Maxwell Named Honorable Mention STATS FCS National Player of the Week on Offense
October 12, 2015 | Football
NORTHBROOK, Ill. – Gardner-Webb Tyrell Maxwell has another honor under his belt after engineering a 34-20 upset of No. 15 Liberty this past Saturday night, as STATS tabbed the sophomore as one of its honorable mention national FCS Offensive Player of the Week selections.
Maxwell (Cordova, S.C. / Edisto HS) accounted for 75 percent of his team's offensive total – and had a direct hand in 16 of Gardner-Webb's 17 first downs – in the win. He was honored along with Georgetown quarterback Kyle Nolan. Lamar running back Kade Harrington earned Player of the Week honors after churning out 347 yards on the ground.
In just his fourth career start, Maxwell carried the football 21 times for a career-high 173 yards and three touchdowns – breaking the school's record for quarterback rushing yards and posting the second-best total in that category in Big South Conference history. His three rushing touchdowns tied for the top mark in league history for a quarterback. His rushing total was the highest for any Gardner-Webb player since Phillip Peoples picked up 176 yards vs. Presbyterian on October 18, 2008.
The 6-foot-2, 213-pound standout also completed 10-of-14 passes for 105 yards and a touchdown, powering Gardner-Webb to season highs in total yardage (370) and points (34). Maxwell moved the chains well, with 10 of his runs going for first downs and six of his pass completions resulting in first downs.
Maxwell's first score was electric, as he took a quarterback sweep 45 yards to the house in the first quarter – breaking multiple tackles along the way to put his team up by two touchdowns. He added a one-yard dive in the second quarter to give Gardner-Webb a 20-0 lead and hit freshman Kyle Horton on a 30-yard scoring pass late in the second for a 27-7 GWU advantage.
His final score of the night came one play after a muffed punt – a five yard quarterback draw that saw Maxwell power through five defenders into the end zone.
Maxwell went over 100 yards passing and 100 yards rushing on just 17 snaps by halftime (12.7 yards per play) as GWU built its three-score advantage. Saturday's performance marked the second time this season that Maxwell has thrown for 100-plus and rushed for 100-plus yards in a game – with the first coming at FBS South Alabama in the season opener.
Maxwell already ranks fourth in GWU history with 646 quarterback rushing yards, surpassing Hall of Famer Ray Hannon on Saturday (603 yards) – despite 170 fewer attempts (4.3 career yards per carry). He is on track to become the first quarterback to ever lead the Runnin' Bulldogs in rushing for a season.
Maxwell ranks fifth in Big South history already in rushing yards by a quarterback, just 10 yards behind former NFL and Coastal Carolina signal caller Tyler Thigpen.
So far this season, Maxwell leads Gardner-Webb with 391 yards rushing on 86 carries, averaging a solid 4.5 yards per carry with three touchdowns. He has completed 49-of-93 passes (52.7 percent) for 407 yards and four more scores.
