CEDAR CITY, Utah -- For the first time since 2009 the Thunderbird football team will open their season at home, as the defending Big Sky Champions play host to the University of North Alabama, who are entering their first year as a DI FCS team.

2017 Recap

The Thunderbirds picked up their second Big Sky Conference title in three seasons last year, finishing the 2017 campaign with a 9-3 overall record and a 7-1 record in the Big Sky Conference.

After suffering a loss to the Oregon Ducks to start the year, the Thunderbirds quickly got back on the right track knocking off Stephen F. Austin 51-14 in Nacogdoches, Texas. The following week the Thunderbirds knocked off then ranked No. 18/21 Northern Iowa at Eccles Coliseum. However, the following week the Thunderbirds went to Sacramento State without starting quarterback Patrick Tyler available and fell to the Hornets and dropped to 0-1 in Big Sky Conference play.

Following that loss and a much needed bye week, the Thunderbirds went undefeated for the remainder of the regular season. The winning streak started with a close victory at home against Cal Poly, which was followed up by the T-Birds winning the Beehive Bowl matchup with then ranked No. 16/18 Weber State in Ogden.

After knocking off the Wildcats, the Thunderbirds returned home and buried No. 8 Eastern Washington 46-28. They followed that victory up with big victories over Northern Colorado, North Dakota and UC Davis leading up to the battle for the Grand Canyon Trophy against Northern Arizona. The T-Birds floored the Lumberjacks 48-20 to claim their second Big Sky Conference Championship, and ultimately earned a bye into the Second Round of the FCS Playoffs.

Unfortunately for the Thunderbirds, the Second Round would be where the historic season would end at the hands of the Weber State Wildcats. However, the season ended as the winningest in the history of the program and proved that the Thunderbirds are prepared to be a player not only in the Big Sky, but across the NCAA, year in and year out.    

The Demario Warren Era

Following the 2017 campaign, Demario Warren has a career record of 15-8 as the head coach of Southern Utah University. Following the team's Big Sky Championship run, Warren was named Coach of the Year in the Big Sky Conference, as well as earning the status of AFCA Region 5 Coach of the Year.

Warren was also named a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Award, honoring the Coach of the Year in FCS Football.

In February, Warren signed a contract extension with Southern Utah through the 2022 season.

Preseason Honors

Heading into the 2018 campaign, the national media has made it clear they are big fans of Thunderbird starting center Zach Larsen. The junior was named to HERO Sports Preseason All-American Team, Athlon Sports' 2018 Preseason FCS All-America Team, STATS FCS Preseason All-American Team and Phil Steele's 2018 Preseason All-American Team.

Logan Parker, Marquez Tucker and Chinedu Ahanonu all also earned Preseason All-American honors from various outlets.

Five Thunderbirds were named to the Big Sky Preseason All-Conference Team, with Larsen, Tucker, Ahanonu, PJ Nu'usa and Jalen Russell all getting the nod for Southern Utah.

Preseason Polls

When the Big Sky Conference polls were revealed in July the Thunderbirds were tabbed as the sixth best team in the league by both the coaches and media in the Big Sky Conference.

The Thunderbirds were selected eighth in both polls when they won the league in 2015, and seventh in both ahead of the 2017 season where they also claimed a conference championship.

The T-Birds received one first-place vote in the Media Poll.

Both polls tabbed Eastern Washington as the favorites in the Big Sky Conference, with Weber State being selected second in both.   

Southern Utah has the top-five teams from each poll on their 2018 schedule.

Top Returners

On the offensive side of the ball the Thunderbirds bring back the majority of their top playmakers from the 2017 roster, minus quarterback Patrick Tyler.

James Felila and Jay Green Jr. are both back at running back for the T-Birds. Felila ran for 699 yards and eight touchdowns in 2017, while Green Jr. ran for 655 yards and 14 touchdowns.

At receiver, Landen Measom is back for his sophomore year after catching 53 passes for 608 yards and four touchdowns last season. Senior tight end Logan Parker returns as well, after catching 43 balls for 560 yards in 2017.

On the defensive side of the ball Taylor Nelson and Chinedu Ahanonu are both back for the T-Birds. Nelson finished 2017 with 83 tackles and seven tackles for loss, while in just seven games Ahanonu had 70 tackles and nine tackles for loss.

Cornerback Jalen Russell is also back for the Thunderbirds following his Freshman All-American campaign in 2017. He had three interceptions for the Thunderbirds last season.

Home Field Advantage

Every team across the country talks about their home field advantage, but Eccles Coliseum has been particularly kind to the Thunderbirds over the last handful of seasons.

SUU finished 5-0 at home during the regular season in 2017, and Warren has only lost two games at home in his tenure as the head coach of the Thunderbirds.

Over the past three seasons the Thunderbirds are 14-2 at Eccles Coliseum.

As the winning has continued, the attendance has risen for the Thunderbirds as well. At last year's Second Round FCS Playoff contest against Weber State, 11,811 fans packed the Coliseum to watch the Thunderbirds take on the Wildcats. That set a brand new attendance record and broke the previous one that had been set just two weeks earlier when 10,842 fans watched the Thunderbirds claim their second Big Sky Conference Championship.

Opponent Preview: North Alabama Lions

When the Lions of North Alabama run onto the field at Eccles Coliseum on September 1, they will be doing so for the first time as a member of the Division I Football Championship Subdivision.

The Lions are in their first season of transition, and will become a member of the Big South Conference to start the 2019 season.

For the first time since 1959, the Lions will open the 2018 season with three consecutive road games, and it will be just the second time in their school's history.

The Lions finished the 2017 season with a 5-5 overall record, and a 2-3 record on the road.

Lion head coach Chris Willis was hired to lead the program in December of 2016, making the 2017 season his inaugural as the 10th head coach of the Lions. He spent 15 seasons on the coaching staff for UNA before this, where the team made 12 playoff appearances.

At quarterback the Lions bring back a pair of players that had a significant impact for them last season, as Rico Bruton and Matt Markham are both on the 2018 Lion roster. Bruton threw for 835 yards and four touchdowns while Markham threw for 320 yards and two touchdowns.

Big Sky At A Glance

When the national preseason polls were released earlier this month, the Big Sky Conference was well represented in both the Coaches Poll and the STATS Poll.

Eastern Washington and Weber State were the highest rated teams in the initial polls, with EWU being picked No. 7 and Weber State slotted No. 8 in the Coaches Poll, and the two flipping order for No. 8 and No. 9 in the STATS Poll.

There were three Big Sky teams ranked in the Coaches Poll, and four more receiving votes including Southern Utah. In the Stats Poll, the same three were ranked with an additional six receiving votes, again including the T-Birds.  

Words From Coach Warren

On what's impressed him about North Alabama…

"I know they're very athletic," he said. "They've been a powerhouse in Division II for a long time and they're going to have some great athletes coming from the state of Alabama. If you look at Alabama, Auburn and Troy those teams are fast, they're big, they're strong so it's going to be a challenge for our guys to come out here and execute in game one. It's going to be a tough competition."

On opening at home…

"After the season we had last year I think there's a big buzz in Cedar City, so we're excited to be able to bring a home game to the crowd right out of the gates and show the university and Cedar what we've been working on for so long," he said. "So we're excited to be at home for game one."

On where he's seen the team improve the most through Fall Camp...

"I think we've been learning," he said. "I think that's probably the best thing that we've done over the last three weeks. We've learned about situational football, we've learned about how to prepare, we've started creating good habits so now we've just got to get better at those things and continue to work and get better."  

Where To Watch / Listen / Follow Along

Southern Utah's contest with North Alabama will be streamed online on the PlutoTV App and www.WatchBigSky.com.  

The game will be aired on KSUB 590 AM in Cedar City, and ESPN 97.7 FM along with 1210 AM in St. George and Washington County.

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.

Read all about the Thunderbirds on www.suutbirds.com.  

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.