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Appalachian State Player Earns SBC Player of Week for Third Time in a Row, Cox Receives Second Such Award

Marcus Cox torched Arkansas State for 229 rushing yards and 283 all-purpose yards in Saturday's 37-32 victory over the three-time-defending Sun Belt champs. Courtesy: Allyson Lamb | App State Athletics
Marcus Cox torched Arkansas State for 229 rushing yards and 283 all-purpose yards in Saturday’s 37-32 victory over the three-time-defending Sun Belt champs. Courtesy: Allyson Lamb | App State Athletics

Nov. 17, 2014. For the third-straight week, an Appalachian State University football standout is the Sun Belt Conference’s Offensive Player of the Week, as running back Marcus Cox has received the award for the second time, the Sun Belt office announced on Monday morning.

Cox’s latest honor comes on the strength of his 229-yard rushing performance in Saturday’s 37-32 victory at three-time-defending Sun Belt champion Arkansas State.

The sophomore’s 229 yards came on a career-high 40 carries, which were the third-most in Appalachian State history and the most by a Mountaineer since Damon Scott toted the ball 42 times in a win over Chattanooga in 1996. The 229 rushing yards were the 13th-highest total in school history.

Cox had two touchdown runs (one and 14 yards), added two receptions for 54 yards and averaged 5.7 yards per rush and 6.7 yards per touch in the win over Arkansas State. He took over the game in the third quarter, when he accounted for 139 of Appalachian’s 176 yards in the period to help the Mountaineers turn a 20-13 halftime deficit into a 27-20 lead.

The 200-yard rushing effort is Cox’s second in three games and the third of his 22-game career. He rushed for a career-high 250 yards against Georgia State on Nov. 1 and had 215 yards on the ground in last season’s finale versus Western Carolina.

Cox, who has six 100-yard games this season and 12 in his career, upped his season rushing total to 1,142 yards on Saturday to become the first running back in Appalachian State history to rush for 1,000 yards as a freshman and sophomore. Quarterback Armanti Edwards (2006-07) is the only other Mountaineer to accomplish the feat.

The Sun Belt honor is Cox’s second, following the one he received after his 250-yard effort against Georgia State. Last week, App State quarterback Taylor Lamb was the Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week after throwing for 276 yards and two touchdowns in a 31-29 win over UL Monroe.

Winners of four-straight, Cox and the Mountaineers travel to Sun Belt power UL Lafayette (7-3, 6-0 Sun Belt) on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. ET at Cajun Field in Lafayette, La.