PISCATAWAY, N.J. – After previously being named Big Ten Co-Defensive Player of the Week, Rutgers football's
Olakunle Fatukasi was selected by the Maxwell Football Club as the Bednarik Award National Player of the Week on Tuesday. The honor is given weekly for the nation's most outstanding defensive performance.
Fatukasi was part of the Scarlet Knights' 38-27 victory at Michigan State with 10 tackles, an assisted tackle-for-loss, two fumble recoveries and a forced fumble. Overall, Rutgers created seven takeaways in the game, the most by the team since 2000 and most by a Big Ten squad since 2010. The defense held the Spartans to 50 yards on the ground, the best rushing defense performance for the program in a Big Ten game since joining the league.
Fatukasi, who reached double-digit tackles for the third time in his career, gathered a fumble caused by
Avery Young in the first quarter and later punched out and recovered a fumble in the third quarter. He is the first Scarlet Knight with multiple fumble recoveries in a game since Lorenzo Waters versus North Carolina in the 2014 Quick Lane Bowl. In addition, he became the first RU player with two fumble recoveries and a forced fumble in the same game since Deway Thompson at Pittsburgh in 2000.
The last Scarlet Knight to win the Bednarik Award National Player of the Week was Khaseem Greene on Oct. 16, 2012.
The Scarlet Knights are back at SHI Stadium Saturday versus No. 17 Indiana in a game presented by PNC Bank (3:30 p.m., Big Ten Network).
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