GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida Gators defensive lineman Caleb Banks, defensive back Bryce Thornton, and punter Jeremy Crawshaw earned SEC weekly honors for their performance vs Ole Miss, the conference announced Monday. These honors mark the second-straight week that Florida has earned three SEC Weekly Honors. It’s the first time in Florida’s history they’ve had three honorees in back-to-back weeks, or twice at any point in a season.
DL Caleb Banks: Co-Defensive Lineman of the Week
Redshirt junior defensive lineman Caleb Banks recorded just four tackles in Saturday’s win, however, all four were tackles for loss of Ole Miss’ quarterback Jaxson Dart. Banks recorded 2.5 sacks and also stopped Dart on a rush attempt before the line of scrimmage.
Banks led the Gators in QB pressures with seven, which also ranked 1st among all defensive tackles in week 13. Banks paced a defensive front that totaled nine tackles for loss.
The 6’6, 325-pound defensive tackle has been a force on the interior of Florida’s defensive line the last few weeks, totaling 3.5 sacks, 4.5 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and one pass deflection in Florida’s last two games.
DB Bryce Thornton: Co-Defensive Player of the Week
Thornton tallied a career-high 14 tackles, leading a Florida defense which held the Rebels’ high-powered offense to just 17 points. Thornton recorded two interceptions in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s contest, each ending Ole Miss’ final two drives of the game.
The sophomore safety played all but one snap against Ole Miss, logging 78 snaps while still recovering from an ankle injury.
“Bryce has been a huge bright spot, stepping up in a major way,” Billy Napier said postgame. “Obviously we’ve had some injuries there. Two picks and a career high in tackles, and coming off of an injury. Bryce has been in that training room every day for weeks, and I think he’s really stepped up for our team in a major way. Bryce got good experience last year, and I think ultimately he’s a very capable player. He showed out today.”
P Jeremy Crawshaw: Special Teams Player of the Week
Crawshaw launched seven punts on Saturday’s game, including a 62-yard rocket that took a bounce into the Ole Miss endzone. Crawshaw was a weapon in Saturday’s field position battle, as Ole Miss was unable to score a touchdown on any of the six drives that began via a Crawshaw punt and were held to just one field goal.
The highlight of Crawshaw’s performance was his first punt of the second half – a high-flying, knuckling kick that drifted such that returner Micah Davis couldn’t field it cleanly, and Florida’s DJ Douglas recovered it at the Ole Miss 37-yard line. The repossession would result in a go-ahead 53-yard field goal from Trey Smack to take a 17-14 lead in the third quarter.
Crawshaw earned ST player of the week with his family in town, who traveled to Gainesville from Australia for the game. His two brothers who made the trip had never been to the United States.