Seven Tide Players Earn Coaches’ Awards

Alabama Coach Nick Saban announced Monday that seven players had been recognized by the coaching staff as players of the week for their performances in the Crimson Tide’s 36-0 win over Auburn on Saturday in Tuscaloosa.

The list of Alabama honorees include senior center Antoine Caldwell, senior guard Marlon Davis and junior running back Glen Coffee on offense; senior safety Rashad Johnson and junior linebacker Brandon Fanney on defense; and freshmen Mark Barron and Courtney Upshaw on special teams.

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Caldwell and Davis anchored an offensive line that allowed the Crimson Tide to run the ball 50 times for 234 yards and three touchdowns in the win over arch-rival Auburn. The Tide averaged 4.7 yards per carry in the Iron Bowl. Coffee churned out the bulk of those yards with a 144-yard rushing performance against the Tigers. He averaged 7.2 yards on 20 rushing attempts and scored the Tide’s first touchdown with a 41-yard run around right end in the second quarter. Coffee is third in the SEC with 102.92 yards per game this season.

Caldwell and Coffee were both recognized for the fifth time this season by the coaching staff, while Davis earned his first honor.

Fanney led the Alabama defense with a career-high eight tackles, while Johnson added five tackles, forced a fumble and had one pass-breakup in the win over Auburn. The Crimson Tide defense held the Tigers to 170 total yards of offense in the game and just 57 rushing yards. The Tigers had only eight rushing yards in the second half on Saturday.

Johnson has now been honored nine times this season, joining linebacker Rolando McClain for the highest total on the UA team. Fanney has earned player of the week honors six times, including five times in the last seven games.

Barron and Upshaw combined for three tackles on special teams against the Tigers. Barron had two stops, while Upshaw added one tackle. The Tigers managed just 19 yards in punt returns in the loss to the Crimson Tide. Upshaw has been honored twice this season, while the Auburn game was Barron’s first player of the week recognition.

For the season, Johnson and McClain led the Tide with nine weekly awards, followed by Fanney (6), Caldwell (5), Coffee (5), Javier Arenas (4), P.J. Fitzgerald (4), Julio Jones (4) and John Parker Wilson (4).