RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – The Great American Conference announced the football players of the week for the third week of the 2023 season. Harding's Hunter Willis and Southern Nazarene's Gage Porter shared the Offensive honor; Oklahoma Baptist's Chase Whitebear earned the Defensive accolade and Ouachita Baptist's Carter McElhany received the Special Teams award.

#theGAC FOOTBALL CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Hunter Willis, OL, Harding, Sr., Kimberly, Alabama
Willis led a Harding attack that rushed for a season-high 424 yards and scored seven touchdowns as part of a 59-19 victory against 2-0 Arkansas-Monticello. The Bisons averaged 7.3 yards per rush. In 36 plays at left guard for the Bisons, he graded out at 100 percent.

#theGAC FOOTBALL CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Gage Porter, QB, Southern Nazarene, Gr., Elk City, Oklahoma
Porter helped the Crimson Storm move above .500 for the first time since 2017 as he accounted for 346 of their 549 yards of offense in a 42-29 road win against Northwestern Oklahoma State. He went 12-for-17 passing for 169 yards and two touchdowns. He ran for 177 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries - highlighted by a 90-yard run in the first quarter.

#theGAC FOOTBALL DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Chase Whitebear, CB, Oklahoma Baptist, So., Haslet, Texas
Whitebear registered eight tackles and collected two of the Bison's five turnovers in their 36-3 win against Southeastern Oklahoma State. In the second quarter, he recovered a fumble and intercepted a pass. Both led to Bison touchdowns. The three points Bison limited the Savage Storm to represented the fewest points scored by the Southeastern offense in 51 games. 

#theGAC FOOTBALL SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Carter McElhany, RS, Ouachita Baptist, Fr., Greenbrier, Arkansas
McElhany returned three kickoffs for an average of 32.0 yards as part of the Tigers' 52-24 home win against Southern Arkansas. His first return went for 53 yards and led to a touchdown. He added a 30-yard return late in the second quarter. He hauled in a 73-yard touchdown reception.