Husky quarterback Shawn Brady was the key differencemaker in the Northeastern-Villanova football game, carrying the offense with 299 yards passing and four touchdowns while leading the team to a 34-30 win. He has been named The Northeastern News Player of the Week.

In a game that either team could have won, Brady, a senior from Peabody, used his two receiving threats (Cory Parks and Quintin Mitchell) to deliver Northeastern an important win. He was the recipient of the Atlantic-10 Offensive Player of the Week on Monday.

The Huskies (2-1 A-10, 3-2 overall) were down 30-27 midway through the fourth quarter, when Brady had the ball for an all-important drive at the Northeastern 40.

Seven plays later, he found tailback Shawnn Gyles for a 9-yard touchdown reception, the winning score of the contest.

“Their defensive line is one of the best in the league,” Brady said of Villanova (0-3, 3-3). “They have two or three All-Americans. It was nice throwing the four touchdowns. But it’s more important that we got the win, coming off the loss against William ‘ Mary. As a quarterback, I’m not judged by my stats, but my wins and losses, so it was nice to get the win.”

Brady connected with Parks (eight receptions, 164 yards) for three touchdowns while finding Mitchell for another 104 yards. With a banged up back field, the efforts of Brady and his receiving corps were huge.

“Cory and Quintin always make big plays,” Brady said. “The offensive line, all five of them are like my brothers and they were the difference. Adam [Bourget] controls the whole line. It’s nice to see everyone play well after so much work in practice.”

Brady has been recognized for his efficiency as the leader of the Husky offense since the start of the 2001 season.

As a freshman, he took over a 1-4 team and brought them to a 4-2 record the rest of the way.

He was fourth in the league in passing efficiency during his sophomore year, then improved to third during his junior season. At 10-3 during his second year, Brady started all 13 games in the Huskies’ first share of an Atlantic-10 title and NCAA playoff berth.

This season, it’s a matter of getting back to that past success.

“Our goal is the playoffs, and nothing less than that,” Brady said. “The league’s up for grabs this year and we’re going to see how it goes the rest of the way.”

–by staff writer Jeff Powalisz