PUEBLO, Colo. – The Colorado State University Pueblo football officially reported for the start of the 2026 campaign on Saturday, Aug. 1 as preseason practice for the ThunderWolves began on Monday, Aug. 3 with an 8:30 a.m. practice on the newly-laid turf surface of the CSU Pueblo ThunderBowl.
CSU Pueblo's players reported to campus on Aug. 1 as they moved into the dorms in the morning and after lunch, the players received their equipment, had a team meeting, dinner in the cafeteria and the freshman/transfers and newcomers had a meeting in the evening, before having an NCAA Compliance meeting, team meetings, head shot photos, a team dinner and a walk-through without footballs on Sunday, Aug. 2, prior to Monday's first on-field workout for the 2026 season.
After conducting its first practice of the season on Monday, the team will practice each day from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. for the first five days of fall camp, before conducting its first scrimmage, which will be in full pads and is scheduled to begin at 8:50 a.m. on Saturday, August 8. The scrimmage is scheduled to run for two hours.
During the second week of fall camp (Aug. 10-Aug. 16), the team will alternate morning and afternoon practices as they will practice on Monday and Wednesday from 8:30 a.m.-11 a.m. and conduct practices from 2:10-4 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday and then practice on Friday from 9:30 a.m.-11 a.m. Those practices will lead into a second scrimmage on Saturday, Aug. 15 from 6:30-8 p.m.
On the third week of fall camp (Aug. 17-Aug. 23), the team will once again alternate evening and afternoon practices as they will practice on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 7-9 p.m. and practice on Tuesday and Thursday from 2:10-4 p.m.
The Pack, who went 10-2 overall and claimed its second consecutive Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference title after going 9-0 in league play and earning its second straight NCAA Division II Playoff appearance, will shift to morning practices from 7:30-9:00 a.m. during the week once fall semester classes begin on the CSU Pueblo campus on Monday, Aug. 24.
Fourth-year Pack head coach
Philip Vigil welcomes back 45 lettermen, including 10 starters from last season's team that finished the season ranked No. 11 in the final AFCA/Division II Coaches poll. Vigil's 2026 team has two starters back on offense, four starters on defense and four on special teams.
Among the top returning offensive starters for the Pack are junior receiver
Marcellus Honeycutt, Jr. (Aurora, Colo./Eastern Washington) and senior receiver
Dedrek Taylor-Akins (Fontana, Calif./Northeastern State). Honeycutt was named to the Preseason All-RMAC Team after catching 29 passes for 564 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 19.4 yards per reception, while Taylor-Akins caught 35 passes for 514 yards, averaged 14.7 yards per reception and ranked second on the team with seven touchdown receptions.
Meanwhile, on defense, the four returning starters are sophomore linebacker
Johnathan Gonzales (Pueblo, Colo./Pueblo County), junior defensive end
A.J. Jordan (Colorado Springs, Colo./Vista Ridge), senior defensive tackle
Micah Lutu (Kalihi, Hawai'i/Saguaro) and senior safety
Kahden Rullo (Denver, Colo./Grandview). Rullo was named to the Preseason All-RMAC Team after recording 80 tackles, six tackles for a loss, three forced fumbles and a team-best seven pass break-ups.
The Pack's top special teams returners are senior kicker
Jackson Smith (Centennial, Colo./Santa Barbara City College), senior kicker
Evan Lyons (Superior, Colo./Monarch), junior long snapper
Owen Morgan (Elgin, Ill./St. Edward Central Catholic) and senior kick returner
Moosah Alsaffar (Aurora, Colo./Grandview). Smith was named to the Preseason All-RMAC Team after leading the league in field goal percentage (76.2 percent) and field goals per game (1.6) and was second in kicking scoring per game (9.4).
CSU Pueblo kicks off the 2026 season with a 6 p.m. home game in the ThunderBowl on Thursday, Aug. 27 against Central Missouri, before hitting the road for a 6 p.m. game the following Thursday (Sept. 3) against Fort Hays State in Hays, Kan. The Pack will host New Mexico Highlands for its annual Homecoming/Hall of Fame Game on Saturday, Oct. 17 at 2 p.m.
Here is the 2026 preseason practice schedule for the Pack football team (schedule is subject to change and all practices will be held at the CSU Pueblo ThunderBowl).
Practice #1 (Monday, Aug. 3) – 8:30 a.m. – helmets
Practice #2 (Tuesday, Aug. 4) – 8:30 a.m. – helmets
Practice #3 (Wednesday, Aug. 5) – 8:30 a.m. – shells
Practice #4 (Thursday, Aug. 6) – 8:30 a.m. - shells
Practice #5 (Friday, Aug. 7) – 8:30 a.m. - shells
Practice #6 (Saturday, Aug. 8) – 8:50 a.m. (Scrimmage #1) – full pads
Practice #7 (Monday, Aug. 10) – 8:30 a.m. – full pads
Practice #8 (Tuesday, Aug. 11) – 2:10 p.m. – shells
Practice #9 (Wednesday, Aug. 12) – 8:30 a.m. – full pads
Practice #10 (Thursday, Aug. 13) – 2:10 p.m. – shells
Practice #11 (Friday, Aug. 14) – 9:30 a.m. – helmets
Practice #12 (Saturday, Aug. 15) – 6:30 p.m. (Scrimmage #2) – full pads
Practice #13 (Monday, Aug. 17) – 7 p.m. – helmets
Practice #14 (Tuesday, Aug. 18) – 2:10 p.m. - shells
Practice #15 (Wednesday, Aug. 19) – 7 p.m. – full pads
Practice #16 (Thursday, Aug. 20) – 2:10 p.m. - shells
Practice #17 (Friday, Aug. 21) – 7 p.m. – helmets
Practice #18 (Sunday, Aug. 23) – TBA – Game Week
Practice #19 (Monday, Aug. 24) – 7:30-9 a.m.
Practice #20 (Tuesday, Aug. 25) – 7:30-9 a.m.
Practice #21 (Wednesday, Aug. 26) – 7:30-9 a.m.
Game #1 (Thursday, Aug. 27 vs. Central Missouri) – 6 p.m. kickoff
