Pac-12 Rewards Luciano, Penix and Henry for Oregon Upset

The UW has been the recipient of 10 weekly conference honors so far.

So what's an Oregon upset win on the road worth on the open market?

The Pac-12 determined on Monday it was three player of the week awards and handed them to University of Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr., center Corey Luciano and place-kicker Peyton Henry.

Penix and Henry were repeat selections as Offensive and Special-Teams Player of the Week, respectively, while Luciano was a first-time pick as Offensive Lineman of the Week.

For the 6-foot-4, 294-pound Luciano, who like Henry is a UW senior from Danville, California, the reward is further validation of an impressive showing he's made as a first-time starter at center for the Huskies.

He entered the season after somewhat of a journeyman existence as a reserve tight end, tackle and guard for three seasons before Kalen DeBoer came in and made him the No. 1 center.

In the 37-34 victory over the Ducks, Luciano graded out the highest of the five UW offensive linemen, who together didn't permit a sack and enabled the offense out 522 yards of total offense. 

"Corey, I think what's really cool for him, in any schematic case whatever you do offensively in a tough road game, there's nobody that's harder on than the center and a quarterback," UW offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said. "Not that Corey's never played here at Washington, but he hadn't functioned as a starting center in a game like that."

In other words, in the deafening backdrop of Autzen Stadium, Luciano went about his business in directing traffic and kept everyone clued in.

"We've played tough road games, for sure, but the crowd noise can add a whole other level of complexity in making calls and things like that, and he did a great job with that," Grubb said. "I think he missed one call really that we saw. Other than that, he played a really, really good football game."

#Pac12FB Offensive Lineman of the Week, presented by @Nextiva: Corey Luciano. 🐺

Full release ➡️ https://t.co/Hig3ZF48aI#GoHuskies | @UW_Football pic.twitter.com/kMQIUNAqHs

— Pac-12 Conference (@pac12) November 14, 2022

Penix, the senior transfer from Tampa, Florida, who previously was honored by the conference with a weekly honor for his offensive efforts against Michigan State, was steady all night long in Eugene on Saturday night. He completed 26 of 35 attempts for 408 yards, which ranks him seventh in UW annals and also first (516), and he threw 76- and 62-yard touchdown passes.

Henry picked up his third Pac-12 weekly accolade this season, and fourth in his career, after he kicked his second consecutive game-winning field goal in as many weekends, drilling a 43-yarder with 51 remaining to beat Oregon. He had three field goals against the Ducks. He earlier was feted for his game-winning field goal against Oregon State and for kicking four field goals against Stanford. 

Over 11 weeks the league has handed out players rewards, the Huskies have accepted 10. Besides these three recipients, other Huskies who have been honored include redshirt freshman wide receiver Ja'Lynn Polk for Freshman of the Week; sophomore offensive tackle Troy Fautanu, Lineman of the Week; senior edge rusher Jeremiah Martin, Defensive Player of the Week; and sophomore edge rusher Bralen Trice, Defensive Player of the Week.

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