Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina sophomore linebacker Jayden Pauling has been dubbed the Southern Conference's Football Defensive Player of the Month for games played in November it was announced today by the league office.
Selections highlighting excellence among student-athletes among the conference-sponsored sports are made by the league office from nominations submitted by the sports information or media relations personnel of each conference school.
Pauling is the ninth different Catamount to collect SoCon Player of the Month plaudits since 2003 and the first since Tyrie Adams collected his third of three monthly offensive plaudits in across three Septembers. Pauling earned WCU's first defensive monthly award since 2017 when Marvin Tillman was recognized in September of that season – and the seventh defensive nod to a Catamount all-time.
Pauling was credited with 22 total tackles during the month of November including 11 solo stops and 5.5 tackles for loss, accumulating 25 yards in losses among his totals. He posted a total of four sacks, forcing three of his four fumbles on the month while dragging down the opposition's quarterback.
The sophomore from Raleigh, N.C., opened the month with eight tackles (2.5 for loss) in a win at VMI, forcing a fumble on a sack in the first quarter and recovering a fumble in the second as the Catamounts halted a 15-game losing skid against NCAA Division I competition. Pauling deflected a field-goal attempt and tallied another sack among his five tackles in an overtime win over ETSU the following week before notching eight tackles (seven solo) and three forced fumbles in a loss to Samford on Nov. 16. In the latter, the transfer defender added two sacks and earned SoCon Defensive Player of the Week presented by GEICO honors as well as an honorable mention in the STATS FCS national awards. Pauling closed his season with a tackle at No. 5 Alabama.
Pauling, who was named to the second-team All-Southern Conference by the SoCon Sports Media Association after the regular season, finished his first year in the Purple & Gold tied for first in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) with five forced fumbles, averaging 0.42 forced fumbles per game over WCU's 12 games. His 51 seasonal tackles ranked him seventh on the team in 2019 while his team-best 11.0 tackles for loss pegged him tied for fourth in the league.
Western Carolina's All-Time SoCon Players of the Month:
- 2003 – September: Brian Gaither (Offensive); October: Rod Dunlap (Defensive)
- 2008 – November: Adrian McLeod (Defensive)
- 2010 – September: Torez Jones (Defensive)
- 2014 – October: Trey Morgan (Defensive)
- 2015 – October: Daniel Riddle (Defensive)
- 2016 – September: Tyrie Adams (Offensive)
- 2017 – September: Tyrie Adams (Offensive) & Marvin Tillman (Defensive)
- 2018 – September: Tyrie Adams (Offensive)
- 2019 – November: Jayden Pauling (Defensive)
