Wheeling, W. Va. - In front of a capacity Homecoming Crowd at Bishop Schmitt Field, the Wheeling University Football team moved to 2-0 in Mountain East Conference (MEC) play with a 40-14 win over West Virginia Wesleyan. On Tuesday, the MEC announced their weekly Player of the Week honors, presented by The Healthplan, and for the fourth time in five weeks the Cardinals were honored. Sophomore kicker Connor Fitzpatrick earned the Special Teams Player of the Week award after accounting for 13 of his team's 40 points in the game.
Fitzpatrick continued his success as the Cardinal's primary kicker, handling all kick-off Point After Try's (PAT), and field goal duties on the day. Every time the Cardinals scored, Fitzpatrick was there to put up the extra point, going 5-5 on PATs on the day. He has had a reliable leg throughout the season, going 14-15 on PAT's and currently sits third on the team with 17 points scored this season. On kick-offs, Fitzpatrick finished with seven kick-offs for 394 yards, with one of those ending in a touchback and one ending up out of bounds. However, his biggest contribution came with 1:06 left in the third quarter and the Cardinals set up on the West Virginia Wesleyan 30 yard line.
The Cardinals were set up with a 4th and 20 after an Unsportsmanlike Conduct penalty pushed them back 15 yards. Fitzpatrick would set up at the Bobcat's 38-yard-line for the kick and, despite the ball being moved back, kicked it straight through the uprights. The 48-yard field goal was the longest of Fitzpatrick's career and was his first kick of 40+ yards in his career. The strike would help the Cardinals put the game out of reach and had the sophomore flirting with history. Fitzpatrick's kick was one yard shy of the program record for the longest field goal, set by former Cardinal Matthew Greenwood during the 2022 season. It was also the first field goal for Fitzpatrick in four tries this season, as he looks to use the momentum to carry him the rest of the way.
With Fitzpatrick winning Conference Player of the Week honors, the Wheeling Athletics Department has now had 13 players earn conference player of the week honors in 2025-2026. He is the seventh Wheeling Football player to win the honor, joining teammates Carter Blake, Brett Jackson, Ade Olanegan, Leonard Sherrod III, and Day Day Bates in winning previous honors, with four of those being Special Teams Player of the Week awards. Last week, the Wheeling Volleyball team swept the Player of the Week honors, with Camryn Matus and Kendall Kupper taking home the honors.
The Wheeling University Football team returns to action on Saturday, October 11th, when they host the University of Charleston at 2 PM.
