CEDAR CITY, Utah -- The Thunderbird football team will hit the field on Saturday to take on the Montana Grizzlies, seeking their second victory in the Big Sky Conference.
Last Time Out
In their last outing against the Northern Colorado Bears, the Thunderbirds had a late surge, but ultimately came up short to move to 1-7 on the year.
The Bears jumped out to an early 14-0 lead over the T-Birds, but the Thunderbirds struck before the end of the first quarter to trail 14-8 after 15 minutes of play.
In the second quarter the two teams both knocked in a field goal, but the Bears scored a last-second touchdown from 35 yards away to take a 24-11 lead into the break.
The Bears added 10 quick points to start the second half before the T-Birds were able to get on the board with a 74-yard bomb from Tyler Skidmore to Landen Measom to pull SUU back within 35-18.
After the Bears scored one last touchdown the Thunderbirds scored 21-unanswered points, but it ultimately wasn't enough as they fell to the Bears 42-39.
Strong Debut
After Austin Ewing got the start in Saturday's game and went out with an apparent injury, true freshman Tyler Skidmore was pushed into action and appeared in his first collegiate football game.
Skidmore threw for 330 yards in his debut, including a 74-yard touchdown to Measom. He finished the day 27-of-43 from the air.
The freshman out of Roy, Utah joined the Thunderbirds following a two-year church mission.
Offensive Leaders
After another big day on the ground Jay Green Jr. now has 698 yards rushing on the season, and has broken into the endzone five times for the Thunderbirds. Freshman running back Karris Davis has matched Green Jr.'s touchdown number, as he's also racked up five touchdowns this season. Half of SUU's rushing touchdowns this season belong to either Green Jr. or Davis.
Landen Measom leads the receiver group in both number of catches and yards with 39 and 525 respectively, for an average of 65.6 per game. He also has accounted for one touchdown this season. Ty Rutledge has caught 33 passes for 394 yards and two touchdowns for the season.
Manny Berz leads the team in total points with 43 this season, totaling seven field goals and 22 PAT's.
Defensive Leaders
Chinedu Ahanonu continues to lead the team in total tackles with 65, and tackles for loss with 8.5 so far this season. He's also compiled two sacks.
Fellow senior linebacker Taylor Nelson is second on the team in both categories, with 48 tackles and seven tackles for loss. Nelson also leads the nation in fumble recoveries with four.
AJ Stanley is third on the team with 46 tackles, to go along with three tackles for loss, a sack and an interception. He's also forced two fumbles for the T-Birds.
Salute To Service
Saturday will be Southern Utah's 'Salute to Service' game. For the festivities, those with a valid Military ID can will receive free tickets, and the various branches of the military will be recognized during halftime.
In addition, 1,000 U.S. flags will be handed out to the early arriving Thunderbird fans, and those in attendance are encouraged to wear black.
Opponent Preview: Montana Grizzlies (4-4, 2-3 Big Sky)
The Montana Grizzlies will head to Cedar City on a three game slide, falling to Portland State, North Dakota and UC Davis in their previous three matchups.
In their most recent contest, the league-leading Aggies of UC Davis topped the Griz 49-21. Dalton Sneed threw for 230 yards on 25 completions and two touchdowns, but was also picked off by the Aggies three different times during the contest.
Sneed is both Montana's leading passer and rusher this season. In total, he's completed 186 passes for 1,826 yards and 12 touchdowns through the air. On the ground, he's carried the ball 90 times for 473 yards and five touchdowns.
Samuel Akem has been Sneed's top target through the air, catching 42 passes for 513 yards and eight touchdowns.
Defensively, Dante Olson has had a huge season for Montana. He's racked up 119 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss and six sacks. He's also had two interceptions this season.
Last Time vs. Montana
The last time the Thunderbirds and Grizzlies squared off it was a battle of ranked teams, as No. 11 Montana topped No. 24 Southern Utah in Missoula during the 2016 season.
Former T-Bird running back Malik Brown had a big day on the ground for the T-Birds, rushing for 114 yards on 15 carries. Quarterback Patrick Tyler completed 16 passes for 160 yards and three touchdowns. Mike Sharp was the recipient of all three touchdowns for the Thunderbirds, catching seven passes for 78 yards.
Recent Series History
The Thunderbirds and Grizzlies have squared off three times since becoming members of the same conference. The T-Birds won the first matchup as Big Sky foes in 2012, when the beat Montana 30-20.
The Griz have claimed the two most recent matchups, both in 2014 and 2016.
Big Sky At A Glance
Another week has come and gone in the Big Sky Conference, and the Aggies of UC Davis remain on top of the league with a perfect 5-0 record in BSC play, and a 7-1 overall record. Eastern Washington, Weber State and Idaho State all sit with a 4-1 record.
In the STATS FCS Poll the Wildcats came in at No. 4, the Eagles sit at No. 5 and the Aggies will enter this weekend at No. 6. In the FCS Coaches Poll the Eagles are No. 4, followed by the Wildcats at No. 5 and Aggies at No. 9.
Words From The T-Birds
Demario Warren on the quarterback situation leading into this week…
"We've got a lot of good players, and we lean on Justin Walterscheid a lot to make sure that our guys are ready to go, and obviously you can see that no matter who goes in they're well prepared and ready to execute," he said.
Tyler Skidmore on playing his first game in nearly four years…
"I think I just needed to trust my role and trust my o-line," Skidmore said. "I think I got out of the pocket a little too much and forced some throws that weren't great and did some things that I wasn't supposed to, but the game didn't seem too fast."
Chinedu Ahanonu on the team's mindset moving forward...
"We just want to go 3-0 in our last three games," he said. "Of course we play pretty well at home, and those last two wins would put us above .500 at home. But just going out and fighting for each other. Fighting for the guys around us, the seniors, the younger players. I've always had really good seniors around to help me and I want to be that guy for players in the future."
Where To Watch / Listen / Follow Along
Saturday's game will be televised on ROOT Sports and DirecTV's Audience Network.
The game can be heard on local airwaves on KSUB 590 AM.
A link to live stats will be available on www.suutbirds.com prior to kickoff.
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
Single game tickets for the 2018 season can be purchased online at www.tbirdtickets.com or at the America First Event Center Ticket Office.
