CEDAR CITY, Utah - This weekend the Thunderbird football team will travel up I-15 to take on in-state rival No. 16/18 Weber State in the annual 'Beehive Bowl' at Stewart Stadium in Ogden.
Last Time Out
Southern Utah picked up their first Big Sky Conference victory last weekend, knocking off the Mustangs of Cal Poly in front of a record-breaking crowd at Eccles Coliseum.
The victory moved the Thunderbirds to 3-2 on the season, with a 1-1 record in the Big Sky.
For the Thunderbirds, quarterback Patrick Tyler threw for 223 yards and one touchdown on 23 completions to set the tone for the offense. Jay Green Jr. broke into the endzone with a long touchdown run, and finished the game with 77 yards. Bryan Beckon was Tyler's top target on Saturday, catching four passes for 64 yards.
Chinedu Ahanonu led the Thunderbirds with 15 tackles and a tackle for loss during the game. Chance Bearnson had nine tackles and Mike Needham finished with eight.
Special Teams Player of the Week
Thunderbird punter Rashaan Miller was recognized by the Big Sky Conference as ROOT SPORTS Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance against the Mustangs of Cal Poly.
Miller had seven punts on Saturday evening, for a total of 305 yards. He averaged 43.6 yards per punt with a long of 55. He stuck four of them inside the 20-yard line. He also had a punt that went over 50 yards.
Miller was a critical piece of the Thunderbird puzzle, helping keep the Mustangs off the board with solid kicks for the majority of the contest.
Miller is the third Thunderbird to win a ROOT SPORTS player of the week award this season, as Patrick Tyler and Manny Berz were given the same recognition earlier this season.
Leave No Doubt
Last year's Beehive Bowl didn't go according to plan for the Thunderbirds.
The Wildcats scored 23 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to comeback and win in Cedar City.
For Southern Utah, this brought about the 'Leave No Doubt' mantra. It has been a motivating factor for the team for nearly a year. Following the game, SUU head coach Demario Warren said the team would get better and move forward, and they used the #LeaveNoDoubt ideal to continue to push the players, the coaching staff, and all of those involved with the Thunderbird football program.
Words From Warren
On the team's mindset…..
"We're excited, it's another opportunity and things are playing out just like it did last season," he said. "We're right back to the same spot. We're 3-2 going into a ranked opponents house, and have an opportunity to take another step in our program's mission. It's an exciting week for us, it's another big opportunity."
On what he's seen from Weber State…..
"They're a good team, they're a solid team," he said. "They're in the top five of every category we care about on offense, defense and special teams, so they're a good team and we've just really got to focus on ourselves and figure out what we need to do to make sure we get better each and every day."
Opponent Preview: No. 16/18 Weber State
The Wildcats are off to a strong start this season, sitting with a 4-1 overall record and a 2-0 mark in the Big Sky Conference. They started the season by beating Montana Western, before picking up their only loss to the Cal Bears out of the Pac-12 Conference 33-20. They've since won three games, with victories coming against Sacramento State, UC Davis and Montana State.
When the National Polls were released this week the Wildcats found themselves 16th in the Coaches Poll and 18th in the STATS FCS Top 25.
Wildcat quarterback Stefan Cantwell has been impressive for the Wildcats to this point. He's completed 76 passes for 1,114 yards and seven touchdowns. Cantwell is second in the Big Sky in passing efficiency. He has also rushed for 194 yards and picked up four touchdowns with his legs. Treshawn Garrett is the lead back for the Wildcats, rushing for 341 yards this season with two touchdowns on the ground. Kevin Smith has also been a major factor for the Wildcat rushing attack, breaking into the endzone on three different occasions.
Andrew Vollert has caught the most balls for the Wildcats, with 23 grabs for 248 yards and three touchdowns. Rashid Shaheed leads the team in yardage with 351, and has broken into the end zone twice during the season.
Senior defensive lineman McKay Murphy leads the team with eight tackles for loss this season, which also puts him second in the Big Sky in the same category. Keilan Benjamin leads the team with 19 tackles, 16 of which are solo.
Weber State has the top scoring defense in the Big Sky, and leads the league in total defense. They also have made more field goals in the Big Sky than any other team with 10.
Big Sky Standings At A Glance
Three teams in the Big Sky Conference still do not have a mark in the loss column as the league enters their fourth weekend of play. Eastern Washington is the only team that sits with an 3-0 conference record, as Weber State and Northern Arizona are 2-0 heading into the weekend.
Both Montana and Montana State sit with a 2-1 record, while Southern Utah and Sacramento State are both 1-1 in the league.
Idaho State, UC Davis, Northern Colorado and North Dakota all have a 1-2 mark in the Big Sky. Portland State and Cal Poly are both seeking their first Big Sky win of the season.
Where To Watch / Listen / Follow Along
Saturday's game will be be aired on ELEVEN Sports, along with being streamed on PlutoTV. This will be Southern Utah's first game on ELEVEN Sports.
The game will be available on the airwaves locally on KSUB 590 AM with Art Challis and Devin Dixon on the call for the Thunderbirds.
Live stats will be available on weberstatestats.com and www.suutbirds.com prior to the start of the game on Saturday.
Follow Us
Keep tabs on the Thunderbirds by following @SUUFB on Twitter and Instagram and by liking the Southern Utah Football page on Facebook.
Tickets
Tickets for SUU's Cedar City Night game against Eastern Washington can be purchased at tbirdtickets.com or at the America First Event Center Ticket Office.
