Javier Arenas Leads Weekly Football Honorees

The University of Alabama football team was included in the weekly Southeastern Conference players of the week honors, as sophomore return man Javier Arenas was named Special Teams Player of the Week following his team’s 27-24 victory over Ole Miss in Oxford on Saturday.

Javier Arenas had one of the best games in his career in the win over the Rebels, helping Alabama earn its fifth victory of the season. He returned two punts for 71 yards in the game, including a key play in the fourth quarter. Arenas took an Ole Miss punt back 54 yards to the Rebel 21-yard line with 8:56 left to go in the game, setting up the Tide’s game-tying drive that culminated in Terry Grant’s three-yard touchdown run.

The Tampa, Fla., native added 93 return yards on the kickoff team, including a 35-yard effort and also played extensively in the Tide secondary as the sixth defensive back. Arenas ranks second in the SEC and is 12th nationally in punt return average with a 16.2 yard per return mark.

Arenas was one of seven Alabama players cited by the Alabama coaching staff in weekly commendations.

On offense, junior quarterback John Parker Wilson received the honor after one of his best outings of the season. Wilson threw for 265 yards in the game, completing 26 of his 40 attempts. He led the Tide to scores on each of its first three possessions in the game, with all three drives covering more than 61 yards.

Wilson’s favorite target against the Rebels was senior wide receiver D.J. Hall, who shared offensive player of the week honors. Hall tallied 11 catches for 140 yards on the afternoon, marking the fourth time in his career that the record-setting receiver recorded 10 or more receptions in a game.

The Tide’s safety duo of Rashad Johnson and Marcus Carter shared defensive player of the week accolades for their performances in the Alabama secondary. Johnson shared the team lead in tackles with nine on the day and picked off his fourth pass of the season in the game, tying him for the SEC lead in interceptions. Johnson also added a sack in the Tide’s win. Carter had six tackles and helped the defense hold Ole Miss scoreless in the fourth quarter to preserve the UA victory.

Special teams honors were shared by two players in addition to Arenas.

Demarcus Waldrop and Charlie Higgenbotham also received the nod after Higgenbotham recorded two tackles and Waldrop added one on special teams units.

DJ Hall was also mentioned by the league in its “Other Outstanding Performances” list.

This week Alabama will host 20th-ranked Tennessee in Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. The game will kick off shortly after 11:30 a.m. CDT and will be telecast regionally on the SEC’s Lincoln Financial network.