Oct. 18, 2004
COLORADO SPRINGS -- San Diego State senior linebacker Kirk Morrison has been named the Mountain West Conference defensive player of the week for his efforts in the Aztecs' 21-17 loss to Colorado State on Saturday. It is the second time in his career theta he has captured the league honor.
Morrison (Oakland, Calif.) recorded 14 tackles, including eight solo, as San Diego State limited the Rams to a season-low 196 yards of total offense. He also had two tackles for loss, forced a fumble and recovered a fumble. The 14 tackles are one shy of his career best of 15 set vs. Nevada earlier this season.
Through six games, Morrison leads SDSU with 62 tackles, including 41 solo stops. His 7.5 tackles-for loss ties for the team lead. He also leads the Mountain West Conference with an average of 10.3 tackles per game and his 1.25 tackles-for-loss per game is third-best in the MWC this week.
Last week, Morrison was named one of 12 semifinalists for the 2004 Butkus Award, presented annually to the best linebacker in college football. The semifinalists were chosen from a preseason watch list of 68 players.
Morrison was a first-team All-America linebacker last year, according to College Football News. He is a two-time all-conference player and the reigning Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year. Morrison is also on the watch list for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy (outstanding defensive player), the Chuck Bednarik Award (outstanding defensive player), the Lombardi Award (outstanding offensive or defensive lineman) and the Lott Trophy (defensive impact player of the year).
SDSU travels to Albuquerque this Saturday (Oct. 23) where it will face New Mexico at 4:30 p.m. (MDT).