CHICAGO – The Saint Xavier University football team (1-3/0-0 MSFA Midwest) swept the Mid-States Football Association (MSFA) Midwest League Player of the Week awards when they were announced by the league office Monday afternoon. Freshman wide receiver Coen Demack (Bourbonnais, Ill./Bishop McNamara) was named MSFA Midwest League Offensive Player of the Week, senior defensive back Taj McClellan (Joliet, Ill./Joliet Catholic Academy) earned MSFA Midwest League Defensive Player of the Week honors, and sophomore kicker Christian Casillas (Alsip, Ill./Eisenhower) came away with MSFA Midwest League Special Teams Player of the Week recognition. The trio helped lead the Cougars to a 38-17 victory over Madonna University (Mich.) this past Saturday in Farmington Hills, Mich. McClellan is now a two-time winner, having won last season while also being named NAIA Defensive Player of the Week on September 22, 2025. Casillas and Demack claim their first Player of the Week plaudits.

• Demack caught nine passes for 151 yards and three touchdowns. It was his second game this season with three touchdown receptions. He leads the MSFA with 125.8 yards receiving per game, total receptions with 36, total receiving yards with 503 and touchdown receptions with seven. Nationally, Demack is No. 4 in total receptions, tied for No. 4 in touchdown catches, No. 6 in total receiving yards and No. 8 in receiving yards per game.
• McClellan tied for the team lead with tackles with six, all solos. He added two pass breakups, a sack for 11 yards and a forced fumble. He leads Saint Xavier with six pass breakups and forced fumbles with two. McClellan is fourth on the team with 19 tackles (16 solos). He is tied for the conference lead in forced fumbles and is tied for No. 8 in solo tackles.
• Casillas made all five of his extra-point attempts and he booted a season-long 40-yard field goal. Casillas also had seven kickoffs with an average of 59.9 yards per attempts and two touchbacks. He is one of eight kickers in the MSFA to be perfect on extra-point attempts this season, is tied for No. 4 in made field goals with two, and he had the fifth-longest field goal made this season.
• It is the first time since October 14, 2019 that SXU has swept the MSFA Midwest League Player of the Week awards when former NAIA All-American wide receiver Harold Davis (2016-19) made seven receptions for 114 yards and two scores, former NAIA All-American linebacker Joey Markasovic (2018-22) had a team-best nine tackles, a tackle for loss and a fumble recovery, and former standout kicker Mike Iturbe (2017-20) made four extra-points and set the single-game program record with a 57-yard field goal, also earning NAIA Special Teams Player of the Week, in a 31-28 win at Robert Morris University (Ill.)

Saint Xavier (1-3/0-0 MSFA Midwest) makes its way to Defiance, Ohio to take on Defiance College (Ohio) in another MSFA crossover. The game is set for a 12:00 pm central start.