CLICK ON THE TEAM'S NAME FOR THIS WEEK'S GAME NOTES FOR NORTHERN ARIZONA AND SOUTH DAKOTA
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (September 9, 2021) – Northern Arizona head coach
Chris Ball said there were positives to take away from last Thursday's season opener against the Sam Houston Bearkats while acknowledging a few plays he'd love to have another chance at.
"It's five to eight plays a game... That's why the emphasis is every rep counts in practice," Ball said, citing just how impactful a few moments can be any given week. "We are trying to stay healthy and keep our guys fresh, so we have done things differently practice-wise which puts a lot more emphasis on your reps. What the kids need to understand is, it comes down to five to eight plays that change the game."
The Lumberjacks (0-1, 0-0 Big Sky) will head north to face the South Dakota Coyotes (0-1, 0-0 Missouri Valley), who nearly knocked off the Kansas Jayhawks in Lawrence, Kansas last Friday. South Dakota led 14-10 with 5:13 left on the clock, but Kansas completed an 11-play, 64-yard drive to eat up nearly four minutes and score the game-winning touchdown with 1:10 remaining.
Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m. locally in Arizona, 1 p.m. in Vermillion, S.D., and will be available to stream through
ESPN+ or
Hulu if you subscribe to the Disney Bundle. The game will also be available on the Lumberjack Radio Network and at NAUAthletics.com/listen.
Though Northern Arizona had a little help getting started on game prep for the week, with defensive coordinator
Jerry Partridge's son Travis on the staff of Kansas, Ball said much of the preparation will come from within.
"It helps anytime you can get input or see how they saw them," Ball said, "but again it is not necessarily the things they do, it is the things we are going to do to get better. That's the important thing. How we manage the travel part of it, how we manage the adverse atmosphere as it's going to be loud. We've got to take what we see on tape this week and see if we see the same things Kansas saw."
While the Lumberjacks forced a pair of turnovers against the Bearkats, including a fumble on the first possession of the game, Ball said he wished the team could have scooped up the ball cleanly after it hit the turf. Instead, Jonathan Phenix wisely fell on the ball to secure the loose ball.
Northern Arizona's own turnovers or missed scoring opportunities opened the door for Sam Houston, which scored 21 points off turnovers or missed field goals.
Additionally, Ball said he felt Northern Arizona's receivers separated well from Sam Houston's secondary, but the team struggled to connect on their deep shots down the field.
Stacy Chukwumezie led the Lumberjacks with 112 yards receiving on six catches, including an 18-yard score from
Cale Millen near the end of the third quarter.
Chukwumezie moved up to 20th on NAU's all-time receiving list with 1,409 yards and continued to hold his place at second all-time in career yards per catch at 18.5.
The five Lumberjacks along the offensive line held up well at times against the best front seven they will face this year in Ball's opinion, but the group would need to be more consistent going forward.
"We were good at times. Again, we have some young guys playing so we are going to have some peaks and valleys in their play," Ball said. "At times they did well and others we didn't. Very inconsistent, so that's one of the things we are going to work on this week."
Ball added that South Dakota presents a challenge on the defensive side of the ball after taking a look at their season opener.
The Coyotes landed four defenders on the Missouri Valley Football Conference's Preseason Teams, with linebackers Brock Mogensen and Jack Cochrane, defensive lineman Jacob Matthew and cornerback Myles Harden all honored. Cochrane also earned Preseason All-American recognition from Hero Sports.
Allowing just 24 points per game in the spring and 17 to Kansas last week, South Dakota hasn't allowed an opponent to break 30 points since No. 1 North Dakota State scored 49 in the penultimate game of the 2019 season. That average would have ranked fourth in the Big Sky during the 2019 season and third among teams playing at least two games last spring.
"They are very physical. Watching them, they play a very physical brand of football," Ball said. "They are very well coached, he does a great, great job with them and he is building the program."
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