KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association has announced its second football athletes of the week from the 2025 season. Missouri Southern’s quarterback Tillman Martin was named the Offensive Athlete of the Week while Fort Hays State’s John Johnson and Taderian Partee collected the Defensive and Special Teams Athlete of the Week honors.
OFFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Tillman Martin, QB, Missouri Southern
Tillman Martin threw for 446 yards to lead Missouri Southern to a 38-31 victory over Southwest Baptist on the road last Saturday. The true freshman from Liberty, Mo., completed 18-for-27 passing with four touchdowns – the most of any MIAA quarterback in Week Two’s action. Martin put the Lions on the board with an 81-yard connection to Isaiah Green before a 36-yard touchdown to Nathan Glades. Martin also scored on the ground, adding a four-yard touchdown to provide the Lions a 21-3 edge. He added a 28-yard touchdown to Ayden Robinson-Wayne as MSSU led 28-17 at the half and capped his day with a 32-yard haul to Draper Parker in the third quarter. Martin’s 463 yards of total offense ranks fifth all-time in MSSU history. His five-touchdown outing puts him third all-time for a single game (fifth in MSSU history for passing touchdowns) with the Lions. Finally, Martin’s 446 passing yards rank second for a single-game passing at Southern.
DEFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: John Johnson, LB, Fort Hays State
John Johnson recorded a team-high 13 total tackles (nine unassisted, four assisted) in Fort Hays State’s one-point win on the road over No. 5-ranked CSU Pueblo in Colorado last Thursday. The senior linebacker’s 13 tackles matched his third-highest total in a game for his career, just two shy of his career high. With the game knotted at 29-29, Johnson had a key tackle that kept the Thunderwolves shy of a first down at FHSU’s 36-yard line. Moments later, the Tigers got a turnover on downs before driving down to score their game-decisive touchdown for the 36-35 victory.
SPECIAL TEAMS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Taderian Partee, DL, Fort Hays State
Defensive lineman Taderian Partee had the big special teams play that secured a one-point win for Fort Hays State on the road over No. 5-ranked Thunderwolves. With only 27 seconds remaining, Colorado State-Pueblo scored a touchdown to trail by just one point, 36-35. Partee blocked the Thunderwolves point-after attempt to keep the Tigers in the lead as they went on to secure the onside kick for the win. Partee also recorded two tackles in the game on defense as the Tigers took down their highest-ranked opponent in the program’s NCAA Division II history.
OTHER NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
Caleb Heavner, QB, Fort Hays State
Caleb Heavner generated 296 yards of total offense in the Tigers’ one-point win (36-35) over No. 5 Colorado State-Pueblo on the road. The junior quarterback threw for 226 yards, completing 19-of-27 attempts with two touchdowns, and also ran for a team-high 70 yards in the game. With FHSU down 29-21 in the fourth quarter, Heavner had a 59-yard pass connection with Tariq Logan, which eventually set up the touchdown and 2-point conversion to tie the game. Then, with under nine minutes to go, he rushed for 36 yards and four first downs to eventually set up FHSU's go-ahead touchdown with 1:47 remaining. It proved to be enough as FHSU won by one point. CSU Pueblo was the highest AFCA-ranked team the Tigers defeated in their NCAA Division II history.
Jordan Pigram, DL, Northwest Missouri
Jordan Pigram recorded three of Northwest's seven quarterback sacks in a 34-7 win at Washburn on Saturday. The sophomore defensive lineman was a part of the Bearcat defense that did not allow Washburn to take an offensive snap on the other side of the 50-yard line. All 51 of Washburn's snaps came outside of the 50-yard line. Pigram's three sacks accounted for 17 yards lost for the Ichabods, while Washburn rushed for a total of minus-19 yards in the contest.
Johnny Wilson, DL, Central Oklahoma
Johnny Wilson led a strong defensive effort for No. 19 Central Oklahoma's 27-24 win over No. 13 Pittsburg State. The senior defensive end made nine tackles, including three in the backfield. He recorded one sack for a loss of five yards early in the game to set the tone for the night. He was also credited with one quarterback hurry as the Bronchos used defense to win against the Gorillas for the first time since 2015. Wilson ended the game with six solo tackles and three assisted stops. His three tackles in the backfield totaled a combined loss of 11 yards.
Joseph Kim, K, Central Oklahoma
Joseph Kim hit 2-of-3 field goals and proved to be the difference in No. 19 Central Oklahoma's win over No. 13 Pittsburg State. The sophomore kicker hit two 37-yard field goals and missed one from 47 yards out. He made one in the first half to help keep the Bronchos in front of Pitt State 17-16, then his fourth quarter field goal gave the Bronchos a 27-24 lead with 14:50 remaining to seal the game for the Bronchos. Kim also kicks off for the Bronchos and delivered five kickoffs for 315 yards, an average of 63.2 yards per kick and he was 3-for-3 on PATs, scoring nine points in the game.
ALSO NOMINATED:
OFFENSE – Jaylen Cottrell [Central Oklahoma], Dominic Myers [Northwest Missouri], Isaiah Harris [Nebraska Kearney], Kingsley Bennett [Emporia State]
DEFENSE – Zach Bergmann [Missouri Southern], Marte Russell [Emporia State], Ife Current [Nebraska Kearney]
SPECIAL TEAMS – Trey Kennedy [Nebraska Kearney], Dylan Davidson [Emporia State]
WEEK ZERO:
Offensive – Justin Lewis, QB, Washburn
Defensive – Zach Bergmann, LB, Missouri Southern
Special Teams – Aidan Battle, K, Washburn
WEEK ONE:
Offensive – Tillman Martin, QB, Missouri Southern
Defensive – John Johnson, LB, Fort Hays State
Special Teams – Taderian Partee, DL, Fort Hays State