By: Washington State Athletic Communications
SAN FRANCISCO – Washington State defensive lineman Hercules Mata'afa and kicker Erik Powell each earned Pac-12 Conference Player of the Week accolades, conference commissioner Larry Scott announced Monday.
Mata'afa earned his first career defensive player of the week honor after matching a career high with eight tackles while setting career-highs with five tackles-for-loss, three sacks, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery in the Cougars 33-25 win at Utah. The redshirt-junior from Lahaina, Hawaii tied for the second-most tackles-for-loss in WSU single-game history while the Cougar defense forced seven turnovers to improve to 9-2 on the season.