Oct. 22, 2007

NEW ORLEANS, La. - A trio of Tulane University football standouts earned Player of the Week honors as senior running back Matt Forté claimed Offensive honors from Conference USA while the duo of senior defensive tackle Avery Williams and sophomore place kicker Ross Thevenot claimed Louisiana Sports Writers Association Defensive and Special Teams Players of the Week honors, respectively.

Forté's C-USA Offensive Player of the Week title was his second of the 2007 season and third of his career. It is also the third Player of the week honor for Forté this week as he claimed Walter Camp Football Foundation National Offensive Player of the Week and was one of four student-athletes nominated for the AT&T All-America Player of the Week Award on Sunday. Williams and Thevenot, meanwhile, earned their first weekly honors of their respective careers.

A senior running back from Slidell, La., Forté earned the C-USA honor for the second time this season after setting Tulane and league records with 342 yards rushing while scoring four touchdowns on 38 carries in the Green Wave's 41-34 overtime victory over SMU. Forté had two nine-yard touchdown runs - including what proved to be the game-winner in overtime -a five-yard scoring jaunt in the fourth quarter and a career-long 77-yard touchdown sprint in the second quarter.

He had five carries for 34 yards in the first quarter of Saturday's game at SMU, six carries for 123 yards and a touchdown in the second quarter, 12 carries for 73 yards and a score in the third quarter, 12 carries for 104 yards and a touchdown in the fourth, and three carries for 15 yards and the game-winning touchdown in overtime. Forté averaged 9.0 yards per carry, including runs of 20, 27, 65 and 77 yards.

Williams shared LSWA Defensive Player of the Week honors with LSU linebacker Ali Highsmith. In Saturday's game at SMU, the Houston, Texas, native posted five tackles including a sack, two tackles for loss and the game-clinching fumble recovery in overtime.

All five of his tackles were of the solo variety and he clinched the game by recovering a fumble by SMU quarterback Justin Willis on the first play of the Mustangs' possession in overtime. His best quarter of the ballgame came in the second when he posted three stops, including two tackles for losses totaling five yards and a sack.

Thevenot, meanwhile, claimed the LSWA Special Teams Player of the Week title after drilling a pair of field goals and going perfect on five PAT tries. The native of Lake Charles, La., hit a 32-yard field goal with six seconds left to play in the first half to send the teams into the locker room at halftime tied at 17-all.

He broke the tie after hammering a career-long 47-yard field goal into the teeth of a 16 mile-per-hour wind as the Green Wave never trailed the rest of the way. Thevenot's 11 points were a career high, and he also handled all of Tulane's kickoff duties, averaging 55.4 yards on seven boots with a touchback.

Forté is also one of four nominees for the AT&T All-America Player of the Week Award, joining Alabama wide receiver D.J. Hall, Oregon running back Jonathan Stewart and UCLA cornerback Al Verner on the ballot, which was selected by ESPN.

Fans can determine the winner by text messaging VOTE to 87654 on their wireless telephone. Voting will take place until 10:59 p.m. (CST) on Wednesday, Oct. 24, and the winner will be announced on Oct. 25 during Thursday's ESPN College Football Primetime presented by Applebee's football game between Boston College and Virginia Tech.

There is no limit on fan voting, and each vote counts as one entry into a sweepstakes to win a trip to the 2008 BCS National Championship game in the Louisiana Superdome. The AT&T All-America Player of the Week program will continue throughout the season, with the nominees being revealed each Sunday on ESPN's SportsCenter at 8 a.m. (CST) and on the web at www.espnallamerica.com.

Forté, Williams, Thevenot and the Green Wave return to action on Saturday, Oct. 27, when they celebrate Homecoming 2007 against Memphis at 2 p.m. in the Louisiana Superdome. Single-game tickets for the 2007 Green Wave season remain on sale through the Tulane Athletics Ticket Office. Tickets can be purchased in person, over the telephone at (504) 861-WAVE or via the internet at www.TulaneGreenWave.com.