Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock since Saturday afternoon – UNC fans, perhaps, after that dreadful first half against Clemson? – surely you’ve heard about Western Carolina quarterback Taron Dickens’ amazing feat.
The redshirt sophomore from Miami, FL (Northwestern HS) shattered NCAA records for most consecutive completions in a game (46) and most consecutive completions across multiple games (50) in the Catamounts’ 23-21 win at Wofford.
Dickens has been the toast of college football across the nation ever since – even ESPN’s Matt Barrie gave him a helmet sticker during its College Football Final broadcast Saturday night. It’s no shocker that Dickens earned our North Carolina College Football Offensive Player of the Week award for Week 6. Dickens is our first repeat recipient after taking home the honor following WCU’s Week 4 win over Samford as well.
But Dickens certainly wasn’t alone in producing highlight reel, stat-stuffing. MVP-worthy moments in our state.
A pair of ball-hawk linebackers – Catawba’s Evan Simons and Guilford’s Travis Burton – share our NC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
Gardner-Webb’s Charlie Viorel kicked his way to NC Special Teams Player of the Week recognition with a walk-off boot against Charleston Southern.
Let’s meet this week’s award winners plus a group of honorable mention performers also worthy of a tip of the cap:
👉 NC Team of the Week: Read why we picked the Catawba Indians as North Carolina college football’s top team for Week 6. Coach Tyler Haines’ team improved to 5-1 with a win over Mars Hill.
👉 Week 6 Stat Champions: Check out the top box-score busting performances from this past weekend (names from the story you are reading appear here as well)
👉 Past Weekly Award Winners: Check out who won offensive, defensive, special teams and team-of-the-week awards in Weeks 1-5.
North Carolina College Football Players of the Week | Week 6 (Oct. 3-4, 2025)
💥 Offensive Player of the Week: Taron Dickens, Western Carolina
Dickens had already generated plenty of buzz heading into Saturday’s trip to Wofford. After missing three games due to a suspension, Dickens debuted with a 582-yard, 6-TD performance against Samford, then followed it up by throwing for 378 yards and 3 TDs at Campbell.
Dickens demolished WCU, SoCon and NCAA records (all divisions) with his 46 consecutive completions on Saturday. He hit his first 10 throws in the opening quarter and was 27-of-27 at the half. Dickens entered the fourth quarter 42-of-42, finally misfiring on a pass near the goal line.
Dickens finished 53-of-56 (94.6 percent) for 378 yards and three scores. His 53 completions broke a school record for a single game originally held by Troy Mitchell (46 in 2014).
Dickens connected with 10 different receivers and added 44 rushing yards, including a 27-yard jaunt. Even after breaking the consecutive completions mark, Western Carolina found itself behind in the game, and Dickens helped guide the offense into position to kick the game-winning field goal late in the final minute (thank you, Marcus Trout, converting from 34 yards out).
Dickens picked up Stats Perform FCS National Offensive Player of the Week honors as well as SoCon Offensive Player of the Week. Most importantly, WCU got the win and improved to 2-0 in league action.
Honorable Mention
- Hollywood Smothers (NC State): ACC Running Back of the Week needed just four carries to earn 123 yards (30.8 yards per rush) against Campbell. Scored a rushing TD and caught a 16-TD pass from CJ Bailey.
- Ivan Holt (Davidson): Caught three touchdown passes and finished with 155 receiving yards in the Wildcats’ PFL opener at Stetson.
- Tre Robinson (UNC Pembroke): Completed 25-of-33 passes for 354 yards and six touchdowns as the Braves overwhelmed Erskine.
- Christopher Perkins (Elizabeth City State): CIAA’s Quarterback of the Week accounted for 344 yards on the ground and through the air in the Vikings’ win over Livingstone. His highlight reel play was a 73-yard scoring run in the first half.
- Jahari Mitchell (Winston-Salem State): Kept the Rams in contention against Virginia Union, making five catches for 152 yards and three touchdowns. Earned CIAA Receiver of the Week.
- Caleb Robles (Guilford): Rushed for 144 yards and four first-half touchdowns in the Quakers’ 55-0 rout of Gallaudet. He also threw for 173 yards and a score.
🛡️ Co-Defensive Players of the Week: Evan Simons, Catawba & Travis Burton, Guilford
Graduate linebacker Evan Simons was all over the field in Catawba’s 42-28 upset of previously unbeaten Mars Hill. The Chesapeake, Va., native piled up 12 tackles, including three stops behind the line that cost the Lions a total of 31 yards of offense.
Simons also delivered two sacks and a 23-yard interception return that swung momentum in a game that helped the Indians move into SAC title contention. A steady defensive leader for Catawba, he now ranks second in the conference in sacks and seventh in total tackles.
Saturday’s effort marked the second time this season Simons has earned SAC Defensive Player of the Week honors—he also claimed the award in the season opener—cementing his reputation as one of the league’s most disruptive defenders.
Sophomore linebacker Travis Burton turned in a monster performance during Guilford’s 55-0 dismantling of Gallaudet, leading a defense that allowed only 130 total yards and forced three turnovers.
Burton produced 12 tackles, 4.5 tackles-for-loss and 3.5 sacks, accounting for 16 yards lost on his own. It was the second time this season he’s hit those elite numbers—no other Division III player has done it twice in 2025.
Ten of his 12 stops came on plays of one yard or less, and he was involved in five of Guilford’s eight sacks. Through five games, Burton leads the ODAC in both TFLs (15.0) and sacks (8.5) and ranks fourth in tackles (44). Nationally, he’s No. 1 in Division III in tackles-for-loss and No. 2 in sacks, giving the Quakers a game-changing presence in the middle of their defense.
Honorable Mention
- Wesley Williams, Vincent Anthony Jr. (Duke): Williams had 3.5 TFLs and Anthony added 3.0 TFLs in a late-night ACC road win at Cal.
- Jordan Thompson (Western Carolina): Honorable mention SoCon Defensive Player of the Week recorded eight tackles.
- Robert Holtz (Gardner-Webb): Nominated for OVC/Big South Defensive Player of the Week honors
- Vincent Hill (Johnson C. Smith): Recorded 10 tackles, forced a fumble and made one hit behind the line-of-scrimmage to earn CIAA Linebacker of the Week.
- Evan Powell (Winston-Salem State): Tasked with helping slow one of the top offenses in the CIAA, Powell made 15 tackles and collected CIAA Defensive Back of the Week.
- Nick Iannone (Guilford): Recorded 10 tackles, 3.5 TFLs and 2.5 sacks as part of a shutout for the Quakers defense.
- Cam’Ron Webster (Methodist): Led the Monarchs stopping unit with 3.0 tackles-for-loss.
- Letraskey Pressley (Louisburg): Earned 14 tackles in a loss against Georgia Military College.
🎯 Special Teams Player of the Week: Charlie Viorel, Gardner-Webb
Junior kicker Charlie Viorel delivered in multiple clutch moments, scoring 12 points and drilling a 48-yard game-winner as time expired in Gardner-Webb’s 30-27 victory over Charleston Southern.
Viorel opened the day with a 38-yard field goal and added three PATs before connecting on second-half kicks from 43 and 48 yards, the latter splitting the uprights to lift the Runnin’ Bulldogs to 3-2 overall and keeping the BBQ Bowl Trophy in Boiling Springs for another year.
He also handled kickoff duties, sending five kicks for 308 total yards (61.6-yard average) with one touchback. The Charlotte native’s poise under pressure earned him OVC-Big South Special Teams Player of the Week honors, highlighting the steady leg that continues to give Gardner-Webb a decisive boost in close games.
Honorable Mention
- Dominic De Freitas (Appalachian State): Hit field goals of 49 and 45 yards to help the Mountaineers beat visiting Oregon State. Named Sun Belt Conference Special Teams Player of the Week.
- Conner Calvert (Wake Forest): Went 3-for-3 on field goals and 3-for-3 on PATs in a road victory at Virginia Tech.
- Marcus Trout (Western Carolina): Kicked the game-winning field goal in the final seconds against Wofford, capping a historic day for the Catamounts with an important league victory.
- John Hernandez-Vargas (Fayetteville State): Repeat winner of CIAA Special Teams Player of the Week hit all five PAT attempts and helped the Broncos control field position with a 59.1-yard average on seven kickoffs.
