CEDAR CITY, Utah -- The Thunderbird football team will play their annual Homecoming Game this weekend against the Cal Poly Mustangs as they kick off their 2019 Big Sky Conference Schedule.
Start time for Saturday, September 28 is set for 6:05 p.m. MT.
Last Time Out
Last Saturday the Thunderbirds fell to the No. 3 ranked Jackrabbits of South Dakota State on the road, 43-7.
The T-Birds finished with 245 passing yards in the contest, compared to SDSU's 215, but the Jackrabbits held a 241-111 advantage on the ground offensively that gave them the edge.
SDSU jumped out to a three score advantage before the Thunderbirds were able to get on the scoreboard thanks to the legs of Chris Helbig, cutting into the lead 21-7.
In the second half the Jackrabbits scored 22 unanswered points to pull away from the T-Birds.
Non-Conference Recap
The T-Birds finished their non-conference campaign with a 1-3 overall record after facing a group that included an FBS opponent and two highly ranked FCS foes.
SUU started their season in Las Vegas against UNLV, in a contest the Rebels secured 56-23. The next weekend the Thunderbirds traveled to Cedar Falls to take on the Northern Iowa Panthers, who were ranked No. 11/12 in the FCS at the time. The T-Birds fell in that contest as well 34-14.
The Thunderbirds picked up their first victory of the year at home when the Lumberjacks of Stephen F. Austin came to town. Even though it took an overtime period, the T-Birds prevailed 45-38 over their foe from the Lone Star State.
The No. 3 Jackrabbits of SDSU bumped the T-Birds down to 1-3 on the year up in Brookings, S.D., with Big Sky Conference play up next for the T-Birds.
Offensive Leaders
Through four contests Helbig has completed 91 passes for the T-Birds for 850 yards and two touchdowns. He has also rushed for four touchdowns on the ground and caught one on a trick play.
True sophomore Lance Lawson continues to be the preferred target through the air, catching 37 passes for 326 yards and two scores. Isaiah Diego-Williams is second on the team in catches with 12 for 118 yards, while true freshman Zach Nelson has also snagged two touchdowns through the air for the T-Birds.
James Felila has been SUU's top threat on the ground with 52 carries for 161 yards and two touchdowns. Thomas Duckett has 29 carries for 105 yards and one score.
Top Defenders
With four contests in the books, Nela Otukolo leads the Thunderbirds in total tackles with 27. He also has three tackles for loss and one sack.
Alex Sims is second on the team with 21 total tackles. Nathaniel Vaughn has added 19 tackles and had his first career interception as a Thunderbird last contest.
Carlton Johnson and Khalid Taylor have also picked off a pass this season for the Thunderbirds.
Through four weeks the Thunderbirds have matched the number of interceptions the team had all last season.
Opponent Preview: Cal Poly Mustangs
The Mustangs of Cal Poly will enter Saturday's contest against Southern Utah with a 1-2 overall record. They picked up a victory in their first game of the year against San Diego 52-34, but have gone one to fall to both Weber State (non-conference matchup) and Oregon State. They had a bye week last week leading up to their Big Sky opener.
Running the triple option, Mustang quarterback Jalen Hamler has had a solid start for Cal Poly this season. He's thrown for 515 yards and four touchdowns to this point of the year, as well as rushing for 176 yards and three more touchdowns on the ground.
Duy Tran-Sampson is Cal Poly's top running back with 317 yards on the ground and two touchdowns to his name.
J.J. Koski has been the top target through the air with 13 catches for 319 yards and two touchdowns.
The Mustangs have an active secondary defensively, with four interceptions so far this season.
Matt Shotwell is the team leader in tackles with 25.
Tim Walsh is in his 11th season as the head coach of the Cal Poly Mustangs, and has a 56-58 record as a head coach in San Luis Obispo.
Last Time vs Cal Poly
The T-Birds and Mustangs squared off last season in the final game of the year, which Cal Poly won 38-24 in California.
Tyler Skidmore got the start for SUU in that contest, completing 26 passes for 260 yards and one touchdown.
Former T-Bird McCoy Hill was the leading receiver for SUU, catching six passes for 61 yards and one touchdown.
Lelon Dillard was the top running back for SUU with 10 carries for 48 yards.
Defensively, Tyalor Nelson had a huge game in his final contest as a T-Bird with 19 tackles. Quaid Murray finished with 13 tackles and a TFL in the contest.
Recent Series History
Since joining the Big Sky Conference the T-Birds and Mustangs have met on four different occasions. Those contests have been split between the pair 2-2.
Big Sky At A Glance
Despite some tough losses for a couple of the Big Sky teams, the STATS FCS and AFCA FCS Coaches' Top 25 is still filled with five teams. The league has four additional teams receiving votes between both polls.
UC Davis (2-2) battled against No. 1 North Dakota State last weekend on the road before falling, 27-16. The Aggies roll into the week at No. 4 in the STATS FCS poll and No. 5 in the AFCA Coaches' poll. UC Davis welcomes Montana this week to the UC Davis Health Stadium to kick off conference play.
Coming off a bye week, Weber State sits in the No. 5 spot in the STATS poll and No. 6 spot in coaches' poll. Weber State (1-2) returns to the field on Saturday to host No. 9/7 Northern Iowa (2-1) in the final game of the Big Sky-Missouri Valley Challenge Series.
Montana State (3-1) picked up its third FCS non-conference win this season with a 56-21 win over Norfolk State at home. The victory pushed Montana State up to No. 7 in the STATS FCS poll and No. 11 in the coaches' poll. The Bobcats host Northern Arizona (2-2) this week.
Eastern Washington (1-3) is ranked No. 21 in both polls after falling to Idaho on the road. The Eagles have been ranked all season long and will have a bye this week, before facing Sacramento State (2-2) on the road next week.
Montana (3-1) registered a 47-27 win over Monmouth, who had been receiving votes. The victory bumped the Griz up to No. 17 by the coaches and No. 18 in the STATS FCS poll. The Griz play on the road at UC Davis on Saturday in the ROOT SPORTS Game of the Week.
Other Big Sky teams receiving votes were Northern Arizona, Sacramento State, Idaho and Idaho State.
Words From Coach Warren
On the biggest takeaways from last Saturday...
"They took advantage of a lot of opportunities and we didn't," SUU head coach Demario Warren said. "We got down inside the 30 or 40 yard line seven or eight times and came away with seven points, and they got there half the time and came away with 43 points, and that's not what you want. We missed our field goals, we missed a blocked punt, they got one, we just weren't good enough to beat a ranked team on the road. I felt like we were in the game more than the score indicated, but at the end of the day it's about winning and losing and we lost the game. There's no moral victories, we've got to get better and start off Big Sky play 1-0."
On how he'd evaluate the non-conference as a whole...
"We got better each week," he said. "I thought we played better in a lot of ways as the weeks went on. Obviously offensively we played a lot better against Stephen F. Austin, but against SDSU we moved the ball against a really good defense. Coming out of the offseason I knew we'd have to fight against some really good, and that's where we're at right now. We're going to play a lot of good teams coming up, but we should be prepared for that."
On Cal Poly…
"They've got a new quarterback that is athletic and can throw," he said. "They always have a great running attack. Defensively, they're making plays and creating confusion. There's a lot of different things they'll do on defense that we've got to be prepared for. And they're coming off a bye, so they'll be prepared and rested. We've got to get our guys fresh and back up to be ready for them."
On scheming to play against the triple option, especially for Brandon Fisher…
"He probably hasn't seen this for a long time, but he played at Montana and played against these guys so I'm sure he'll be fine," he said. "The guys just have to be disciplined. The scheme is not hard, it's just executing it play after play that is not easy to do."
On the annual Homecoming Game…
"It's always fun to play in front of our crowd," he said. "We love the people in Cedar, love our students, and we can't wait to get back out in front of them. They've treated us well so far, so we're going to do our best to go 2-0 at home."
Where To Watch / Listen / Follow Along
Saturday's contest will be 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.suutbirds.com prior to kickoff.
Promotions
Saturday's tailgate will begin at 3 p.m. MT with the Thunderwalk tentatively scheduled for 3:15-3:30 p.m. MT.
There will be $1 bottled water available for the various concessions stands around Eccles Coliseum. Throughout the game there will be recognition of the SUU Homecoming Court, and contest winners from the Homecoming Parade. There will also be a recognition of distinguished alumni, along with performances from the SUU Cheer and Dance teams.
Saturday's game in sponsored by Cedar City Motor Company.
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.
