CEDAR CITY, Utah -- The Southern Utah Thunderbird football team (1-5, 0-2 Big Sky) will be back on the gridiron this weekend to face off against the No. 4/5 ranked Weber State Wildcats in Ogden.
Kickoff from Stewart Stadium is set for 6 p.m. MT.
Last Time Out
When the T-Birds were last on the field they were downed by the Vikings of Portland State, 52-31.
The Vikings took an early 3-0 lead with a 37-yard field goal before five minutes had even ticked off the clock. They extended their lead to 10-0 before the opening quarter came to a close with a touchdown capping an eight-play, 71-yard drive.
Southern Utah got on the board to start the second quarter as Lance Lawson scored his third touchdown of the season through the air to cut into the Viking lead.
Unfortunately for the T-Birds, the Vikings would score 28 unanswered points to take a 38-7 advantage before SUU would score again.
Right before the opening half came to a close the Thunderbirds added a Manny Berz field goal, giving PSU a 38-10 lead at the break.
The Vikings hung 28 points on SUU in the second quarter alone.
The T-Birds scored another touchdown to start the third frame as Isaiah Diego-Williams took one to the house from 38 yards away.
After another pair of touchdowns from PSU, the T-Birds scored on the ground thanks to Chris Helbig who cut the Viking lead to 45-24.
When PSU extended their lead by another seven points the T-Birds responded with Brandon Schenks scoring his first-career touchdown in the closing minutes.
Ultimately, the Vikings downed the T-Birds 52-31.
Offensive Leaders
Through six contests, Lawson leads the Big Sky Conference in total catches with 52, and catches per game average with 8.7. He's been responsible for 482 yards through the air and three touchdowns.
Diego Williams is second on the team with 24 catches for 213 yards, while true freshman Zach Nelson has 13 catches for 200 yards and three touchdowns.
Helbig has now completed 141 passes for 1,398 yards and seven touchdowns. He also leads the T-Birds in rushing touchdowns with five.
Felila is the team's leading rusher with 225 yards and two touchdowns.
Top Defenders
Through six games both Alex Sims and Nela Otukolo lead the team in total tackles with 44. They also both have three tackles for loss on the season.
AJ Stanley has 34 tackles for the T-Birds, 27 of which are solo.
As a unit the defense has eight sacks and three interceptions this season to go along with four forced fumbles.
Opponent Preview: No. 4/5 Weber State Wildcats (3-2, 1-0 Big Sky)
Regarded as one of the top teams in the FCS, the Wildcats of Weber State will enter Saturday's contest with a 3-2 overall record and a 1-0 mark in the Big Sky. WSU's two losses came to Mountain West Conference teams, as they fell to San Diego State (6-0) and Nevada (19-13) in very close matchups. The Wildcats have secured victories over Cal Poly (41-24), Northern Iowa (29-17) and Idaho (41-35).
After missing a few games for WSU, quarterback Jake Constantine was back in command of the Weber State offense last Saturday against Idaho. This season he has completed 58 passes for 419 yards and two touchdowns. Kaden Jenks has taken snaps in four contests for the Wildcats, with 30 completions for 321 yards and three touchdowns.
On the ground Josh Davis has been the featured back for the Wildcats, carrying the ball 47 times for 243 yards and three touchdowns.
Kevin Smith Jr. has 58 carries for 236 yards and one touchdown, while Kris Jackson has scored four times on the ground for WSU.
Devon Cooley has been the top target for the Wildcat quarterbacks, catching 21 passes for 246 yards and one touchdown. Rashid Shaheed has 15 catches for 191 yards and three touchdowns.
Defensively, the Wildcats are second in the Big Sky in terms of total defense allowing opponents just 365.2 yards per game. They also lead the league in turnover margin.
Preston Smith leads the team with 31 total tackles. Conner Mortensen is not far behind with 30 tackles to his credit.
Last Time vs WSU
The Wildcats picked up a 31-18 victory in Cedar City last season over the Thunderbirds in the second-to-last game of the year for SUU. WSU was ranked No. 3 at the time.
Jay Green Jr. led the rushing attack for SUU, with 68 yards and one touchdown on the ground.
Aaron Zwahlen and Tyler Skidmore split time at quarterback for SUU, while Austin Ewing also played snaps at QB and completed four passes and one for a touchdown.
Landen Measom had four catches for 64 yards and one score last season.
Former T-Bird Chinedu Ahanonu led SUU in tackles with 11.
For the Wildcats, Constantine threw for 207 yards and one touchdown while Josh Davis had 225 yards on the ground and two scores.
Recent Series History
The Thunderbirds and Wildcats have played eight times since the T-Birds joined the league in 2012. Seven of those matchups were in Big Sky play, while the other was in the Second Round of the FCS Playoffs. The series is split 4-4 since the two have been members of the same conference.
The Wildcats have not beaten the Thunderbirds in Ogden since before SUU joined the Big Sky Conference.
WSU is currently on a two-game winning streak over SUU.
Big Sky At A Glance
The Big Sky has three teams in the top 10 of the STATS FCS and AFCA FCS Coaches' Top 25 polls. The conference has four additional teams receiving votes between the two polls, as the Big Sky has just completed its second week of conference play.
Weber State (3-2) leads the way this week for the Big Sky after a 41-35 win at Idaho. The Wildcats were voted No. 4 in the STATS FCS Poll and No. 5 in the AFCA FCS Coaches' Poll for the second straight week. Weber State hosts in-state foe Southern Utah (1-5) on Saturday.
Montana State (5-1) collected a 34-28 overtime win over Cal Poly on the road. The victory has the Bobcats ranked No. 6 in both polls. The Bobcats will have a hungry Sacramento State (3-2) squad to face on Saturday. The Hornets have been just on the cusp of cracking the Top 25 this season.
Montana (5-1) is shining in the top 10 after a victory over Idaho State at home that saw the Griz bounce back from a 17-0 deficit to win 59-20. The Griz are ranked No. 8 in the STATS FCS Poll and the AFCA Coaches' Poll. Montana has a bye this week.
UC Davis (2-4) dropped a heartbreaker to North Dakota on the road. The loss has the Aggies slotted No. 21 in the AFCA Coaches' Poll and No. 24 in the STATS FCS Poll. UC Davis hosts in-state rival Cal Poly (2-3) on Saturday.
Eastern Washington fell out of the Top 25 after a road loss at Sacramento State. The Eagles are still receiving votes in both polls along with Sacramento State, Cal Poly and Idaho.
Words From Coach Warren
On the biggest takeaways from last week…
"We were down 10 with five minutes left in the half, about to get the ball back, and that turned into a 21-3 run for them," SUU head coach Demario Warren said. "We've had one of those stretches in every game we've gotten blown out in this year. Again it's disappointing, but the guys kept fighting in the second half, and that's one thing we preach is being relentless. But we also need to be a smart, mentally tough team and right now we're neither one of those."
On Lance Lawson leading the league in receptions…
"I think he's dynamic and he's a competitor," he said. "I don't think we knew exactly what he was going to do for us when we recruited him, we just knew he was a really good football player. Coach Fernandez stood on the table for him, said we had to get this kid, and he's proven coach right. We've got a ton of great kids like that, and it's killing me not to get the results they deserve, but we need more than Lance. We need more than individual performances. Everybody needs to play together for four quarters and that's something we haven't been able to do yet, even against Stephen F. Austin when we pulled out a win. He's one of many that are doing things right and will be a big part of things when we turn this season around."
On the Wildcats…
"They're a great football team," he said. "They're very disciplined, well coached, and they play hard. I know they're going to be ready for us coming out there. They haven't beaten us at home for a while, they're wearing all white, they've thought a lot about this game so we're not going to sneak up on anybody. But we think we can play with anybody if we play our style of football, so we need to come out and execute, be smart and see if we can hold it together for four quarters."
On the rivalry…
"It's fun," he said. "You see those guys every year, there's a history, there's a story behind every game. I think this rivalry has built our program, and I think it's built their program. They've had somebody to chase in state, we've got somebody to chase too. They do a great job up there, so it's a rivalry that's healthy. I don't think they like us very much, I don't think we like them and there's a lot of history there, so we'll be ready to play."
Where To Watch / Listen / Follow Along
Saturday's contest will be aired locally on KJZZ and livestreamed on the PlutoTV App and www.WatchBigSky.com.
The contest can be heard on the local airwaves, both on KSUB 590 AM in Cedar City and ESPN 97.7 FM in St. George. On the call will be legendary Thunderbird broadcaster Art Challis, and ESPN 97.7's Devin Dixon, host of the Devin Dixon Show.
Live stats will be available on www.weberstatesports.com and www.suutbirds.com prior to kickoff.
Follow Us
Keep tabs on the Thunderbirds throughout the entire Big Sky Kickoff by following @SUUFB on Twitter and Instagram and by liking the Southern Utah Football page on Facebook.
Tickets
Single game tickets and season tickets are available for the remainder of the 2019 campaign at www.tbirdtickets.com or at the America First Event Center Ticket Office.
