PUEBLO, Colo. – The seventh-ranked Colorado State University Pueblo football team returns to action after a week off this Saturday, Nov. 1, as the nationally-ranked ThunderWolves travel to Gunnison, Colo., for a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference match-up against sixth-ranked Western Colorado. Kickoff is set for 1:05 p.m. in the Mountaineer Bowl at Rady Family Sports Complex.
 
Saturday's game will feature a match-up between two of the three remaining undefeated teams left in the RMAC as CSU Pueblo comes into the game sporting a 7-1 overall record and a 6-0 mark in the RMAC following its 40-14 road win on Oct. 18 at Black Hills State, while Western Colorado comes into play as one of the seven remaining undefeated teams in Division II with an 8-0 overall record and a 6-0 mark in the RMAC following its 40-17 home win last Saturday over Colorado School of Mines.
 
The Pack and Western Colorado are two of the hottest teams in Division II football entering play this weekend, as the Pack has won six straight games and 22 straight RMAC games. In comparison, Western Colorado has won eight consecutive games overall and 10 straight league games since its 44-34 home loss last season to the Pack. The Pack's 22-game conference win streak is the longest active conference win streak in Division II football, while Western's eight-game win streak is tied for the second-longest active win streak in Division II. 

Along with winning 22 straight conference games dating to last season, the Pack has also won 13 consecutive games on the road since a 57-49 double overtime loss in 2023 at Grand Valley State. The 13-game road win streak is currently the longest active road win streak in Division II. 
 
In the last game at Black Hills State on Oct. 18, the Pack scored on seven of its 10 drives and built a 27-7 lead at the half that was capped by a 31-yard field goal by junior kicker Jackson Smith (Centennial, Colo./Santa Barbara City College). The Pack led 17-0 after the first quarter. In the win, Smith tied a school record with four made field goals and added four extra points to set a new single-game school kicking record of 16 points.
 
Along with Smith's four field goals and four extra points, the Pack defense also scored in the win over the Yellow Jackets as junior linebacker Bryson Torrie (Denver, Colo./Vista Peak) returned an inception 49 yards for a touchdown to give the Pack a 17-0 lead after the opening 15 minutes of play. Torrie's interception return for a score was his third defensive touchdown of the season and that is the most defensive touchdowns in a season by a Pack player since Darius Williams returned three interceptions for scores during the 2017 season. The interception also tied Torrie for the team lead this season with three and the Pack's fourth defensive touchdown of the season, which is tied for second-most in Division II.
 
The Pack offense had another dominant performance in win over Black Hills State as they finished with 498 yards of total offense. The Pack rushed for 93 yards and passed for a season-high 405 yards and had three passes, including two touchdown receptions from junior receiver Dedrek Taylor-Akins (Fontana, Calif./Northeastern State).  
"It was a long trip to Black Hills State. It's a team that had given us issues in the past, but once again, our team just proved that they are focusing on ways to improve each week, and I think we showed that last time out," CSU Pueblo head football coach Philip Vigil said. "They did some things defensively that they hadn't shown all year, but I was really proud of our offense to be able to adapt as quickly as they did. We scored a field goal on our first drive and then a touchdown on our second drive, and then Bryson (Torrie) gets a pick six on the third drive, and it is 17-0 right out of the gate. I thought we played really well in all three phases against a good opponent on the road."
 
Senior quarterback Roman Fuller (Decatur, Texas/University of Tulsa) recorded a season-high 389 yards passing as he was 29-for-40 in the game with three touchdown passes and, in the process, became just the third quarterback in school history with 4,000 career passing yards and 40 career touchdown passes. Fuller has now passed for 4,037 yards and thrown 40 career touchdown passes.
 
On the season, Fuller leads the RMAC in passing yards (2,195), passing yards per game (274.4) and passing touchdowns (22) and is second in points responsible for (144), passing yards per completion (21.88) and total offense (270.5). On the year, he is completing 62.5 percent of his passes as he is 175-for-277 for 2,195 yards and has had three interceptions and 22 touchdown passes, which is tied for seventh on the school's single-season chart.
 
Redshirt senior receiver Reggie Retzlaff (Corona, Calif./Riverside City College) became the school's all-time leader in receptions as he caught six passes for 84 yards in the win and is now the school's all-time record holder in receptions (158), receiving yards (2,618) and touchdowns (34).
 
In addition to Retzlaff, senior receiver Zack Rakowsky (Loveland, Colo./Loveland) caught a season-high nine passes for 135 yards and pushed his career receptions total to 139, which is fourth on the school's all-time chart and his career receiving yards total to 1,953 yards and is just 47 yards shy of becoming the fourth receiver in school history with 2,000 receiving yards.
 
Defensively, the Pack held Black Hills State to a total of 199 yards (79 rushing, 120 passing) of offense. In addition, the Pack had two sacks, eight tackles for a loss and forced its 23rd turnover of the season, which is tops in Division II.
 
Entering this week's action, the Pack leads Division II in turnovers gained (23), red zone offense (97.5 percent), and is tied for second in defensive touchdowns (4) and is second with 15 interceptions. Additionally, the Pack is third nationally in turnover margin (+12) and is third in offensive first downs (206) and also ranks sixth nationally in scoring offense (42.6 ppg) and is eighth nationally in red zone defense (62.5 percent).
 
The Pack also comes into play this weekend, leading the RMAC in scoring (42.6 ppg), passing offense (287.3 ypg), third-down conversion percentage (46.1 percent), sacks allowed (1.0 per game) and is second in the league in total offense (449.5 ypg), scoring defense (16.4 ppg), rushing defense (106.0 ypg), red zone defense (62.5 percent), sacks per game (3.25) and tackles for loss per game (7.9) and third in total defense (311.3 ypg).
 
"The one thing I am most proud of with this team this season is their ability to find a way to look at themselves and find out what they've learned from the previous games and get better each week. I think it shows on offense, on defense, and in special teams," Vigil added. "We are finding ways to improve each week. Our goal is to be the best team in the country at getting better, and we want to continue to improve every week."
 
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. 
 
"I am a big believer that you can either win or lose a bye, and our goal last week was to find a way to improve and correct some things, and I thought the bye week was really beneficial for our team," the Pack coach added. "Obviously, we were also able to get some guys back from injury that weren't able to play at Black Hills State or the previous weeks."
 
Vigil says that it's important for teams to peak at the right time of season, and he feels like his team is beginning to peak right now.
 
"You don't want to peak in week two. You don't want to peak in week four. You want to peak at the end of the season, because you want to play your best football in November and December, and I think our team is peaking at the right time," said Vigil, who is 25-6 as the Pack's head coach.
 
During the current six-game winning streak, which is tied for the ninth-longest active streak in Division II, the Pack is averaging 43.8 points per game and is averaging 452.7 yards of offense (1,025 rushing, 1,691 passing) per game, and on defense, is allowing 15.8 points and 317.7 yards of offense (670 rushing, 1,236 passing) per game. The Pack has also recorded 18 sacks and has forced 18 turnovers on defense while allowing just five sacks and committing nine turnovers on offense. The Pack has scored 40 or more points in four consecutive games, including two games of 50-plus points, and has allowed 14 or fewer points in four straight games.
 
Vigil says several of the keys for his team on Saturday are protecting the football, shoring up protections in the run game, and being efficient on offense, especially on first down.
 
"It is extremely important that offensively we protect the football, and we need to find ways to shore up our protections with our run game with what they do defensively," added Vigil. "We will also have to be efficient on offense, especially on first down. We will also need to find a way to stay ahead of the chains and get ourselves into manageable third downs."
 
The winner of Saturday's game puts themselves into the driver's seat to win both the RMAC title and possibly host a first-round home NCAA Division II playoff game on Nov. 22.
Saturday's game will be the fifth of six road games this season for the Pack as the is 4-0 on the road and has won 13 consecutive road games since that double overtime loss at Grand Valley State during the 2023 season. The Pack hasn't lost an RMAC road game since suffering a 45-17 loss at Mines on Sept. 24, 2022.
 
"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," added Vigil.
 
Saturday's game against Western Colorado will be the Pack's first game this season against a nationally ranked foe. The Pack is 24-22 all-time against ranked teams since the football program was rebooted in 2008, including a 16-12 mark in regular-season games.
 
Along with being the first game this season against a nationally ranked team, Saturday's game will mark the 32nd all-time meeting against the Mountaineers. The Pack leads the all-time series, 19-12, but they have lost three of the last four games in the series, with the lone win being a 44-34 victory last season in Gunnison. The Pack are 11-5 at home and lead 8-7 in Gunnison and are 13-3 in the series since the program rebooted in 2008.
 
Following Saturday's game, the Pack will remain on the road next Saturday, Nov. 8, as they close out their regular season road schedule with a 12 p.m. RMAC contest in Golden, Colo., against Colorado School of Mines.
 
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 lead the RMAC in scoring defense (12.9 ppg), rushing defense (79.7 ypg), fourth-down percentage defense (11.1 percent), red zone defense (61.1 percent), sacks per game (3.71), tackles for loss per game (10.1) and are second in scoring offense (42.4 ppg), passing offense (275.9 ypg), third-down conversion percentage (44.2 percent), red zone offense (87.1 percent), total defense (283.6 ypg), third-down percentage defense (31.7 percent) and turnover margin (+4).
 
"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.
 
In last Saturday's 40-17 win over Mines, the Mountaineers, who are coached by Jas Bains, trailed 17-13 at halftime before scoring 27 unanswered points in the second half while shutting out the Orediggers in the second half to remain undefeated on the season.
 
Against the Orediggers, Western Colorado outgained Mines, 442 to 285, as the Mountaineers rushed the ball 38 times for 208 yards and passed for 234 yards. Meanwhile, the WCU defense held Mines to 116 rushing yards and 169 passing yards. In addition, the Mountaineers recorded three sacks, seven tackles for a loss, and held Mines to a 7-for-17 effort on third down.
 
"I have a lot of respect for Coach Bains and what he's been able to do at Western Colorado. They are a very good football team that is sound on both sides of the ball and plays hard in every phase of the game," said the Pack coach. "They've got some spectacular players on both sides, and we're going to have to be at our best on Saturday."
 
Vigil says that the Mountaineers are very good on both sides of the ball and will present some challenges on Saturday.
 
"They do everything well. They are efficient on offense. Their quarterback (Drew Nash) makes their offense run. He is an excellent thrower and has a great feel for pressure in the pocket and is also a good runner. They've been using him a lot this year. Additionally, he has some playmakers around him, and he's been able to get those playmakers into space to make plays," added Vigil. "Defensively, they are very chaotic and bring a lot of different pressures from different places on the field. They got one of the most elite pass rushers we've seen all season in (Ricky) Freymond. We are going to have to have a plan for him and recognize where he is on the field at all times. They thrive on creating negative plays and have done a good job of that all year long."
 
One of key players for the Mountaineers on offense is senior quarterback Drew Nash. Nash, who was named this week's RMAC Offensive Player of the Week, is 131-for-207 passing for 1,812 yards and has tossed 22 touchdown passes and has had two interceptions. In addition to his passing, Nash has carried the ball 67 times for 357 yards and has scored eight rushing touchdowns and leads the RMAC in total offense as he is averaging 309.9 yards per game and has had a hand in 30 of WCU's 47 touchdowns. Against Mines, Nash ran for 119 yards and scored a rushing touchdown and was 21-for-32 passing for 234 yards with three touchdown passes, and tallied 353 yards of total offense.

In addition to Nash, the rushing attack is paced by Nash, along with freshman running back Quinn Bailey and sophomore running back Isaiah Jones. Bailey has gained 315 yards rushing and is averaging 4.9 yards per carry and 52.5 yards per game, and has scored seven touchdowns, while Jones has gained 307 yards and is averaging 5.1 yards per carry and 76.8 yards per game.
 
Nash's top targets in the passing game are junior receiver Caden Measner, junior receiver Ramon Ruiz, and junior receiver DJ Allen, Jr. Measner is fourth in the league in receiving as he has caught 42 passes for 569 yards and is averaging 71.1 yards per game and 13.5 yards per reception and has hauled in eight touchdown receptions, while Ruiz has caught 25 passes for 368 yards and is averaging 14.7 yards per reception and has hauled in two touchdown receptions and Allen, Jr., has caught 19 passes for 435 yards and is averaging 22.9 yards per catch and has had six touchdown receptions. Overall, six 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 have recorded 29 sacks, 78 tackles for a loss, have picked off six passes and blocked five kicks, which is tops in the RMAC and seventh nationally in Division II. In addition, WCU has held five of its eight opponents to under 300 yards of offense and has recorded at least three sacks in five of its eight games, including a season-high six sacks against both Black Hills State and Midwestern State.

Among the key players on defense for Western Colorado is senior defensive end Ricky Freymond, who was named the RMAC Defensive Player of the Year last season. On the season, Freymond has recorded 25 tackles, nine tackles for a loss, 2.5 sacks, and has picked off a pass. In addition to Freymond, sophomore linebacker Ian Loomis leads the team in tackles with 62 and has had 9.5 tackles for a loss, five sacks, and one interception, while sophomore linebacker Cameron Cooper has tallied 46 tackles, 10.5 tackles for a loss, three sacks and one interception and sophomore defensive end Drew Johnson has had 17 tackles, along with 10 tackles for a loss and three sacks.
 
On special teams, the Mountaineers are third in the league in kickoff returns as they are averaging 23.5 yards per return with sophomore defensive back Donnell Colbert leading the way as he is averaging 26.3 yards per return, and WCU is fifth in the league in punt returns at 8.2 yards per return and has returned one punt for a touchdown.
 
In the kicking game, senior Adam Tasei is 4-for-7 on field goals with a long field goal of 44 yards and is 43-for-47 on extra points, and is 10th in the league in scoring with 55 points and junior punter Zac Gable is averaging 44.0 yards per punt and has put nine punts inside the 20-yard line and has had five punts of 50 or more yards.
 
Bains is in his 15th season as the Mountaineers' head football coach and has compiled a 73-82 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 five consecutive winning seasons and three NCAA Playoff appearances (2021, 2023, and 2024) in the last four seasons.

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