CEDAR CITY, Utah -- After two straight weeks at home, the Thunderbird football team will be back on the road this weekend to face off against the No. 14/15 ranked Bobcats of Montana State. The T-Birds will head to Bozeman seeking their first road victory of the season.
Kickoff is scheduled for 12 p.m. MT and is the ROOT SPORTS Game of the Week in the Big Sky Conference.
Last Time Out
The Thunderbirds started red hot in their last contest at home against the Idaho State Bengals.
After an interception by Carlton Johnson on ISU's first offensive play, the Thunderbirds punched it in the endzone as Lance Lawson broke across the goal line from seven yards away.
Idaho State scored a touchdown on their next possession, but the Thunderbirds automatically responded with another score as Carlos Baker took one into the endzone from 55 yards away to put SUU up 14-7.
SUU's third touchdown was set up by a blocked punt, and two plays later Chris Helbig broke into the endzone from seven yards away to put SUU up 21-7.
The Thunderbirds would score again on their next drive, after Nela Otukolo put them in solid position with the team's second interception, as Thomas Duckett ran it in from 22 yards away to push SUU ahead 28-7.
After the Bengals scored again with 51 seconds left in the quarter, the wild opening quarter came to a close with SUU ahead 28-14.
The second quarter was a kicking contest, as the Bengals put home two field goals and the Thunderbirds got one, leaving the score after a half of football 31-20.
The third quarter belonged to the Thunderbirds, as Karris Davis and Cody Frampton both broke into the endzone for the Thunderbirds to extend their lead to 45-20.
ISU made things interesting to start the fourth quarter, scoring back-to-back touchdowns to cut SUU's lead to 45-34. But SUU made one final surge, as Duckett scored his second touchdown and Johnson had his second interception result in seven points to ultimately give the home team the 59-34 victory.
Player of the Week
Following the win against Idaho State, Johnson was named ROOT SPORTS Defensive Player of the Week.
Johnson was sensational for the Thunderbirds last Saturday against Idaho State, as he picked off the Bengal quarterback on two separate occasions. His second interception went for a score, as he returned it 51 yards to the endzone.
The Moreno Valley, California native has been a starter for the Thunderbirds all season long and has had a major impact on the defensive side of the ball. He's racked up three interceptions, four pass breakups and 23 total tackles. Of that number, 19 were credited as solo tackles.
Johnson is SUU's first Big Sky Player of the Week this season from the football program, and the first since Patrick Tyler earned Offensive Player of the Week in November of 2017.
Offensive Leaders
Now through nine starts this season, Helbig has completed 213 passes for 2,284 yards and 13 touchdowns. He also has six touchdowns on the ground.
Lance Lawson continues to lead the Big Sky Conference in total catches with 67 for 634 yards and three touchdowns. He also has two touchdowns on the ground. Landen Measom has 17 catches for 252 yards for the Thunderbirds. In total, 12 different players have caught a touchdown pass for the Thunderbirds this season.
After a big weekend, Duckett is the team's second leading rusher with 231 yards and two touchdowns. James Felila still leads SUU on the ground with 337 yards and two scores.
Top Defenders
With three interceptions to his name this season, Johnson sits in a tie for second in the Big Sky in that category. He's also sits 12th in terms of passes defended.
Alex Sims leads the Thunderbirds in total tackles with 59 this season, along with five tackles for loss. AJ Stanley has 56 total tackles, followed by Otukolo with 53. Otukolo also has five tackles for loss this year.
Aaron Romero leads the team with 4.5 sacks this season.
Opponent Preview: Montana State Bobcats (5-3, 2-2 Big Sky)
The No. 14/15 ranked Bobcats of Montana State are currently riding a two-game losing streak after dropping back-to-back contests against Sacramento State and North Dakota.
The Bobcats will be the fifth team the T-Birds have faced this season ranked in the top-15 of the major FCS polls.
Tucker Roving is the primary quarterback for the Bobcats, with 75 completions for 833 yards and seven touchdowns.
Kevin Kassis is the leading wide receiver for MSU with 36 catches for 433 yards and three touchdowns. On the ground the Bobcats have four players over 200 yards rushing, led by Logan Jones with 70 carries for 476 yards and five touchdowns. Travis Jonsen also has five touchdowns, along with Troy Andersen.
Defensively, Callahan O'Reilly leads the team with 58 total tackles this season. Bryce Sterk has been a force for MSU, racking up 13.5 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks. As a unit they've recorded 60 tackles for loss, 19 sacks and five interceptions.
Montana State head coach Jeff Choate is in his fourth season with the program. The Bobcats made it to the FCS Playoffs to close out the 2018 season.
Last Time vs. MSU
The Thunderbirds and Bobcats haven't met since 2016, in a contest SUU won in Cedar City 38-21.
Patrick Tyler threw for 231 yards and three touchdowns in the contest. Malik Brown had 16 carries for 84 yards and one touchdown. Mike Sharp caught eight passes for 63 yards to lead the receiving group.
The Thunderbirds had four interceptions in the game, including two from Mitch Dalley. Kyle Hannemann and Josh Thronton also both had one for the T-Birds.
Recent Series History
Since joining the Big Sky Conference the Thunderbirds have met the Bobcats on the gridiron four times, and have won three of the four contests.
Big Sky At A Glance
Weber State is leading the way for the Big Sky Conference this week with a No. 3 ranking in the Top 25 polls. The league has a total of four teams ranked and two more receiving votes across the STATS FCS and AFCA FCS Coaches' Top 25 polls.
Weber State (6-2) captured its fourth consecutive win after a 36-20 win over UC Davis. Weber State was voted No. 3 in the STATS FCS and AFCA FCS Coaches' polls. Weber State will play at Sacramento State in a highly anticipated match-up against two teams in the top 10.
Sacramento State (6-2) continues to climb the polls and after its fourth straight win, the Hornets are slotted No. 6 in the STATS FCS and AFCA Coaches' polls. The Hornets will host Weber State on Saturday at Hornet Stadium in a game that will be on everyone's radar. It will be the Hornets' fourth ranked opponent this season and the fourth in five weeks.
Montana (6-2) was able to defeat Eastern Washington 34-17 to earn its third Big Sky win of the season. The victory bumped the Griz up to No. 8 in the STATS FCS and AFCA Coaches' polls. Next up for Montana is Portland State (5-4) - a team previously receiving votes.
Montana State (5-3) fell to a charging North Dakota team, 16-12 on the road. The loss dropped the Bobcats down to No. 14 in the STATS FCS Poll and No. 15 in the AFCA FCS Coaches' Poll. Montana State will take on Southern Utah (2-7) at home on Saturday in the ROOT SPORTS Game of the Week.
UC Davis and Northern Arizona are both receiving votes.
Words From Coach Warren
On the victory over Idaho State…
"It was an awesome feeling to win a football game, we haven't done it in a while," SUU head coach Demario Warren said. "We still made some crucial mistakes that let them back in the game a couple different times, but the thing that was different this week compared to other weeks was that the offense, defense and special teams all responded. If somebody messed up, the other side of the ball stepped up and made a huge play. That's something that we've been missing is trying to stop the bad momentum and keep some positive momentum going, and we had both of those things happen on Saturday which was fun to see."
On Johnson earning Player of the Week honors…
"He's improved a ton," Warren said. "He's one of the most talented corners I've been around, and we've had a lot of talented corners here, so he's starting to show some maturity in practice and off the field and he's come a long way. If he gets everything done that he needs to get done, he can play at the next level. I'm glad he has three years because he has a long way to go, but I think everybody saw a little glimpse of how special he can be if he does things right."
On Helbig's performance against the Bengals…
"He did a great job," Warren said. "He's doing a really good job in certain games of being really efficient. When he's efficient, we're in football games. We're able to keep the ball on offense and our time of possession has shot up the last couple weeks and it's been because of his ability to complete balls and make good decisions while leading our offense."
On Duckett's big performance…
"I'm super proud of Thomas, he was our player of the game," Warren said. "He got sick in camp, missed a week in practice and didn't really get the role he wanted to get at the beginning of the year, then as soon as he started to get more reps he ended up getting injured. While sitting out for a couple weeks he stayed positive, he stayed ready and so for him to get his number called on Saturday and respond that way was awesome. He had a huge third down gain on that last drive, and then he ended it with a touchdown so we're super proud of how he's handled all the adversity he's been through in his short time here and I'm hoping he becomes a leader and a great example for everyone on our team."
On the Bobcats…
"This is probably one of the most talented and physical teams we've played," he said. "They're right there with Weber State, South Dakota State and Northern Iowa. They're physical, they're big and they look the part on film. They've got weapons on offense, they have a great receiver that's a threat in the wildcat and on the outside. Their offensive line is big, strong and physical. Defensively, their front seven is big, nasty and they get after it. They've got athletic guys outside. This is a talented football team. Choate's done a great job of recruiting up there and they've got a ton of talent. They're on a two-game losing streak, fighting for their playoff lives right now, so I'm sure they're going to be ready to go when we get up there to Bozeman on Saturday."
On finishing on the right note…
"I think our last three weeks have been our best three weeks of football," he said. "I'm hoping to keep improving and give these guys a run for their money. Right now there's not a lot to play for, and to win a game and get the monkey off our back right now it'd be really easy for everybody to relax and try to get one after the bye week. This is a huge week for our young guys to see how they prepare. This is going to be a mentally tough game. It's going to be cold, on the road against a good, physical team. So we have to be mentally tough. To get this program back to the tough we have to get mentally tough and this is a great week to do it."
Where To Watch / Listen / Follow Along
Saturday's contest will be aired on national television on both ROOT SPORTS and the Audience Network.
The contest can be heard over the local airwaves on KSUB 590 AM in Cedar City. 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.msubobcats.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.
