Sept. 24, 2001
Sophomore tailback Fred Boateng has been named Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Week after leading WCU to a 20-6 road victory versus East Tennessee State, it has been announced.
The Falls Church, Va., native gained 186 yards on 33 attempts, a 5.6 average, while rushing for the only two touchdowns in the game and a two-point conversion. Holding a narrow 6-3 lead at the break, Boateng keyed WCU's rushing attack in the second half, gaining 140 yards on 20 attempts in the final 30 minutes.
On WCU's first possession of the second half, Boateng rushed six times during the Cats 11-play scoring drive, capped by his 11-yard touchdown run. Boateng also played a significant role in the Cats' final score, rushing eight times on the 10-play drive and accounting for 58 of the team's 65 yards during the drive. Boateng added his second TD of the contest, a four-yard effort, and provided the final 20-6 margin of victory by adding the two-point conversion.
With his 186 yards, Boateng now has 1,267 yards in only 14 career games, which ranks 13th on WCU's all-time rushers list. He passed Ken Morgan (1,211) this past week and only needs 27 yards to pass Paul Smith (1,293) for 12th.
Boateng becomes WCU's second SoCon honoree this season as Justin Fryer was tabbed the league's Defensive Player of the Week after the season opener. Also earning league honors this week were Wofford's Robert Mathis (Defensive Player of the Week) and Georgia Southern's Jonathan Woodham (Freshman of the Week).
The Western Carolina University Department of Athletics has announced that there will be additional safety and security measures in effect for this Saturday's football game versus. Furman at Whitmire Stadium.
One of the additional security measures will involve the search of all purses, backpacks, and other bags that fans are bringing into the stadium. Western urges that fans plan an earlier than normal arrival time to allow sufficient time to enter through the gates as these new security measures are implemented. Western also urges fans to limit carry-in items to necessities in order to expedite the entry process for all fans.
"We are not trying to cause any unnecessary hassle for our fans, but we do want to ensure that each and every person feels safe to attend a football game on our campus," said WCU Director of Athletics Jeff Compher. "In light of the recent events in our country, we do not want to take any chances, even in a friendly community like Cullowhee."
Kickoff for the Furman contest is set for 6:00 p.m., with gates set to open at 4:30 p.m. Furman comes to E.J. Whitmire Stadium as the fourth-ranked team in the nation. For the third week in a row, Western has been among those receiving votes.
