NAU Game Notes vs. Idaho State

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Homecoming is special to assistant coach Francis St. Paul. As an alumnus of Northern Arizona University and former player, he is very proud of his connections to the school. Now as a part of the coaching staff, his feelings are magnified.

“Homecoming is a great game to play in because you have all the ex-players that watch you play with a lot of family and friends in the stands,” said St. Paul, who is in his third season on the NAU staff. “We usually have a pretty decent crowd. It is pretty easy to get hyped up.”

St. Paul finished his career among the all-time receivers in school history, ranking second in touchdowns (19), ninth in receptions (113) and 10th in receiving yards (1,617). He was a sixth-round pick of the St. Louis Rams in the 2001 NFL Draft, playing with the Rams on the active roster and practice squad over two seasons including Super Bowl XXXVI in New Orleans. He also had stints with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Carolina Panthers and Jacksonville Jaguars. He finished his professional career with the Ottawa Renegades in the Canadian Football League in 2004.

Coaching back in the Walkup Skydome brings back memories of his playing days almost daily.

“I always see a play or can be on a certain spot on the field and I will remember when I played against a certain team like Southwest Texas and made a play,” said St. Paul. “It always comes in my head. It is a great opportunity to coach at my alma mater. A lot of people dream about it and for me to do it in my first coaching job is amazing.”

St. Paul has several favorite moments from his playing day in the blue and gold. He was part of the epic four overtime game against Sacramento State.

“I remember I caught four touchdowns and had the game-winning two-point conversion,” recalls St. Paul. “It was probably 105 degrees. It was hot and sweaty. It was a hard, fought game. We took it down to the wire and won it.”

St. Paul uses his experiences to coach his players today. With three consecutive wins, the Lumberjacks are ranked for the first time this season. But, St. Paul reminds them that every team in the Big Sky Conference can be dangerous, especially a team that enters winless like Idaho State (0-7).

“They have some good players,” said St. Paul. “We don't look at the records because anyone can come out and beat you. I tell my guys the story about my freshman season. We beat No. 7 Montana and the next week we are playing a winless Idaho State and lost 41-24. You can come out and lose any game.”

NAU leads the all-time series 28-17-1 with Idaho State. NAU holds a 16-3-1 all-time advantage in Flagstaff and has won 11 consecutive over the Bengals in the Walkup Skydome. The last loss to ISU in Flagstaff came in 1984. The Lumberjacks have scored 40 or more points against the Bengals in each of the last four meetings in Flagstaff and posted 52 points in Pocatello last season, the highest point total by NAU in the series that dates to 1951. NAU has also won each of the last four overall meetings in the series.

The game can be seen on Universityhouse (Dish Network 9411) and on www.bigskytv.org and heard on the Sodexo Lumberjack Radio Network in Flagstaff (KAFF AM 930) and Phoenix/Globe (KRDE 94.1 FM). Kickoff is scheduled for 3:05 p.m.