JONESBORO, Ark. — Arkansas State redshirt-freshman quarterback Layne Hatcher was named Monday as one of eight Manning Award “Stars of the Week” after helping lead the Red Wolves to a 50-43 road victory over Troy.
College football fans can now go to the Allstate Sugar Bowl Facebook page to vote for what they think was the best performance from this past weekend. When voting closes Thursday at 11 a.m. (CT), the player who received the most votes will be announced as the Manning Award Quarterback of the Week.
Hatcher, making his first career start, carved up the Troy defense for 440 yards on 25-of-35 passing with four touchdowns. He did so by finding six different receivers, most notably Omar Bayless (213), Jonathan Adams (105) and Kirk Merritt (103), who all recorded 100-yard nights. Hatcher completed a 92-yard touchdown pass to Bayless on A-State’s first offensive play of the game, the second longest pass play in school history, third longest in the nation this season and tied for the fourth longest in Sun Belt history.
The Manning Award was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in 2004 to honor the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. It is the only quarterback award that includes the candidates’ bowl performances in its balloting.
A-State returns to action for an SBC road matchup at Georgia State on Saturday, Oct. 5. Kickoff from Atlanta is set for 2:30 p.m. (CT) and the game will be aired on ESPN+.