VALDOSTA, Ga.- Valdosta State football senior Sammy Edwards and graduate transfer Larry Elder were named the first Steel's Jewelry Athletes of the Week for the 2024-25 season. Along with being named Steel's Jewelry Athletes of the Week, Edwards and Elder also earned Gulf South Conference Player of the Week honors for their stellar performances in the 42-10 win over Albany State on Saturday evening.
 
Edwards threw for four touchdowns and ran for one in the Blazers' win over Albany State to open the season.  Edwards was 18 of 25 passing for 306 yards and four TD passes, while he had three carries for five yards and a touchdown.  Edwards' 306 yards marked the seventh time in his career he has thrown over 300 yards and his fifth game of throwing and running for at least one touchdown.  Edwards had a 72% completion percentage for the game marked the third-best completion percentage game for him in his career as a starter as he improved to 13-2 in starts as a Blazer.
 
Elder finished his first game in a Blazer uniform with a team-high nine total tackles and five solo stops in the Blazers' victory over Albany State in the season-opener for both teams.  Elder was everywhere on the field and had 0.5 tackles for loss, along with one breakup.  Elder and the Blazer defense held ASU to just 318 yards of offense and just 217 through the air and held ASU to a 3.2 average on the ground. 
 
The Valdosta State football team will look to continue its hot start this weekend when it heads to Newberry College for the first road game of the season on Saturday at 7 p.m. For more information on that matchup and all things Blazer football, visit vstateblazers.com and head to the football schedule page.