Flanders earns National/Southland honors
9/26/2011 12:19:00 PM | Football
After a record breaking performance on Saturday at New Mexico, Sam Houston State running back Tim Flanders is racking up the individual honors.
Flanders was named a College Sporting News National All-Star and Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Week after leading the Bearkats to a 48-45 overtime victory at New Mexico Saturday.
Flanders also was named as NCAA Division I FCS "Running Back of the Week" by College Football Performance Awards.com and was the only Football Championship Subdivision player recognized as one of the Sporting News' top six college football outstanding players for the weekend.
"We have a great running back--he's a great player, and there are not many running backs that are better than that guy," head coach Willie Fritz said about Flanders. "I think he's the best. It was a great job by the offense. I think they carried us tonight. Sometimes it happens in football where one phase of the ball has to carry the other one. I think he is one of the best running backs in the country and certainly the best at our level."
Flanders set the school record with five rushing touchdowns and posted a career-high 194 yards rushing as the Bearkats picked up their third victory over a team from the Football Bowl Subdivision.
The sophomore from Midwest City, Okla. (Miwest City H.S.), scored touchdowns on runs of 61, 53, 3 and 2 yards in regulation and then added a run of 4 yards for the game-winning score in overtime. It was his fourth consecutive 100-yard rushing performance dating back to last season and was his 10th career 100-yard game, one short of school record.
"We didn't feel too intimidated. New Mexico has some guys that are bigger, but I redshirted at Kansas State and it's not a big difference to us," Flanders said. "I think that they kind of underestimated us, but after coming out here and playing hard, we changed their minds."
Flanders is averaging 151.7 rushing yards per game, which leads the Southland and ranks third nationally.
The honor marks the second week in a row for the Southland's "Offensive Player of the Week" to be a Bearkats. Richard Sincere earned the award after SHSU's victory over No. 18 Central Arkansas.
After only 13 games in his college career, Flanders already has cracked the top 25 in Sam Houston all-time rushing. The sophomore has carried 244 times for 1,361 yards as a Bearkat. His 19 rushing touchdowns ranks ninth in Kat career annals.
Saturday's performance was Flanders' fourth consecutive 100-yard rushing performance (starting with final game of 2010) and his 10th career 100 yard game, one short of SHSU school mark. With his 151,7 yards per game this season, Flanders leads the Southland Conference and ranks No. 3 nationally in Football Championship Subdivision rushing.
Sam Houston State faces another NCAA Division I FBS team next Saturday when UTSA visits Elliott T. Bowers Stadium for a 6 p.m. non-conference contest Oct. 1. The Roadrunners are in their inaugural season of football and will begin competition in the Western Athletic Conference in 2012.
The Bearkats return to Southland Conference action in two weeks when they take on defending league champion Stephen F. Austin in the 86th "Battle of the Piney Woods" presented by YP.com at Reliant Stadium in Houston at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 8.
Tickets for all Sam Houston home games at Bowers Stadium are available now online at www.gobearkats.com/tickets or at the SHSU Athletic Ticket Office located in the Ron Mafrige Field House in the south end zone of Bowers. Ticket office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The ticket office telephone is (936) 294-1729.
