ROSEMONT, Ill. — Penn State men's soccer freshman forward Liam Butts was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week, as announced by the conference office Oct. 15. It is the Nittany Lions' first Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week award since October 2017.
Butts scored twice in the Nittany Lions' 3-2 overtime victory against Northwestern on Oct. 12 to clinch three crucial points in Big Ten play. Butts had the game-winner with less than two minutes to play in the overtime period, his second golden goal in conference play, with the first coming at Ohio State in the conference opener. It also marked his second multi-goal game of the season.
Following a 3-1 win over Pitt on Oct. 15, the Lawrenceville, Georgia, native has a team-high six goals so far in his rookie campaign. Butts also has four game-winning goals, the most in the conference, and 17th nationally.
The honor is the first of Butts' career and the first Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week award for a Penn State men's soccer player since Ethan Beckford on Oct. 24, 2017.
Butts earns the third conference weekly award for the Nittany Lions in 2019 after Brandon Hackenberg (Sept. 24) and Josh Levine (Oct. 1) were named Big Ten Defensive Players of the Week earlier in the season.
Penn State returns to Big Ten action when it hits the road on Saturday, Oct. 19, in Madison, Wisconsin, for a matchup with the Wisconsin Badgers. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. ET.