Brandon Bell, Grant Haley and Marcus Allen Earn Big Ten Player of the Week Honors

The good news continues to roll in for Penn State Football as a trio of Nittany Lions have received Big Ten Player of the Week honors.

For the third game in a row, a Penn State player has been named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week. Brandon Bell earned the honor following an incredible 19 tackle, one sack performance to pace an outstanding effort by the Penn State defense against Ohio State on Saturday. Safety Marcus Allen claimed the honor after collecting 22 tackles against Minnesota on Oct. 1, while linebacker Brandon Smith was recognized for his standout game against Maryland on Oct. 8, where he accumulated 14 tackles and an interception. This was Bell’s first game action since week two, when he was forced to leave the contest in the first half with an injury. Bell seemed to be around the ball on every play, and gave the Nittany Lions defense a major boost that helped limit Ohio State’s offense to 19 points (with two points coming off a special teams miscue), after they averaged nearly 50 points per game entering the contest.

Allen and cornerback Grant Haley share the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week honors for the Block-Six touchdown that ultimately gave the Nittany Lions the victory against Ohio State. It was the first time Penn State had returned a blocked field goal for a touchdown in 56 years, and could not have come at a better time. It’s one of those handful of plays that will live on forever in Penn State lore and has already been immortalized in t-shirt form.

Congratulations Brandon, Grant and Marcus!