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Newton Named MAC East Division Defensive Player of the Week

Mike Newton

Newton had his team-best fourth interception of the season to go along with nine tackles, one for a loss, and a pass breakup. More importantly, he helped shut down Zips receiver Jabari Arthur who, heading into Saturday's game, led the MAC and ranked 10th in the nation in receiving - averaging 103.7 yards per game. Newton and the Bulls' secondary held Arthur to three catches for 39 yards.

Newton is tied for second on the team with 64 tackles and leads the team in interceptions (4) and passes defended (7). Though only a sophomore, Newton is already tied for ninth in school history with nine career interceptions.

The award marks the seventh time this season and fourth straight week that a UB player has earned Player of the Week honors. Kicker A.J. Principe (Columbus, OH/St. Francis DeSales) won Special Teams Player of the Week following the Syracuse game. Running back James Starks (Niagara Falls, NY/Niagara Falls) won back-to-back Offensive Player of the Week awards following UB's wins over Ohio and Toledo. Quarterback Drew Willy (Randolph, NJ/Randolph) was named Offensive Player of the Week for his performance at Penn State. Larry Hutchinson (Seattle, WA/Franklin) was named Defensive Player of the Week and Simon Manka (Orchard Park, NY/Orchard Park) was named Special Teams Player of the Week following the Bulls' win over Temple.

The seven Player of the Week Awards are the most won by Buffalo since joining the Mid-American Conference in 1999. The previous high was four awards in 2004.

The first-place Bulls will travel to Miami (OH) on Saturday to face the second-place RedHawks. Kickoff is slated for 3:00 pm.