GAME 11: #23/23 Northern Arizona (7-3, 6-1 Big Sky) at #18/15 Southern Utah (8-2, 6-1 Big Sky)                                      HINTON BURDICK GRAND CANYON TROPHY GAME

DATE	Saturday, Nov. 18
TIME	2:30 p.m. MST
LOCATION	Eccles Coliseum (8,500) | Cedar City, Utah
TV	Eleven Sports Network (Flagstaff Suddenlink - Channel 455), (DirectTV - Channel 623)
RADIO	Flagstaff: 93.5 FM & AM 930 KAFF Country Legends
	Prescott: 97.9 FM The Eagle
	Phoenix: Money Radio 1510 AM & 105.3 FM
	Window Rock: KHAC 880 AM
MOBILE AUDIO	TuneIn App
INTERNET	Listen Live  | Watch Live
LIVE STATS	Northern Arizona - Southern Utah Stat Feed
FOLLOW US	NAU Football on Facebook | NAU Football on Twitter

GAME NOTES (PDF)

LUMBERJACK WATCH PARTY INFORMATION
NAU fans can watch their Lumberjacks on the road during all away games at the following locations for the official NAU Football Away Game Watch Parties!

Lumberjack road football games will be streamed live at each of the following locations:

• Buffalo Wild Wings, 2700 S Woodlands Village Blvd., Flagstaff
• The Oakmont, 2380 N. Oakmont Dr., Flagstaff, AZ 86004

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (Nov. 15, 2017) - The No. 23/23 Northern Arizona football team will be looking for at least a share of the Big Sky Conference regular season championship when it travels to No. 18/15 Southern Utah on Saturday, Nov. 18 in a 2:30 p.m. MST kickoff from Eccles Coliseum in Cedar City, Utah.

Saturday's game will be televised live on Eleven Sports Network (Flagstaff Suddenlink - Channel 455), (DirectTV - Channel 623) with Ari Wolfe (play-by-play) and Darius Walker (color) on the call.    

The game will also be available on the Lumberjack Radio Network with Mitch Strohman (play-by-play) and Kevin Stephens (color) on the call beginning with the pregame show at 1:30 p.m. MST.

NAU OPENING DRIVE

• Northern Arizona will be looking for at least a share of the Big Sky Conference regular season championship when it squares off at No. 18/15 Southern Utah this weekend.
• The potential Big Sky Championship would mark the third in the program's history with the Lumberjacks previously claiming the conference title in the 1978 and 2003 campaigns.
• The Lumberjacks are currently 6-1 in Big Sky Conference action entering Saturday's game vs. Southern Utah.  This season marked the second season in the Jerome Souers era that NAU has opened with at least five consecutive wins in conference play.
• NAU finds itself in a three-way tie for the Big Sky Conference lead with Southern Utah and Weber State entering Saturday's regular-season  finale with Southern Utah.
• The Northern Arizona football team were ranked as high as No. 9 (Nov. 2) in the 2017 NCAA FCS Selection Committee Rankings, which were announced on Nov. 2 and Nov. 9.
• The 2017 NCAA Division I Football Championship Selection Show will be televised live by ESPNU and via the ESPN Watch App on Sunday, Nov. 19 beginning at 9 a.m. MST.  
• The Selection Show will announce the final playoff selection and matchups for the 24-team bracket which will begin play with first round games that will kick off on Saturday, Nov. 25.  The top eight ranked teams will receive an opening round bye.
• NAU has posted 400 yards or more of total offense in eight of its first 10 games of 2017.
• The Lumberjacks 549 yards of total offense in last Saturday's win at home vs. Montana State ranked as the second-highest total posted by the team this season - bested by just the 562 yards amassed in the season opener at Pac-12 member Arizona (Sept. 2).
• NAU enters the weekend ranked sixth overall nationally among FCS programs in passing offense (2nd in Big Sky) with an average of 318.8 yards per game.
• Defensively, the 'Jacks lead the Big Sky and rank ninth nationally with 15 interceptions - four of which they have returned for touchdowns.
• The Lumberjacks enter the weekend ranked 16th nationally (5th in Big Sky) among leaders in total offense (455.3) and 23rd nationally (5th in Big Sky) in scoring offense (33.3).
• NAU sits 66th nationally (2nd in Big Sky) in total defense (370.5) and 68th nationally (3rd in Big Sky) in scoring defense (26.7).
• The 'Jacks passing defense is slotted 10th nationally (1st in Big Sky) in passing yards allowed (162.5).
• The NAU defense also is slotted fifth among NCAA FCS leaders with a total of five defensive touchdowns (2nd in Big Sky).

LAST MEETING VS. SOUTHERN UTAH
NOVEMBER 19, 2016 - Flagstaff, Ariz. - J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome

• Northern Arizona dropped a 48-21 decision to Southern Utah as the Thunderbirds scored 27 unanswered points after the game was deadlocked 21-21 with 1:25 left in the second quarter.  
• Mike Sharp posted three touchdown receptions in the 27-0 spurt, including one from 73-yards out to spark the victory.  
• For the game, Southern Utah outgained the Lumberjacks 654-335 and displayed a balanced offense, finishing with 286 ground yards and 278 through the air.  
• NAU wide receiver Emmanuel Butler notched 100 yards in the loss to become the first two-time 1,000-yard receiver in NAU history. He finished the season with 1,003 yards - a season after breaking the program's season receiving yards record with 1,208.  
• The defeat marked NAU's third straight to the Thunderbirds.

BATTLE FOR BIG SKY CHAMPIONSHIP SATURDAY

• Northern Arizona and Southern Utah will be facing off on Saturday with the winner claiming at least a share of the Big Sky Conference regular season championship.
• The Lumberjacks and Thunderbirds are currently in a three-way with Weber State atop the conference standings at 6-1.  
• Weber State hosts Idaho State on Saturday in a 2 p.m. kickoff, 30 minutes prior to the 2:30 p.m. MST kickoff between NAU and Southern Utah in Cedar City.
• If Weber State falls to the Bengals, the winner of the NAU-SUS clash is guaranteed an automatic bid to the 2017 FCS Playoffs and the outright Big Sky title.
• If Weber State is victorious in its regular-season finale, then the Big Sky Conference tiebreaker format will determine who receives the automatic playoff bid.

HINTON BURDICK GRAND CANYON TROPHY ALSO ON THE LINE

• Saturday's meeting between Northern Arizona and Southern Utah will also mark the sixth annual battle for the Hinton Burdick Grand Canyon Trophy - which is awarded annually to the winner of the Big Sky Conference border rivalry game.
• The Hinton Burdick Grand Canyon Trophy has been presented to the winner of the NAU-SUS game since the Thunderbirds joined the Big Sky Conference beginning in 2012.
• Southern Utah has claimed the trophy in each of the previous three seasons, with the 'Jacks last bringing it back to Flagstaff in 2013.

SOUTHERN UTAH SERIES INFO

• Northern Arizona and Southern Utah will be meeting for the 21st time in the program's history when the square off Saturday in Cedar City.
• Northern Arizona leads the all-time series with the Thunderbirds 12-8 but have come up on the short end in each of the last three meetings.
• The Lumberjacks are 1-4 in games against Southern Utah since the Thunderbirds officially joined the Big Sky Conference in 2012.
• The 'Jacks most recent victory over the Thunderbirds came during the 2013 season by a 20-10 margin in Cedar City.

'JACKS ON THE ROAD IN BIG SKY

• Northern Arizona is 2-1 in Big Sky road games this season entering Saturday's championship clash at Southern Utah.
• The 'Jacks have posted wins at Cal Poly and Portland State and dropped a narrow 17-15 decision at Montana.
• NAU has outscored its opponents 85-47 in its three conference road matchups.

NAIL BITERS LAST TWO WEEKS

• After not having a single game decided by less than 14 points over the first eight weeks of the 2017 regular season, the Lumberjacks have had each of the last two games decided by a total of three points.
• Last week, NAU held on for a dramatic 37-36 victory over Montana State after the Bobcats scored a touchdown to get within a single point with just 32 seconds remaining in regulation, but the NAU defense held firm as the Bobcats decided to go for two points and the win, rather than kicking the extra point to tie the game and force an overtime scenario.
• On Nov. 4 on the road at Montana, the Lumberjacks were forced to play the majority of the game without starting quarterback Case Cookus, who was ejected following a questionable targeting call with 7:34 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
• Despite that adversity, the game came down to the final moments as backup quarterback, freshman Stone Smartt drove the 'Jacks for a touchdown with 50 ticks left in the fourth quarter to make the score 17-15 Grizzlies, but NAU's ensuing two-point conversion attempt failed to seal the Lumberjacks' lone Big Sky defeat this season.

FCS PLAYOFF SELECTION SHOW THIS SUNDAY AT 9 A.M. MST

• The 2017 NCAA Division I Football Championship Selection Show will be televised live by ESPNU and via the ESPN Watch App on Sunday, Nov. 19 beginning at 9 a.m. MST.
• The NCAA Division I Football Championship Selection Show will announce the final playoff selection and matchups for the 24-team bracket which will begin play with first round games that will kick off on Saturday, Nov. 25.  The top eight ranked teams will receive an opening round bye.
• Second round games are scheduled for Dec. 2 with quarterfinals contests being played on Dec. 8 and 9 and the national semifinals taking place on Dec. 15 and 16.
• The FCS National Championship Game is slated for Saturday, Jan. 6 at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.
• The FCS Selection Committee uses the following metrics to formulate their rankings: strength of schedule, wins against teams in the top 25, home losses vs. road wins and good losses are all factored in.