ST. LOUIS -- Ryan Boyle, Jonas Griffith and Jerry Nunez have each earned Missouri Valley Football Conference weekly honors following their performances during the Sycamores' 43-17 victory at Youngstown State, the league office announced Sunday. Boyle has been tabbed MVFC Newcomer of the Week for the third time this season; Griffith earned Defensive Player of the Week honors; while Nunez claimed the Valley's Special Teams Player of the Week for the second time in his career.
 
It marks the first time since 2014 that the Sycamores have claimed three of the Valley's weekly awards. ISU's Mike Perish, Connor Underwood and Gary Owens earned conference honors after defeating No. 22 Liberty, 38-19 September 27, 2014 inside Memorial Stadium.
 
Newcomer of the Week
QB Ryan Boyle, R-Jr., 6-2, 215, Urbandale, Iowa / (Iowa)
Boyle racked up 419 yards of total offense in the Sycamore win while throwing for 325 yards and a trio of touchdowns on 17-of-28 through the air. The Urbandale, Iowa native also added 68 yards on the ground while catching a pass for 26 yards from Jalil Kilpatrick in the second quarter. In total, Boyle finished with seven pass completions over 20 yards in the win, including a 60-yard bomb to Dante Hendrix in the second quarter.
 
Defensive Player of the Week
LB Jonas Griffith, R-Jr., 6-4, 244, Louisville, Ky. (Academy of Shawnee)
Griffith recorded a game high 14 tackles, including 11 solo stops against Youngstown State. No matter if the Penguins ran or passed, Griffith seemed to be in the play defensively. He picked up an important sack in the fourth quarter when the Penguins went for it on fourth down to put the ball back in ISU's hands. Griffith iced the game late in the fourth with an 80-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown -- the first defensive score of his career.
  
Special Teams Player of the Week
K Jerry Nunez, Jr., 5-11, 185, Naples, Fla. (Naples HS)
Nunez was money for the Sycamores in Saturday's victory against the Penguins. The junior kicker hit 3-of-4 field goals in the victory. Trailing 7-0 to Youngstown, Nunez nailed a 41-yard field goal to put the Sycamores on the board, before adding a 30-yard field goal in the second. The Naples, Florida native pushed the Sycamore lead to 16-10 at halftime after splitting the uprights on a game-long 45-yard field goal with 48 second left in the first half. Nunez was also a perfect 4-for-4 on PAT attempts for the Trees.
 
Though Dante Hendrix did not receive any weekly honors from the Valley offices, the redshirt freshman did set career highs in receptions, yards and touchdowns at Youngstown State. Hendrix caught seven passes for a game high 186 yards and scored two touchdowns in the win. His first score of the game came in the second quarter on a 22-yard catch to put the Sycamores on top 13-10 while also marking the first career touchdown for the wide out. Hendrix continued to dominate throughout the game, making four catches of 20 yards or more, including a 60-yard reception in the second quarter. Hendrix added his second score of the game in the third quarter on a 22-yard reception to make it 23-10 in favor of the Sycamores.
 
Indiana State returns to Memorial Stadium for the next two weekends as the Sycamores play host to South Dakota and Illinois State. For more information on tickets or group sales to the season opener, contact Senior Assistant Athletics Director John Sherman at 812-237-3047. Fans can also visit the Hulman Center Ticket Office during normal business hours or call 877-ISU-TIXS, or visit TicketMaster.com.
 
For the latest information on the Sycamore Football team, make sure to check out GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook and Twitter.