By Thomas Corhern, TTU Sports Information

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – With a big win over Austin Peay on Sunday to open the 2020-21 football season, the Tennessee Tech football team took away three Ohio Valley Conference honors when the league announced its awards on Tuesday.

Junior running back David Gist was named the Offensive Player of the Week, junior linebacker Seth Carlisle was named the Defensive Player of the Week and freshman kicker/punter Hayden Olsen was the Specialist of the Week as the Golden Eagles took three of the four weekly awards, as voted on by the conference's sports information contacts.

Gist ran for two fourth-quarter touchdowns to put Tennessee Tech on top over Austin Peay. He ended the game with 56 yards on 20 carries against a stingy APSU defensive front, but his biggest carries came in the fourth quarter as he rushed for a two- and three-yard score to help Tech overcome a 14-10 deficit to take a 24-14 lead.

Carlisle led the Golden Eagles on defense as he collected a game-high 11 tackles – eight solo and three assisted. He also recovered a fumble on a kickoff at the APSU 21, setting up a touchdown-scoring drive. Carlisle also had a pass breakup in the contest. He was also named an honorable mention on Monday for Stats Perform's National Defensive Player of the Week award.

In his first career game as a true freshman, Olsen had an impressive debut. On field goals, he went 2-for-3, connecting from 25 and 32 yards in windy conditions, while also going 3-for-3 on PATs. Also handling kickoff and punting duties, Olsen averaged 38.0 yards per punt with one inside the 20 and one touchback, and averaged 57.8 yards on kickoffs.

Austin Peay freshman quarterback Draylen Ellis took the other OVC honor as Newcomer of the Week. Ellis had 214 yards of total offense with two touchdowns – one passing and one rushing.

No. 23 Tech, ranked in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 for the first time since 2011, will hit the road this week to take on No. 16-ranked Jacksonville State. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.