Lincoln – For the second straight week, a Husker earned the Big Ten’s top special teams’ accolade, as freshman De’Mornay Pierson-El was named Big Ten Special Teams Player of the WeekMonday morning.
Pierson-El earned the honor after returning five punts for 150 yards in Nebraska’s 55-19 win at Fresno State. His performance including an 86-yard touchdown return, the longest ever for a Nebraska freshman and the longest punt return for a TD by a Husker since 2010, as well as a 51-yard return to set up another Husker score. His 86-yard punt return for a score is the longest in the FBS ranks this season. His 150 punt return yards more than doubled Nebraska’s entire 2013 team total in that category.
Pierson-El’s performance against the Bulldogs ranks ninth on the Big Ten’s single-game punt return list and marked only the second time in 30 years that a Big Ten player had at least 150 punt return yards in a single-game. He currently ranks 12th nationally at 18.0 yards per return and is the only freshman ranked in the top-20 nationally in the category. Pierson-El was also named the College Football Performance Award’s National Punt Returner of the Week.
Sam Foltz was Nebraska’s most recent Big Ten Special Teams winner, as he earned the award for his performance against McNeese State last week.
The Huskers, who are 24th in this week’s AP poll, return to host Miami this Saturday at 7 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN2 and also available on the Husker Sports Radio Network.