PUEBLO, Colo. – The 10th-ranked Colorado State University Pueblo football team will return to action after a week off this coming Saturday, Nov. 2 as the ThunderWolves travel to Gunnison, Colo., for a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference match-up against eighth-ranked Western Colorado. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Mojo Field in the Mountaineer Bowl at Rady Family Sports Complex.
 
Saturday's game will feature a match-up between the lone two undefeated teams left in the RMAC this season as CSU Pueblo comes into the game sporting a 7-1 overall record and a 6-0 mark in the RMAC following its 24-21 home win on Oct. 19 against Black Hills State, while Western Colorado comes into the game as one of the six remaining undefeated teams in Division II with an 8-0 overall record and a 6-0 mark in the RMAC following its 38-28 road win last Saturday over then 10th-ranked Colorado School of Mines. 
 
The Pack and Western Colorado are two of the hottest teams in Division II football entering play on Saturday as the Pack have won five straight games and 13 straight RMAC games. In comparison, Western Colorado has won eight consecutive games overall and eight straight league games. The Pack's 13-game conference win streak is the longest active streak in Division II football behind Kutztown's 15-game conference win streak, while Western's eight-game win streak is tied for the longest active win streak in Division II. 
 
Along with winning 13 straight conference games dating to last season, the Pack have also won seven consecutive games on the road since a 57-49 double overtime loss last season at Grand Valley State. The seven-game road win streak is currently the second longest active streak in Division II behind Valdosta State's 11-game road win streak. 
 
In the last game out against Black Hills State on Oct. 19, the Pack's 24-21 win was keyed by a single-game school record three blocked kicks, including two blocked field goals by senior defensive lineman Cody Ramming (Littleton, Colo./Columbine) that led to touchdowns – a school record 75-yard return by junior defensive back Ben Wilson (Pearland, Texas/Midwestern State) and a 58-yard return by senior defensive back Eli Pittman (Peoria, Ariz./Liberty) and blocked punt by redshirt freshman linebacker Shallum Peter (Dallas, Texas/Lake Highlands). In addition to the three blocked kicks, the Pack won the game on a 40-yard field goal with seven seconds left by junior kicker Jacob Willig (Fort Collins, Colo./Rocky Mountain). 
 
"I was very proud of our players. I think the sign of a good team is when they can win games that maybe technically you look at the statistics you're not supposed to win," CSU Pueblo second-year head coach Philp Vigil said. "We were able to find a way to win against a good Black Hills State team. Every single unit when we needed them to step up, stepped up and made plays." 
 
The Pack offense was held to season lows in points (24), first downs (10), total yards (209), passing yards (61), and time of possession (13:18). For the game the Pack finished the game with 148 yards rushing on 20 carries (7.4 yards per carry) and was 9-for-22 passing for 61 yards and was held without a touchdown pass for the second time this season. The 61 passing yards were the fewest in a game for the Pack since passing for 94 yards last season at home against Mines. 
 
Despite those numbers offensively last time out against Black Hills State, the Pack is still one of the top offensive teams in Division II football as the Pack is fourth nationally in scoring (43.6 points per game), fifth nationally in total offense (484.8 yards per game), fifth in passing offense (309.9 yards per game), 10th in team passing efficiency (163.94 efficiency) and 20th in offensive first downs (177 first downs). The Pack leads the RMAC in scoring, passing, and total offense and is fourth in rushing offense (174.9 yards per game).
 
"We got two field goals blocked for touchdowns, which was awesome, but I think it hurt us offensively, if I'm being honest, because it didn't allow us to get onto the field and get into a groove offensively, but credit to our defense and special teams and also to our offense when we needed it, we put points on the board," Vigil added. 
 
The lone bright spot offensively for the Pack was the running of senior Howard Russell V (Phoenix, Ariz./Eastern New Mexico) as he finished the game with 102 yards rushing on 15 carries and scored the Pack's lone offensive touchdown on an 18-yard run in the third quarter. It was Russell's fifth straight 100-yard rushing game this season and sixth overall on the season. 
 
Russell, who is now 15th on the school's career rushing chart with 1,471 yards, comes into Saturday's game as the leading rusher in the RMAC as he has gained 886 yards and leads the RMAC in rushing yards per game (110.8), rushing touchdowns (10), all-purpose yards (120.3), points scored (66) and total touchdowns (11). Russell is also second nationally in rushing yards per carry (7.9) and is in the Top 10 nationally in rushing yards and rushing yards per game. 
 
On defense, the Pack allowed a season-high 509 yards to the Yellow Jackets as they passed for 297 yards and rushed for 208 yards. BHSU also had 30 first downs and tallied a time of possession of 46:42. The Pack defense did record a sack to push its season total to 23 and forced a turnover in the game as the Pack now has a plus-4 turnover margin on the year, which is second-best in the RMAC.
 
The Pack comes into this weekend's action fresh off a bye week and Vigil says that the bye week came at a great time for his team. 
 
"The bye week was great for our team. We were able to get some guys back that were banged up and injured and we were also able to get the young guys a lot of reps last week while getting some quality work with our veteran groups," the Pack coach added. "It also allowed the guys to get their minds right and get their legs back underneath them and allow us to do what we need to do the last half of the season."
 
During the current five-game winning streak, the Pack is averaging 50.6 points per game and is averaging 496.6 yards of offense (1,148 rushing, 1,335 passing) per game, and on defense, is allowing 19.4 points and 312.2 yards of offense per game. The Pack has also recorded 14 sacks and forced 12 turnovers on defense while allowing just two sacks and committing six turnovers on offense. 
 
Vigil says that Saturday's game starts the playoffs for his team with only three weeks left in the regular season. 
 
"We told the team last week that the playoffs start now for us. Western is a championship-caliber team, they've proven that the way they've played all year long, and I believe we are a championship-caliber team as well. I'm excited to see what happens on Saturday, ultimately, it's going to come down to which team makes the most plays," Vigil stated. "If these guys can't get up for this game, then we better check our pulse because this is why you come to CSU Pueblo to play meaningful games in November and this game is as meaningful as they get."
 
The winner of Saturday's game puts themselves into the driver's seat to win both the RMAC title and host a first-round home NCAA Division II playoff game. 
 
Saturday's game will be the fourth of five regular season road games for the Pack as the Pack are 4-0 on the road and have won eight of its nine road games since the beginning of the 2023 season. 
 
"We have been a really good road team this season because we've found a way to control the things we can control and hopefully that continues on Saturday," said Vigil. "We're going to be playing in a hostile environment, and they'll be a lot on the line for both teams, so we've got to find a way to block out all the noise and go out and play our game."
 
Saturday's game with Western Colorado will be the Pack's third game this season against a nationally ranked foe as the Pack a 1-1 this season against nationally ranked teams and is 22-21 all-time against ranked teams since the program rebooted in 2008, including a 14-12 mark in regular season games. 
 
Along with being the third game this season against a nationally ranked team, Saturday's game will mark the 31st all-time meeting against the Mountaineers. The Pack leads the all-time series, 18-12, but they have lost three straight games in the series, including suffering a 30-14 loss last season at the CSU Pueblo ThunderBowl. The Pack are 11-5 at home and are tied 7-7 in Gunnison. 

Following Saturday's game, the Pack will return home next Saturday, Nov. 9 as they close out their home regular season schedule with a 1 p.m. game against 18th-ranked Mines in the ThunderBowl. The game will be Senior Day for the Pack, along with a celebration of Veteran's Day and a 10th anniversary reunion of the 2014 NCAA Division II National Championship football team. 
 
ABOUT WESTERN COLORADO
Much like CSU Pueblo, Western Colorado enters the weekend with one of the top offenses and defenses in the RMAC as the Mountaineers are second in the league in both scoring offense (38.4 points per game) and scoring defense (16.1 points per game) and is second in rushing offense (203.1 yards per game), total offense (454.9) and is third in both passing offense (251.8 yards per game) and total defense (268.4 yards per game). In addition, Western Colorado leads the RMAC and is second nationally in Division II in rushing defense as they are allowing 60.5 rushing yards per game and also lead the league in both third-down defense (26.5 percent) and fourth-down defense (35.7 percent).

"If you look at the stats and you look at where we are at and where they are at, we're both very close. We're neck-and-neck in almost every category. If we're not leading, they are, and vice versa," Vigil said. "That goes to show the quality of athletes that Coach (Jas) Bains has done a good job of recruiting and then he puts those guys in really good positions to be successful."

In last Saturday's win over Mines, the Mountaineers, who are coached by Jas Bains, jumped out to a 31-7 lead just seven seconds into the fourth quarter and would hold off a 21-point fourth-quarter rally by the Orediggers to post the 38-28 win to remain undefeated on the season.

Against the Orediggers, Western Colorado outgained Mines, 469 to 379 as they rushed 41 times for 260 yards and passed for 209 yards in the win. Mines was held to 56 rushing and passed for 323 yards on offense. In addition, WCU recorded seven sacks, 10 tackles for a loss and held Mines to a 3-for-12 effort on third down.

"I have a lot of respect for Coach Bains and his staff and what they've been able to do at Western Colorado. They've got an unbelievable football team this year once again this year," the Pack coach added.

Vigil said that the Mountaineers are very good on both sides of the ball and will present some challenges to his team on Saturday.

"They do everything well. They are efficient on offense. They can run it; they can throw it, and their quarterback is a really good athlete and kind of drives things on that side of the ball," the coach added. "Defensively, they are going to give you a ton of different looks. They're going to slant, they're going to twist, and then they are going to play tough football. And then on special teams, they've won games this year because of special teams, which is similar to us. This is a very, very, very good football team all the way around in all three phases. They are well coached and we're going to have to be at our absolute best when we go to the Mountaineer Bowl on Saturday."

Among the key players on offense for the Mountaineers are junior quarterback Drew Nash. Nash is 127-for-195 passing for 1,478 yards and has tossed 14 touchdown passes and has thrown three interceptions. In addition to his passing, Nash has carried the ball for 307 yards and has scored five rushing touchdowns and is third in the RMAC in total offense as he is averaging 255.0 yards per game.

In addition to Nash, the rushing attack is paced by senior Braeden Hogan is averaging 73.9 rushing yards per game and 12.3 yards per carry as he has scored six rushing scores, which is third-best in the RMAC, while redshirt senior Royce Pao has gained 329 yards rushing on 55 carries and has scored five touchdowns and is averaging 6.0 yards per carry. Five Mountaineers have gained over 100 yards rushing on the season and three WCU players have scored five or more rushing yards.

Nash's top targets in the passing game are junior Josiah Ayon and junior tight end Daniel Parsek. Ayon, who was named the RMAC Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 21, has caught 29 passes for 357 yards and is averaging 12.3 yards per reception and has caught six touchdown passes, which is fourth-best in the RMAC, while Parsek has caught 27 passes for 329 yards and is averaging 12.2 yards per reception and has had two touchdown catches. Overall, seven different Mountaineers have caught at least 10 passes on the season and 10 different players have caught at least one touchdown pass.

Meanwhile, on defense, the Mountaineers lead the RMAC in both sacks (30) and tackles for loss (81) and have picked off 10 passes, which is third-best in the RMAC. The Mountaineers have held five of its eight opponents to under 300 yards of offense and have recorded at least three sacks in seven of its eight games, including seven sacks last time out against Mines.

Among the key players on defense for Western Colorado is junior defensive end Ricky Freymond, who leads the league in both sacks (8.5) and tackles for loss (14.5). Freymond has recorded 36 tackles, had six quarterback hurries, and has blocked two of WCU's league-leading six kicks. Freymond had five tackles, along with three sacks and three tackles for loss last weekend against Mines.

In addition to Freymond, freshman linebacker Cameron Cooper has recorded 33 tackles, picked off two passes, and has had four tackles for a loss, while senior linebacker Cy Shope leads the team in tackles with 41 and has had two sacks and six tackles for loss and senior linebacker Kendall Lightfoot has had 27 tackles, 6.5 tackles for a loss, two sacks, one interception, six pass break-ups and a team-leading seven quarterback hurries.

On special teams, the Mountaineers are fifth in league in kickoff returns as they are averaging 20.5 yards per return as Ayon leads the way as he is averaging 21.9 yards per return, while they are averaging 7.5 yards per punt return with senior Jack Jones leading the way as he is averaging 8.8 yards per return. Junior kicker Adam Tasei is 9-for-13 on field goals with a long field goal of 49 yards and is 38-for-40 on extra points and is second in the league in points scored with 65 and sophomore punter Zac Grable is averaging 41.5 yards per punt and has put 11 punts inside the 20-yard line and has had seven punts of 50 or more yards.

Bains is in his 14th season as the Mountaineers head football coach and has compiled a 62-81 overall record and is the second longest-tenured coach in the program's history. He has been awarded the RMAC Coach of the Year and Region 5 Coach of the Year in his career with both coming in the 2021 season. Over the past three-plus seasons, Bains has recorded a 35-8 record as they went 10-2 in 2021, 7-4 in 2022, and 10-2 in 2023, and has led the Mountaineers to four consecutive winning seasons and two NCAA Playoff appearances (2021 and 2023).

One member of Bains' coaching staff has ties to CSU Pueblo as offensive line coach Justin (JT) Haddan played offensive line for former coach John Wristen from 2008-12 and he earned All-RMAC, All-Region and All-American honors as a senior in 2012. Following his playing career, Haddan spent the 2013 season on Wristen's staff as a tight ends coach before moving to Western Colorado in 2014 and has been on Bains' staff since that time.

PACK FOOTBALL NOTES

• The Pack Football Show is scheduled for 6 p.m. every Wednesday (except for Oct. 23) during the 2024 football season at the Thunder Zone, which is located across the street from the CSU Pueblo ThunderBowl.
• In the first iteration of the 2024 NCAA Division II Super Region 4 rankings that was released on Monday, the Pack was one of four RMAC schools listed alphabetically in the rankings. In addition to the Pack, the other RMAC schools included were Colorado Mesa, Colorado School of Mines and Western Colorado.
• In the Preseason RMAC Coaches' Poll, the Pack was tabbed to finish third as they received 66 points to sit 16 points in front of fourth-place Colorado Mesa (50 points) and eight points behind second-place Western Colorado, who earned 74 points and three first-place votes. Mines was tabbed as the preseason favorite as the Orediggers earned 79 points and seven first-place votes.
• Saturday's game marks the Pack's first of three regular season games in November as the Pack has posted a 62-40-1 record in the month since 1963, including being 34-10 record in the month since 2008.
• Saturday's game will mark the 189th game played since the restart of the Pack football program in 2008. Since 2008, the Pack have posted a 148-41 record.
• All of the Pack's football games will be broadcast once again this season on Fox Sports Pueblo (1350 AM) with Jim Brooks and Joe Cervi on the call. The broadcasts will begin with a pregame show 30 minutes before the opening kickoff. Saturday's Western Colorado pregame show will start at 12:30 p.m. MT.
• The Pack is the winningest football program in the state of Colorado in terms of winning percentage as the Pack has won nearly 65 percent of its all-time games since beginning its four-year school tenure in 1963. The Pack has posted a 262-140-4 record in football since 1963. Colorado is the second-winningest team in the state as Colorado has won nearly 57 percent of its games all-time as they have posted a 727-547-36 record.