PUEBLO, Colo. (Sept. 18, 2019) - The No. 9 Colorado State Unviersity-Pueblo football team opens the 2019 home season with a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference showdown with No. 17 Colorado School of Mines Saturday, Sept. 21 at 6 p.m. The contest at the Neta and Eddie DeRose ThunderBowl is a RED OUT.
THE GAME
• CSU-Pueblo was a unanimous favorite in the 2019 RMAC Preseason Coaches Poll. Mines was second. The Pack are opening their first three games against three of the top five teams in the poll, Dixie State (5th), Chadron State (3rd) and Mines (2nd).
• The Pack remain No. 7 in the D2Football.com poll and No. 9 in the AFCA poll, right where they were in the preseason poll. Mines ranks No. 15 in the D2Football,com poll and No. 17 in the AFCA rankings.
• CSU-Pueblo owns a 18-8 (11-4 at home) record versus ranked opponents (Division II) since 2011.
• The ThunderWolves are 19-10 all-time against the Orediggers, but it has been a back-and-forth affair for the last five meetings with CSU-Pueblo holding the 3-2 advantage.
• CSU-Pueblo is 7-5 in the series since 2008, which includes last year's 37-17 win in Golden in the first round of the NCAA Division II Playoffs.
• During the regular season, Mines posted a 35-21 victory. In the last meeting at the ThunderBowl in 2017, the Pack rolled to a 38-7 win.
LAST TIME OUT
• The Pack moved to 2-0 on the season with a 42-21 road win at Chadron State, who were receiving votes in the AFCA Division II poll entering the game.
• The offense totaled 421 yards with 295 yards on the ground (6.3 yards per carry). The Eagles (1-1, 1-1 RMAC) out-gained the Pack with 449 yards, 300 through the air.
• RB Austin Micci led the rushing game with 98 yards on nine attempts (10.9 ypc) and two touchdowns. RB D.J. Penick added 90 yards on 16 attempts and two scores of his own.
• QB Jordan Kitna threw his first touchdown pass as a member of the Pack, as he went 11-for-17 (64.7%) for 126 yards. WR Dionte Sykes and WR Max Fine each brought down 53 yards receiving on three receptions, while Fine found the end zone for the first time in his career.
• OLB James Maxie led the defense with seven tackles (five solo). ILB Kyle Rosenbrock added five tackles (four solo) with two tackles for loss (-3 yards). Four more players had four tackles.
SCOUTING MINES
• The Orediggers own a road win at Adams State (41-10) and a home victory against Black Hills State (52-7) for a 2-0 start.
• Mines has the best rush defense in the nation (-0.5 ypg) and is 15th in Division II in rushing (266 ypg).
• They have allowed 8.5 ppg for 5th in Division II and are scoring 46.5 points per game to sit eighth in the nation.
• The team hasn't allowed a sack or had a pass intercepted.
• The Orediggers lead the RMAC and rank 16th nationally in total defense with 241.5 yards allowed per game. They are second to the Pack in the RMAC in total offense with 480.5 yards per contest (23rd in DII).
• RB Cameron Mayberry picked up where he left off last year and has 222 rushing yards (18th nationally) and four rushing touchdowns (T-2nd in DII).
• Making his debut at quarterback as a true freshman last week, John Matocha went 20-for-22 for 249 yards and three touchdowns through the air to earn RMAC Offensive Player of the Week. He had only one incompletion in each half as he threw for three touchdowns (25, 4, and 36 yards) and ran for a four-yard score of his own. Matocha added 50 net yards on the ground on 10 rushes.
• SS Kobe Brewster leads the team with 11 tackles. CB Mason Pierce adds 10 tackles and three break-ups. NT Scott Adams has six tackles, three tackles for loss and two sacks.
• K Scott Marshall was RMAC Special Teams Player of the Week after he remained perfect on the season, hitting 6-of-6 PATs and a 46-yard field goal. He is 3-for-3 on field goal attempts.
• WR Sean O'Dell leads the RMAC and is third nationally with 19 yards per punt return.
THE POLLS
• CSU-Pueblo finished 2018 ranked No. 7 in the AFCA and D2Football.com polls. The Pack. CSU-Pueblo entered the season No. 7 in the D2Football.com rankings and No. 9 by the AFCA. The team remained at that spot after two weeks.
• The Pack ranked in the AFCA top 25 for 66 consecutive polls ranging from Sept. 5, 2011 (21st) to Sept. 5, 2016 (19th).
• The ThunderWolves ranked in the top 10 nationally for a NCAA Division II-best 37 straight weeks from Oct. 17, 2011 (eighth) to Oct. 6, 2014 (second).
TEAM NOTES
• The CSU-Pueblo football program and Head Coach John Wristen recorded their 100th victory since the restart of the program in 2008 when they defeated New Mexico Highlands 48-3, Oct. 6, 2018. Wristen owns a 107-25 all-time record. The .811 percentage ranks 2nd among active NCAA Division II coaches (min 5 years).
• Since 2008, CSU-Pueblo is undefeated when scoring 36 or more points (60-0) and when allowing 10 points or less (44-0). The Pack had done both in each of the final three games of the regular season last year and started 2019 meeting both stat lines.
• Since 2008, the ThunderWolves are 56-11 (.836) at the ThunderBowl.
• In 2018, CSU-Pueblo posted a perfect regular season home record (5-0) for the seventh time in the last eight seasons. The Pack have won 15 straight at home since 2016, which ranks as the second longest current home winning streak in NCAA Division II.
• The ThunderWolves had eight scoring plays of 65-yards or more and owned 13 scoring drives of 75 yards or more last season. In the first two games, the Pack have five drives of 75 yards or more, which included a 12-play, 92-yard drive in the opener at Dixie State.
• In the last 22 regular season games the ThunderWolves have allowed just 34 points in the fourth quarter, dating back to Sept. 16, 2017.
• CSU-Pueblo clocked 40:17 of possession time in the opener and with 35:16 time of possession this season, the team ranks second in the RMAC and 15th nationally.
• The ThunderWolves have committed nine penalties to rank 1st in the conference and 13th in Division II in fewest penalties.
• The Pack will play their five regular season road games in five different states (Utah, Nebraska, South Dakota, New Mexico and Colorado).
CSU-PUEBLO POSITION NOTABLES
OFFENSE
• WR Dionte Sykes had a big debut for the Pack, as he brought in four receptions for 172 yards in the opener against Dixie State. He had receptions of 46, 50 and 70 yards and with the performance tied Paul Browning's 2013 performance of 172 receiving yards for the most receiving yards in a game since the restart in 2008.
• With 225 receiving yards he ranks 3rd in the RMAC and 17th in Division II, while his 32.1 yards per reception is 6th nationally.
• RB D.J. Penick racked up 105 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries in his debut with the red, white and blue.
• He owns a team-best 195 rushing yards to rank second in the RMAC and 28th nationally. He has three rushing scores (T-11th nationally) and ranks second in the league with 6.7 yards per carry.
• QB Jordan Kitna made his Pack debut in the opener and went 9-for-18 (50%) with 261 yards and two rushing touchdowns.
• He has 387 passing yards to rank fourth in the RMAC, while his 19.4 yards per completion is good for second in the conference and fifth nationally.
• With 269.5 rushing yards per game, the ThunderWolves lead the RMAC and rank 13 in DII.
• With 17.8 yards per pass completion, the Pack rank 18th nationally and second in the RMAC.
• RB Austin Micci eclipsed the 2,000 career yards mark against Fort Lewis last season to become the 9th player in program history to reach the milestone. He owns 2,337 yards to rank 7th all-time.
• CSU-Pueblo has racked up 500 yards per game in the opening two games to lead the RMAC and rank 18th nationally.
• With 39 points per game, the Pack rank 2nd in the RMAC and 26th in Division II.
DEFENSE
• The Pack have been one of the most stingiest and unforgiving defenses in the nation the past eight seasons. Since 2011, the ThunderWolves have finished the season in the top 22 nationally in scoring defense, which includes leading the country in 2011 and 2014. CSU-Pueblo has also ranked in the top 21 in turnover ratio (or turnovers gained) in all but one season in that span with the nation's best mark in 2014 and in 2018.
• Since 2008, the Pack have totaled 37 interception returns for a touchdown. The most in a season is five by the 2010, 2014 and 2017 squads.
• CB Emery Taylor recorded a team-best seven interceptions and a team-high 15 pass break-ups last season and started the year off with the first pick of 2019 against DSU.
• RECORD WATCH: Taylor has 18 career interceptions to sit 2nd all-time at CSU-Pueblo. Stephan Dickens (2010-14) has the record with 19.
• CSU-Pueblo's rushing defense was established on game one of the program re-boot in 2008. The Pack allowed 13 yards rushing against Oklahoma Panhandle State (Sept. 8, 2008) and since have held their opponent to less than 50 yards rushing on 22 more occasions.
• Eight times since 2008 the ThunderWolves allowed 10 or less rushing yards, with the record standing at -11 yards this season at Black Hills State (previous record was -4 rushing yards at New Mexico Highlands Nov. 9, 2013).
• In the opener, Dixie State was only able to muster 59 rushing yards on 23 attempts (2.6 ypc). The Pack are fourth in the RMAC in rushing defense at 104 yards per game.
• By allowing 14.0 points per game, the team sits 2nd in the RMAC and 20th in Division II.
SPECIAL TEAMS
• K Mitchell Carter is 4-for-5 on field goal attempts for 2.0 field goals per game, which is tie for the lead in the conference and T-8th in DII. He is 6-for-8 on extra points for 18 points, which is tied for a team lead and T-4th in the conference.
• Redshirt-freshman punter Justin Dwinell has taken over punting duties and has placed five of his eight punts inside the 20. He averages 40 yards per kick with a long of 47 yards.
#PACKPROS: CSU-Pueblo has three former players in the NFL right now. Ryan Jensen (2009-12) is in his seventh season and second with Tampa Bay after five with the Baltimore Ravens. After a breakout season where he started all 16 games at center for the Ravens, Jensen inked the largest contract for a center in NFL history when he signed with the Bucaneers. Morgan Fox (2012-15) moved from the practice squad to active roster in 2016 and was on the active roster all of the 2017 season with the Los Angeles Rams. Unfortunately, the defensive lineman suffered a knee injury during OTAs and missed the 2018 season. He returns to the active 53-man roster for 2019. Defensive lineman Deyon Sizer (2014-18) earned a spot on the Denver Broncos practice squad for 2019 after a successful rookie mini-camp tryout and summer with the team. Mike Pennel (2013) has five seasons of NFL experience (Green Bay, New York Jets), but was cut during camp in August by New England. Darius Allen (2011-14) is currently in his fourth season in the Canadian Football League. As of Sept. 6 he was on the BC Lions' 6-game injured list.
VS. RANKED SQUADS: CSU-Pueblo owns a 18-8 (11-4 at home) record versus ranked opponents (Division II) since 2011. The ThunderWolves went 6-0 versus the nation's top 25 in 2014 and also added a 47-21 win against Sam Houston State (No. 15) to record the team's first-ever victory against a ranked FCS team. The Pack went 4-1 against ranked opponents in 2015 and had won 10 straight against the nation's best before the loss to Grand Valley State. The Pack recorded the program's second win against a team ranked No. 1 in the AFCA poll when it posted a 23-13 road win at Texas A&M-Commerce Sept. 22, 2018. The first time came when CSU-Pueblo won the 2014 NCAA Division II National Championship by the score of 13-0 against Minnesota State.
STREAKS: CSU-Pueblo posted three straight 11-0 seasons entering 2014 and was just one of two teams in NCAA Division II history to accomplish the feat. After starting 5-0 in 2014, the Pack owned 42 straight regular season victories, which was the second-longest in NCAA Division II history, behind only Grand Valley State, which posted 48 straight wins from 2004-09. The streak ended Oct. 11 in a 23-22 road loss at Fort Lewis.
The Pack recorded 28 consecutive regular season home victories from a 66-0 win against New Mexico Highlands Oct. 30, 2010 to a 51-20 win against Colorado Mesa Nov. 7, 2015.
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