CAA Football Weekly Awards - Oct. 6
Rob Washburn
RICHMOND, Va. (October 6, 2025) – CAA Football has announced its weekly award winners for Week 6 of the 2025 season. Monmouth sophomore running back Rodney Nelson earned Offensive Player of the Week accolades while William & Mary graduate linebacker Luke Banbury received Defensive Player of the Week honors. Stony Brook freshman kicker Michael Mannino was named the Special Teams Player of the Week and Hampton freshman defensive back Andre Jackson, Jr. was selected as Rookie of the Week.
CAA Football Offensive Player of the Week
Rodney Nelson, So., RB, Monmouth (Owings Mills, Md./Franklin)
Nelson rushed for a career-high 203 yards and two touchdowns on 32 carries as Monmouth beat Delaware State, 49-38. The 203 yards were the most by a CAA back this season and the 8
th-most in FCS in 2025. It was the fourth game this season with 100+ yards for Nelson, who leads FCS with 142.4 rushing ypg. He also had a 15-yard reception.
CAA Football Defensive Player of the Week
Luke Banbury, Gr., LB, William & Mary (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair)
Banbury set career-highs with 17 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks in William & Mary’s 38-34 win over North Carolina A&T. The graduate linebacker’s sack on 4
th-and-goal at the 3-yard line with 2:49 to go helped seal the victory and kept A&T scoreless over the final 20 minutes. Banbury leads the CAA with 75 stops this season.
CAA Football Special Teams Player of the Week
Michael Mannino, Fr., PK, Stony Brook (Huntington Station, N.Y./Walt Whitman)
Mannino was a perfect 2-for-2 on field goals and 4-for-4 on extra points in Stony Brook’s 47-12 triumph at rival UAlbany. The freshman booted a 46-yard field goal just before halftime to put SBU ahead by four and added a 34-yarder in the fourth quarter. Mannino, who also had five touchbacks on nine kickoffs, is 4-for-6 on FG’s this season.
CAA Football Rookie of the Week
Andre Jackson, Jr., Fr., DB, Hampton (Charlotte, N.C./Covian Community School)
Jackson recorded a team-high 12 tackles and a sack as Hampton topped rival Norfolk State, 41-34, in the Battle of the Bay. The freshman defensive back had tallied just 13 stops in limited action over the first five games before his standout effort vs. NSU. The Pirates’ defense forced a pair of turnovers and made two sacks in the game.