KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association has announced new Football Athlete of the Week awards for week two of the 2026 season. Central Missouri’s Jordan Pachot was named the Offensive Athlete of the Week, Missouri Southern’s Asher Huffman was named the Special Teams Athlete of the Week, and Emporia State’s Landon Boss was named the season’s first back-to-back Defensive Athlete of the Week.
OFFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Jordan Pachot, QB, Central Missouri
Central Missouri’s starting quarterback Jordan Pachot helped the Mules to a 49-10 home and MIAA-opening win over the Missouri Western State University Griffons last Thursday, Sept. 3, in Warrensburg, Mo. The fifth year from Highland, Calif., finished 21-of-31 for 254 yards and threw for four touchdowns. His touchdown throws were on passes of 1, 5, 8 and 30 yards. Pachot also compiled 12 rushing yards on four attempts and avoided being sacked or intercepted in the 39-point victory.
DEFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Landon Boss, LB, Emporia State
Landon Boss, the reigning MIAA Defensive Player of the Year, begins the 2026 season as the league’s back-to-back Defensive Athlete of the Week. Boss totaled seven tackles, 2.5 tackles for a loss, had an interception, a pass breakup and a quarterback hurry as the Hornets held then No. 10-ranked Pittsburg State to 279 yards of total offense in the Hornets’ 21-10 MIAA road win. On the Gorillas’ second drive of the game, Boss had a tackle for a nine-yard loss on third down, forcing Pitt State to punt from their own ten-yard line, which the Hornets’ offense used the resulting short field to score the first touchdown of the game. Pitt State took their first drive of the second half down to the Emporia State ten-yard line where Boss intercepted a pass to end the Gorillas’ scoring threat. Boss went on to record three of his seven tackles in the fourth quarter as the Hornets held on for the 21-10 victory, their second straight win in Carnie Smith Stadium.
SPECIAL TEAMS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Asher Huffman, K, Missouri Southern
Asher Huffman delivered a flawless performance in the kicking game in Missouri Southern’s 21-19 non-conference victory over Upper Iowa, converting all three of his extra-point attempts while also providing consistent field-position advantages on kickoff duty. The sophomore’s three successful PATs accounted for three points in the Lions’ 21-19 victory. Beyond his scoring production, Huffman was also highly effective on kickoff duty. He recorded four kickoffs for 260 yards, averaging 65.0 yards per kickoff, with all four kicks resulting in touchbacks.
OTHER NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
Ben Harris, QB, Emporia State
Ben Harris had 343 yards of total offense in the Hornets’ 21-10 win at then No. 10-ranked Pittsburg State. The senior quarterback threw for 40 yards and added a 19-yard rush on a 55-yard drive that gave the Hornets a 7-0 lead with 7:50 left in the first quarter. He then went 6-of-7 for 67 yards, including a 2-yard toss to Trenden Collins to cap a nine-play, 75-yard drive that gave Emporia the 14-0 lead with 2:31 left in the opening quarter.
Nathan Lewis Jr., WR, Washburn
Nathan Lewis Jr. collected six catches for a career-high 141 yards and was responsible for Washburn’s two touchdowns in the Ichabods’ 16-16 tie with Colorado Mines. His first score of the game was a 28-yard reception that put the Ichabods up 7-0 on Washburn's first drive of the game. His second touchdown was a 47-yard reception with 1:48 to go in the game that tied the score at 16-all.
Kyan Franklin, DL, Central Missouri
Kyan Franklin paced the Mules defense in Central Missouri's home and MIAA-opening 49-10 win over Missouri Western on Sept. 3 in Warrensburg. The senior defensive lineman recorded a team-high nine tackles, including three solo and six assisted. He also had 3.5 tackles-for-loss for 13 yards, 1.5 quarterback sacks for 11 yards, and a quarterback hurry. Franklin’s nine tackles tied his career-high, while his 1.5 sacks were a career-best.
Briar McIntire, LB, Missouri Southern
Briar McIntire was a critical presence in the Lions’ defense throughout Missouri Southern’s 21-19 victory over Upper Iowa. The redshirt sophomore from Archie, Mo., led the Lions defense with a career-high nine total tackles, including two solo tackles and seven assisted tackles, while also contributing 0.5 tackles for loss. His consistent production was instrumental in helping Missouri Southern limit Upper Iowa to just 19 points and 289 total yards in a tightly contested two-point victory. The Peacocks offense finished the game with only 163 passing yards, while Missouri Southern’s defense limited the Peacocks to just 4-of-12 conversions on third down.
ALSO NOMINATED:
OFFENSE – Isaiah Green [Missouri Southern], Major Cantrell [Fort Hays State]
DEFENSE – Gaven Haselhorst [Fort Hays State], Brody Hayes [Washburn]
SPECIAL TEAMS – Divante Herrig-Brittian [Emporia State], Logan Russell [Fort Hays State], Marty Mormino [Nebraska Kearney], Everett Grower [Washburn]
2026 MIAA FOOTBALL ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
WEEK ONE:
Offensive – Isaiah Tate, QB, Missouri Western
Defensive – Landon Boss, LB, Emporia State
Special Teams – Bradley Theo, K, Central Oklahoma
WEEK TWO:
Offensive – Jordan Pachot, QB, Central Missouri
Defensive – Landon Boss, LB, Emporia State
Special Teams – Asher Huffman, K, Missouri Southern
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