CEDAR CITY, Utah -- The Thunderbird football team will wrap up their 2018 campaign on the road this weekend as they head to San Luis Obispo, California to take on the Mustangs of Cal Poly.

Last Time Out

The Thunderbirds fell to the No. 3/4 Wildcats of Weber State 31-18 on Saturday, moving them to 1-9 on the season and 1-6 in the Big Sky Conference.

SUU and WSU stayed very close for the opening half, as the Wildcats held a 21-12 lead at the break.

Unfortunately for T-Birds, the Wildcats outscored SUU 10-6 in the second half and the Thunderbirds were unable to find the necessary momentum offensively to get on the board down the stretch.

All-Time Tacklers

As the final chapter of their Southern Utah careers come to a close, both Chinedu Ahanonu and Taylor Nelson have climbed up the T-Bird record book in the tackles category this season.

For his career, Ahanonu has 338 tackles, which puts him fifth in the history of the program. He only needs five tackles against the Mustangs on the road to move into fourth place all time and pass Robert Takeno, who played for the T-Birds from 2006 to 2009.

Taylor Nelson currently sits 11th on the all-time tackle list with 270, and is 20 behind James Cowser heading into his final contest with the program.

Stud Judd

Cockett's kickoff return for a touchdown on Saturday was the second of the season for him, which is the first time since 2011 that a T-Bird has had multiple kickoff returns in the same season.

The last player to do so was Austin Minefee, when he returned two during SUU's 2011 campaign.

Cockett's first of the year came against Sacramento State.

Offensive Leaders

Green Jr. continues to lead the T-Birds on the ground with 157 carries for 815 yards and six touchdowns. Karris Davis has carried the rock 42 times for 187 yards and five touchdowns.

Aaron Zwahlen, Austin Ewing and Tyler Skidmore all got time for the Thunderbirds at quarterback last Saturday. Zwahlen has thrown for 792 yards and two touchdowns, Skidmore has thrown for 537 yards and two touchdowns, and Ewing has accounted for five touchdowns over the course of the year on the ground and through the air.

Landen Measom has caught 43 passes for 589 yards and two touchdowns, while Ty Rutledge has caught 42 passes for 464 yards and two touchdowns.

Defensive Leaders

Ahanonu leads the T-Birds this season with 86 tackles and 11 tackles for loss. Nelson is second on the team with 64 total tackles, and has matched Ahanonu with 11 tackles for loss.

AJ Stanley is third on the team in tackles with 59, followed by Taelin Webb with 33 and nine pass breakups.

Stanley has two forced fumbles for the T-Birds, while Nelson has recovered four fumbles.

Opponent Preview: Cal Poly (4-6, 3-4 Big Sky)

In their last contest the Mustangs of Cal Poly knocked off the No. 24 Idaho State Bengals 37-14 in the Golden State. That victory moved the Mustangs to 4-6 on the season and 3-4 in Big Sky Conference play.

The Mustangs started the season 1-4, but have since knocked off Sacramento State, Northern Arizona and the Bengals to improve on the year has gone on.

Joe Protheroe had a huge game for the Mustangs on the ground, rushing the ball 41 times for 260 yards and a touchdown. Khaleel Jenkins completed six passes for 91 yards and a touchdown, including three passes to J.J. Koski for 73 yards.  

This season Protheroe has 329 carries for 1,627 yards and 13 touchdowns. Khaleel Jenkins has also carried the ball 179 times for 612 yards and nine touchdowns.  

Last Year vs. Cal Poly

The Thunderbirds and Mustangs squared off early in 2017 as the Thunderbirds made their run to a second Big Sky title, and SUU came out on top 20-14.

Patrick Tyler finished 23-of-30 through the air and tossed a touchdown to Terrance Beasley. Green Jr. rushed nine times for 80 yards and a touchdown as well.

On the defensive side, Ahanonu had 15 tackles to lead the Thunderbirds.

Recent Series History

Since the Thunderbirds joined the Big Sky Conference they've faced off against Cal Poly three times.

Prior to the meeting in 2017 the Thunderbirds knocked off the Mustangs 54-37 in 2015, but lost to the team from San Luis Obispo in 2014, 42-39.

Big Sky At A Glance

The race for the Big Sky Conference Championship has come down to the final weekend, as Eastern Washington, UC Davis and Weber State all sit at 6-1 in league play.

This weekend the Eagles will play at Portland State on Friday night, the Aggies will host Sacramento State and the Wildcats will travel to Pocatello to play Idaho State.

Words From Coach Warren

On Chinedu and what he's meant to the program…

"He's just been a warrior, been a leader," SUU head coach Demario Warren said. "He does everything right on and off the field. He had a redshirt year, decided not to use it this year. He said that we worked with these guys and he wanted to finish out with this group, which shows you what kind of person he is. I just love the kid to death and I'm really excited for him to move on in his career, but I'm sad to see him go."

On the boost Cockett has supplied over the season…

"He's been awesome, he came as a walkon and earned some scholarship money after his freshman year," he said. "He's been doing a tremendous job. Another kid that does things right on and off the field and for him to electrify us like that in two of our home games is awesome."

On Cal Poly…

"Every week in the Big Sky is tough and this is another really good team," he said. "They've gotten better. Their fullback is one of the best backs in the country. Their defense had a good performance against a really good Idaho State offense so it seems like they're clicking at the right time at the end of the season. This will be a difficult matchup for us and it'll be a good test for our young guys to see if they can be disciplined and tackle a triple option attack."

Where To Watch / Listen / Follow Along

This week's contest will air live on the PlutoTV App and on WatchBigSky.com.

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.