VALDOSTA, Ga. – Valdosta State sophomore punter Noah Botsford and graduate student defensive back Jacob Harris were named Gulf South Conference Special Teams and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, the conference office announced Monday.  This is the first weekly honor for both Botsford and Harris this season.
 
Botsford, a native of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and a Temple University transfer, had a season-high seven punts for 324 yards in the No. 24 Blazers' thrilling, 31-28, come-from-behind victory at No. 8/18 West Florida on Saturday evening.  He averaged 46.3 yards per punt and registered a season-high long of 52 yards. He also finished with one punt inside 20, which occurred in the second quarter as a 46-yarder was spotted at the West Florida eight-yard line, which resulted in a Blazer defensive touchdown in the next play.
 
For the season, he has 30 punts for 1,234 yards and a 41.3 average with a long of 52 yards.  He has nine punts inside the 20, two over 50 yards, nine fair catches and one touchback. 
 
Harris registered a career-high 14 tackles, including 11 solo stops on Saturday, while he was all over the field for the Blazers and tallied one pass breakup and recovered a fumble for a touchdown to get VSU on the board in the second quarter.  It was the first defensive touchdown of the season for VSU.  
 
Both Botsford and Harris join junior quarterback Sammy Edwards (2), junior running back G'Mone Wilson and graduate defensive back Nick Jackson to earn GSC Player of the Week honors this season.  
 
VSU (8-1, 5-1 GSC) head to West Alabama (4-4, 3-3 GSC) for a 2 p.m. ET kick on Saturday, Nov. 4 in Livingston, Ala.  The Blazers then close out the regular season on Saturday, Nov. 11 at 7 p.m. at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium versus West Georgia for the final Peach Basket Game prior to UWG's move to NCAA Division I in the fall of 2024.