SUU Football Hosts Northern Arizona
Quickly: Southern Utah University plays its first home football game in three weeks Saturday when the Thunderbirds host Northern Arizona in a 1:00 p.m. game at Eccles Coliseum.
Southern Utah (1-3/0-0 Great West) will be looking to snap a two-game losing streak after falling 42-28 at Texas State last weekend. The Thunderbirds rolled up a season-high 507 yards last week and have out-gained every opponent so far this year but that only translated into a win at home in week two against San Diego.
Northern Arizona (2-1/1-0 Big Sky) opened its Big Sky Conference schedule with a 32-7 win at Idaho State last weekend that spoiled the Bengals' Homecoming weekend. The Lumberjacks, who will be playing their third consecutive road game, opened the season with a 40-0 win over Western New Mexico before hitting the road for games at Arizona State (a 41-20 loss) and ISU.
The Game: Northern Arizona (2-1) at Southern Utah (1-3), Saturday at 1:00 p.m. (Mountain), Eccles Coliseum (8,500), Cedar City, Utah.
Thunderbird Practice Schedule: The players are off on Mondays. Daily practices Tuesday through Thursday are scheduled to begin at 4:15 p.m. and end at 6:15 p.m.
Media Availability: Players and coaches are available for interviews on Tuesdays following practice, at approximately 6:15 p.m. To contact a player or coach on another day or time contact Neil Gardner at gardner@suu.edu or 435-586-7753.
The Series: Saturday's game will mark the 15th meeting between the Thunderbirds and Lumberjacks. NAU holds a 10-4 edge in the series and has come out on top of the last four meetings after holding the Thunderbirds off for a 42-39 win last year in Flagstaff, Ariz. In the streak NAU has also claimed a 19-14 win in Cedar City in 2008, a 27-7 victory in Flagstaff in 2005 and a 41-12 victory in Cedar City in 2001. The last Thunderbird win came in 2000, a 27-33 triumph in Flagstaff, Ariz. This will be just the fourth game in Cedar City, where NAU is 3-0, as all of SUU's wins in the series have come in Flagstaff.
TV: All of Southern Utah's home games will be televised live by KCSG-TV, which is available via cable channel 6 in Cedar City, Hurricane, Provo, Santa Clara, St. George and Washington City; via satellite in Utah on Direct-TV channel 44 and Dish Network channel 37; and via Comcast cable channel 116 in Salt Lake, Davis, Weber, Box Elder, Cache and Summit counties.
Coaches Show: Coach
Ed Lamb appears weekly on The T-Bird Zone, which airs Friday nights at 9:30 p.m. on KCSG television.
Video Highlights: Video highlights of the Thunderbirds' road games will be available to accredited media outlets via SUU's FTP site. For information on obtaining those highlights contact SUU Director of Athletic Media Relations Neil Gardner.
Radio: All of Southern Utah's 2010 football games will be available over the Thunderbird Sports Network. SUU flagship station KSUU (91.1 FM) will carry every game live as well as on the worldwide web at www.suu.edu/ksuu. The games will also be carried live over network affiliate KSUB AM (590), which covers southwest Utah. Art Challis is in his 34th season as the Thunderbirds' football voice. Former Thunderbird standout Dave McMullin provides color commentary.
GWC Teleconference: The Great West Conference holds a weekly teleconference, beginning at 12:45 p.m. (Mountain). The conference's head coaches all address their previous and upcoming games. For a schedule and information on accessing the teleconferences, contact SUU Director of Athletic Media Relations Neil Gardner.
Thunderbird Club Luncheons: The Thunderbird Club's weekly no-host luncheon is held Mondays at noon at the Cedar City Crystal Inn. The public is invited to attend the luncheons where Southern Utah's in-season coaches talk about their upcoming contests and review the past week's action.
Next Up/Remaining Schedule: The Thunderbirds open Great West Conference play at North Dakota next weekend. SUU then hosts GWC foe Cal Poly in its annual Homecoming game at 3:00 p.m. on Oct. 16. SUU remains at home the following week for another conference clash, this time against South Dakota, at 1:00 p.m. in the Coliseum. The T-Birds wrap up their GWC slate the following weekend at UC Davis on Oct. 30, before the home finale against Dixie State at 1:00 p.m. on Nov. 6. The regular-season wraps up Nov. 13, when SUU travels to Cheney, Wash., to take on Eastern Washington.
The Coaches: SUU's
Ed Lamb (BYU, 1996) has a record of 10-16 in his third season as the Thunderbird head coach and his third season as a head coach overall. Last year he led the team to a 5-6 record, a mark which bettered the 2008 team's 4-7, which was its best since '04. Prior to taking over at SUU, Lamb spent three seasons at the University of San Diego where he coordinated the special teams and recruiting and was the Toreros' defensive backs coach. Prior to his time at USD Lamb spent two seasons as defensive coordinator at Idaho. He also served a season at BYU as a linebackers coach and four seasons at the University of Redlands, three as defensive coordinator and one as defensive line coach. Coach Lamb is 0-2 vs. Northern Arizona.
Northern Arizona's Jerome Souers (Oregon, 1983) is the winningest coach in NAU football history. He is 69-72 in his 13th season as a head coach and his 13th season at the helm of the Lumberjack program. Coach Souers is 4-1 vs. the Thunderbirds.
Affiliations: Southern Utah is beginning its seventh season in the Great West Conference, which competes at the NCAA Division I (FCS) level. SUU is affiliated with The Summit League in all its other sports except women's gymnastics, which competes in the Western Athletic Conference. Northern Arizona is a member of the Big Sky Conference.
SUU In The FCS National Ranks:
Individuals: SUU has seven players ranked among the FCS top-50 in nine major statistical categories this week.
Defense: LB
Akeem Anifowoshe has the highest individual ranking, at sixth in tackles for loss with 2.13 per game, while
Tyler Osborne is 19th with 1.63 per game. Anifowoshe is 49th in tackles per game (9.25), while LB
Blake Fenn is just outside the top-50, in 51st (9.0 tpg).
Offense: On the offensive side of the ball,
Fesi Sitake is seventh in receptions per game at 8.0, while
Tysson Poots is 21st at 6.5. That duo is also ranked in receiving yards per game, with Poots 15th at 90.75 and Sitake 35th at 74.0. Sitake, who is also SUU's return specialist, ranks 15th in all-purpose yards as well, with 162.0 per game. QB
Brad Sorensen is 14th in total offense, at 271.0 yards per game, and 41st in passing efficiency, at 129.08.
Special Teams: SUU has players ranked in three special teams categories.
Brock Miller is 19th in field goals per game with 1.33, while
Ryan McNamara is 50th in field goals at 0.75 per game. Sitake is 24th in punt return average (10.43) and 51st in kickoff returns (253.25 ypr).
Team: After three weeks of play the Thunderbirds are fifth in the nation in tackles-for-loss, and rank among the top-50 in 11 of the 17 major statistical categories. SUU averages 8.75 tackles-for-loss per game, ranks 15th in total passing offense (267.5 ypg), 20th in total offense (409.0 ypg) and turnover margin (plus-0.75), 22nd in total defense (300.75 ypg), 24th in rushing defense (109.0 ypg), 37th in scoring defense (22.25 ppg), 44th in sacks (2.0 spg), 45th in punt returns (9.1 ypr), 47th in pass defense (191.75 ypg), and 50th in passing efficiency (121.93).
Weekly Award Winners
Tysson Poots has earned honorable mention as receiver of the week on the national level from College Football Performance Awards the past two weeks. In the Thunderbirds' win over San Diego he caught six passes for 106 yards and two touchdowns, while at San Jose State he had 10 receptions for 147 yards.
Akeem Anifowoshe and
Tyler Osborne both received honors following their performances in the Thunderbirds' 28-20 loss at Wyoming on Sept. 4. Anifowoshe was named the Great West Conference's defensive player of the week, while both players earned honorable mention honors from College Football Performance Awards.
Anifowoshe tallied 10 tackles, including five solo stops, 3.5 tackles for losses and a sack in the Wyoming game. One of his tackles for a loss came when the Cowboys were inside the SUU 5-yard line and on the following play he provided the pressure that forced Wyoming quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels to throw on the run, a pass which wound up being intercepted by
Matt Holley in the end zone.
Osborne also had 3.5 tackles for losses and a sack in the game, with all but one of his five total tackles coming in the Cowboy backfield.
The Great West Conference awards are determined by the conference office. The CFPA bases its awards on a statistical formula which determines “the extent to which individual players increase the overall effectiveness of their teams,” according to a CFPA press release.
Preseason Accolades: WR
Tysson Poots, WR
Fesi Sitake and LB
Akeem Anifowoshe all earned preseason honors from at least one publication. Poots is a consensus first-team all-American, is listed on the Payton Award Watch list (which honors the top offensive player at the FCS level) and was named the Great West Conference's pre-season offensive player of the year. Sitake also earned second-team honors as a return specialist from the College Sporting News, JB Scouting and from Phil Steele's Annual and third-team honors from The Sports Network. Anifowoshe earned honorable mention recognition from the Senior Scout Bowl.
Captains: This year's captains are
Tysson Poots,
Colin Pretlow and
Fesi Sitake.
SUU Picked Third In GWC Coaches Poll: Southern Utah pulled one first-place vote and 14 points in the annual pre-season poll of the Great West Conference coaches, placing them third, behind defending champion UC Davis and four-time champ Cal Poly. UC Davis was the clear favorite, with 23 points and three first-place votes, while Cal Poly accumulated 18 points and the final first-place nod. South Dakota tallied 11 points to finish fourth while North Dakota was picked to finish fifth with nine points.
Last season the Thunderbirds finished tied with North Dakota and South Dakota in second place after all three posted 2-2 marks in league play. UC Davis finished atop the standings at 3-1 (with the Aggies' only loss coming at the hands of SUU, 56-35) and Cal Poly was fifth at 1-3.
Into the Record Books: Brad Sorensen notched his name into the SUU record books in five single-game categories at Texas State. His 49 pass attempts rank 49th at SUU; his 352 passing yards, 29 completions and 399 total yards rank fifth; and his 57 plays are tied for seventh on the total plays list. In the team category, the 29 completions are also tied for fifth.
Thunderbird Quick Hits:
•
Brad Sorensen's 70-yard touchdown pass to
Jared Ursua at Texas State was the team's longest play this season, as well as each player's career-long play.
• Sorensen threw for a career-best 352 yards at Texas State. His attempts (49) and completions (29) were also career-bests while he tied his personal high for TD passes with three.
•
Austin Minefee ran for 102 yards at Texas State, the most by an SUU back this season and the most since he ran for 111 yards last year at San Diego State in the second game of the season.
• SUU rolled up a season-high 507 yards of offense at Texas State, but also gave up a season-high, as the Bobcats finished with 445 yards. The previous high for SUU was 411 yards vs. San Diego, while Wyoming's 355 yards was the previous high-water mark for an opponent. The total yards were the team's most since putting up 540 last season at Northern Arizona. The 507 yards were 10 more than Texas State gave up in a 68-28 season-opening loss at Houston, and SUU's 352 passing yards were six more than Houston finished with.
• The Thunderbird offense has out-gained all four opponents this season.
• Linebackers
Akeem Anifowoshe,
Blake Fenn and
Troy Bunting are 1-2-3 on the SUU tackles list. Bunting had a team-high 11 last week.
• The Thunderbird run defense has been stingy this year, particularly against its FBS opponents. After allowing Wyoming just 36 rushing yards the Thunderbirds held San Jose State to just 57 yards on the ground. The story against Texas State was a bit different, however, as the Bobcats rushing total of 224 yards was 14 more than the 210 the Thunderbirds had given up in the first three games combined.
• The Thunderbirds have opened and closed games well but if they have to pick a quarter to skip (or in which to improve) it would be the second. SUU has out-scored its opponents 24-10 in the first period, 34-20 in the fourth, and been basically even in the third when the opposition holds a slight 21-19 edge. In the second quarter, however, SUU has been out-scored 38-14, and the 'Birds have lost the second quarter in all three of their defeats this season. At Texas State the Bobcats held a 21-0 edge in the second period.
• Southern Utah will be looking to snap a 10-game skid against teams from the Big Sky this Saturday. The last time SUU came out on top of a Big Sky team was in 2004 when the Thunderbirds downed Idaho State, 45-31, in the season finale.
• After seeing his 16-game TD streak snapped at San Jose State,
Tysson Poots got back into the end zone at Texas State. Although he caught 10 passes for 147 yards at San Jose State, for the first time in 17 games he didn't catch one for a score. It was his second straight 100-yard receiving game after pulling six passes for 106 yards and two touchdowns against San Diego. Poots has surpassed the 100-yard receiving mark 16 times in his SUU career.
• Redshirt freshman J.J. Mayer got his first game-action at San Jose State when he was inserted into the game late in the fourth quarter in an effort to rally the team from its 16-11 deficit. Mayer completed two of his first four passes for 25 yards but threw an interception on a tipped pass on his final attempt.
• SUU scored on three field goals and a safety at San Jose State. It was the first time since 2007 that the Thunderbirds had gone without a touchdown (and the first time in the
Ed Lamb era). The last time was at Montana State, in a 7-3 loss. It was also the first time SUU had scored on a safety during the
Ed Lamb era; the safety for a score was SUU's first since the 2007 season-opener, at Montana.
• The Thunderbirds were penalized a season-high 14 times for 143 yards at SJSU, the most penalties and yards lost to penalties in the
Ed Lamb era as well.
• SUU out-gained its FBS opponent for the second time this season at San Jose State. The Thunderbirds finished with more rushing and passing yards than the Spartans did, out-gaining them 79-57 on the ground and 255-193 through the air for a total yardage difference of 334 to 250. SUU had more total yards than Wyoming as well. The Thunderbirds finished with 384 yards while the Cowboys had 355. Southern Utah also had the ball for 34:43 to 25:17 for Wyoming and had it for 32 minutes at San Jose State.
• SUU held San Diego to 34 passing yards, the sixth-fewest passing yards by an opponent in SUU's 4-year history (since 1963). SUU gave up just 145 total yards and only 36 in the second half when the Toreros had just two first downs and didn't make it past the SUU 49 yard line.
• Junior quarterback
Zack Olsen scored his first collegiate touchdown against San Diego when he scrambled around the left end for 17 yards and the final score of the game.
• The Thunderbird defense allowed just two drives of over six plays and just four over five plays against San Diego. Six players had tackles for losses and seven broke up passes.
•In a span of less than 40 seconds DT
Cody Heinreich doubled his career sacks total against San Diego. He had solo sacks on back-to-back plays in the third quarter for a total of 16 yards. Coming into the game Heinreich, a junior, had one career sack. Heinreich had another sack at San Jose State but wasn't initially credited due to a statistician's error. That error has been corrected.
•
Fesi Sitake led the team in all-purpose yards in the first two games but was edged by Poots at San Jose State. He had 140 yards at Wyoming, 63 receiving, 76 on kickoff returns and one on a punt return. Against San Diego he finished with 150 yards, 46 receiving, 61 on kick returns and 43 on a pair of punt returns. Poots had 147 yards at SJSU, while Sitake finished with 143 (90 receiving, 39 on kickoff returns and 14 on punt returns). Sitake was back atop the list at Texas State, however, finishing with a team-high 215 yards.
• Between serving an LDS church mission and sitting out last season as a redshirt it had been over three years since
Brad Sorensen had thrown a pass in a game when he took the field at Wyoming. His first completion covered 23 yards and went to Poots, his first touchdown also went to Poots, a seven-yarder.
• The Thunderbirds' 191 rushing yards at Wyoming were their most since going for 244 vs. Dixie State in the opener last year and their 193 passing yards were the fewest since the T-Birds threw for just 189 in that Dixie State game.
• SUU held Wyoming to 36 rushing yards, the fewest ever by an NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision team against the Thunderbirds. The 36 yards were the fewest by an SUU opponent since the second game of the 2006 season when the Thunderbirds held Division II Western State to six rushing yards. The T-Birds had 10 tackles-for-loss in that game, including five sacks, for a total of minus-74 rushing yards. The SUU record for rushing yards allowed in a game is minus-35 against Asuza Pacific way back in 1971. The fewest rushing yards allowed by SUU against an FSC team was minus-29, vs. St. Mary's in 1998.
• SUU is in its 48th season as a four-year football-playing institution and its 25th as a member of the NCAA. The 2010 season also marks the Thunderbirds' 18th as a member of the NCAA's Football Championship Subdivision and is the school's seventh in the Great West Conference.
• The Thunderbirds have an all-American and five all-conference players returning, including senior wide receiver
Tysson Poots, who earned second-team all-America, FCS Fabulous-50 and first-team all-conference honors last year. In addition to Poots, senior cornerback
Colin Pretlow and senior linebacker
Akeem Anifowoshe (who played safety in 2009) earned first-team all GWC honors last year, with Pretlow also taking home Fabulous-50 honors from The College Sports Network. In addition to the first-teamers, senior wide receiver
Fesi Sitake earned second-team honors and cornerback
Erron Vonner earned honorable mention recognition last year.
• Poots was also an academic all-American last year, as well as an academic All-GWC selection. SUU has nine returning academic all-GWC honorees, including Poots, Pretlow, Sitake, Vonner, LB
Blake Fenn, OL
Dylan Fox, FB/LS Brigham Nielson, QB Zach Olsen, OL
Trevor Schauerhamer, and DB
Tyson Turley. Poots and Pretlow were both academic all-GWC honorees in 2008 as well.
• SUU plays 10 of its 11 games against NCAA Division I opponents this year, with the exception being the game against Division II Dixie State. Two of the Division I opponents, Wyoming and San Jose State, compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision, while the other eight compete at the Football Championship Subdivision level. North Dakota and South Dakota are in the transition phase between Division II and Division I.
• SUU's roster is heavy with Utah natives, as 45 hail from the Beehive State. California is the next-most represented state, with 24, while a baker's dozen call Nevada home. Four come from Texas, three are from American Samoa, and the Thunderbirds have one player from each of the following states: Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Michigan, Ohio, Oklahoma and Washington, as well as one player from Samoa (in addition to the three from American Samoa).
is one of two football stadiums in the world sporting both the Olympic Rings and an Olympic Cauldron inside the stadium (The Los Angeles Coliseum is the other). Southern Utah's Olympic Cauldron, donated by DCI Incorporated of Utah, was lit by the Olympic Torch Feb. 5, 2002, during the Olympic Torch Relay.
About the Lumberjacks
Traditionally a high-powered offensive team, the Lumberjacks have been outstanding on the defensive side of the ball as well this season. Northern Arizona is seventh in the FCS in total defense after giving up an average of 255 yards per game in its first three contests. The NAU rush defense is second in the country, allowing just 57.3 yards per game, while the 'Jacks are 10th in scoring defense at 16.0 ppg. Against the pass NAU has been mortal, allowing 197.7 ypg, but the team ranks eighth in the country with 3.0 sacks per game.
As usual,the Lumberjack offense has been very effective this year, averaging 33.3 points per game with a passing offense that averages 221 yards and a rushing offense that checks in at 146.7 ypg.
Quarterback Michael Herrick (6-1, 205, Sr), who threw for 306 yards against the T-Birds last year, is back guiding the 'Jack offense. He has completed 49-of-87 passes for 518 yards and five touchdowns with three interceptions. His primary targets have been WR Austin Shanks (5-8, 175, Jr), with 20 catches for 201 yards, and WR Daiveun Curry-Chapman (6-2, 205, Sr), with 13 receptions for 152 yards and a TD. WR Mike Czyz (5-10, 180, Jr) has just four receptions but two have gone for touchdowns. True freshman Zach Bauman (5-10, 200) has been the team's top rusher, with an average of 111.7 yards per game and a total of six touchdowns on the season.
Defensively, it's been a team effort for the 'Jacks, as only one player averages over 5.0 tackles per game. Fourteen different players have at least a half TFL, however, and seven have been in on a sack. Free safety Matt Estrada (5-10, 185, Sr) leads the team with an average of 8.0 tackles per game and has one of the team's four interceptions, while SS Taylor Julio (6-0, 185, So) averages 5.0 tackles and another interception. MLB Cody Dowd (6-3, 250, Sr) has 13 total tackles with two for losses while DE Isaac Bond (6-4, 260, Jr) leads the team with 3.5 TFLs, including 3.0 sacks. Reserve DE Alec Hutton (6-4, 245, Jr) got loose for two sacks at Idaho State last week.
Coach Ed Lamb On The Texas State Game: “We got a pretty good indication on Saturday of the team that we are. Number one, we played a very good team. They deserve credit for their victory against us and for their victory against Cal Poly, it was no fluke. I predict Texas State will be a highly-ranked team throughout the season. We could beat them, we have a good team too. The thing we know about ourselves now is we have a good team, we're capable on offense, we're capable on defense, we have good people on special teams, but we can't afford to make mistakes. We can't afford to go on the road and play unmotivated, or have lapses of concentration or motivation during the game and that was the story of the game.”
Coach Lamb On Northern Arizona: “They're pretty much the team they've been the past couple of years. They have a very good quarterback, Michael Herrick, who has improved and matured and is someone who has had a couple of good games against us. They lost their senior running back from a year ago, who had a lot of yards, but have replaced him with a true freshman who is very quick and he's gaining a lot of yards himself. They have a lot of speed at the receiver position and in fact a lot of team speed. They always play good defense at Northern Arizona because they have a lot of speed. They have a lot of players who will give you troubles.”
