's gang has flat-out mowed down their last three foes, besting Stetson, Dayton, and Marist by a combined 68 points.

It's been a full team effort for the Scotsmen to right the ship after numerous close losses, limiting the other side to below 25 points in five consecutive games for the first time in 18 years.


 
BUCKLE UP FOR BUTLER
 
The atmosphere will be buzzing at Bailey Memorial Stadium for the season-closer next weekend, with Presby going head-to-head with a Butler team who figures to remain inside the FCS national top 25 behind a 9-2 mark.

PC will be in search of their first four-game winning streak since 2007 and their first six-win season since 2014, battling a Bulldog unit that has surpassed the 40-point count in six games this semester.

Kickoff in Clinton is scheduled for 1:00 PM, a PFL showdown that will likely be the featured matchup in the conference for Week 13.