Robert Alvarez

Junior Robert Alvarez's major contributions during The College of Wooster football team's 44-34 win over Bluffton University on Saturday were recognized on Tuesday by the North Coast Athletic Conference, which selected the defensive end as its Defensive Player-of-the-Week.

Alvarez had a hand in two of the Fighting Scots' four takeaways on Saturday. First, he recovered a fumble on the Beavers' 33-yard line, worked his way through traffic, and thanks to a key block by classmate D'Andre Brown, found himself in the end zone for what marked the Scots' first fumble return for a touchdown on an opponent's rushing play since 2007.

In the third quarter, Alvarez strip-sacked Bluffton's Plummie Gardner inside the Beavers' 20-yard line, and junior Nick Barto-Brown emerged from the pile with the pigskin.

Noteworthy this is the second time Alvarez has earned weekly recognition from the NCAC. He previously earned the league's weekly defensive award for his single-game program record 4.5 sacks at Hiram College on Oct. 21, 2017.