​It’s that time in the Lafayette area. Voting is now open for the Week 7 Journal & Courier Football Player of the Week, brought to you by Ivy Tech.You may cast your votes up until 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 8, when the poll closes. You are allowed to votes as many times as you’d like up to that point, just refresh the page to ensure that the vote counts. To submit nominees for future polls, please email names and any notable statistics or accomplishments to cgemes@usatodayco.com.Take a look at the eight players up for consideration this week, listed in alphabetical order by school.More: Pairings revealed for 2026 Lafayette area IHSAA volleyball sectionalsMaguire Mathews, Carroll (Flora)Tallied eight tackles and two sacks for a loss of 9 yards in a 28-0 shutout against Clinton Central.Dru Stapleton, Central CatholicThe quarterback completed 29 of 42 passes for 442 yards and four touchdowns in a 31-26 win over West Lafayette, including the go-ahead touchdown pass with 27 seconds remaining.Elijah Anderson, Clinton Prairie Had three sacks for a loss of 7 yards and eight tackles in a 55-6 rout of Taylor. Parker Barnard, Lafayette JeffFinished a 40-7 win over Kokomo with nine tackles, an interception and two pass deflections for the Bronchos. Kaden Sharp, McCutcheonPicked up 15 tackles, including two for loss, in a 42-7 win against Terre Haute North Vigo.Dakota Glasson, North MontgomeryHad a heavy workload of 38 carries for 227 rushing yards and two touchdowns, along with two catches for 39 yards and a touchdown, to lead the Chargers to a 34-27 win over Crawfordsville. Picked up four tackles on defense.Rosedno Martinez, West CentralRushed for 97 yards on nine carries and scored three touchdowns in a 76-14 win over Faith Christian. Added two tackles on defense. Fielder Melchi, West LafayetteCaught 11 passes for 133 yards and a touchdown, his longest being 44 yards, in a 31-26 loss to Central Catholic.More: Purdue women’s basketball endures yet another season-ending injury