FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (November 17, 2022) – Set to celebrate their Senior Day on Saturday at Findlay Toyota Field, the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks will wrap up their 2022 season by facing off with the Weber State Wildcats for the newly created Red Rock Rivalry Trophy.
Scheduled for a 1 p.m. kickoff, the Lumberjacks (3-7, 2-5 Big Sky) will look to take the lead in the all-time series with the Wildcats (8-2, 5-2 Big Sky) as they host Weber State for the first time since 2018. Northern Arizona dropped the past two meetings with Weber State, both in Ogden, but has won the past two games in Flagstaff.
Split down the middle with 27 victories apiece on the field, the all-time series between Northern Arizona and Weber State is even tighter when taking a closer look. The Wildcats hold a 19-9 record in Ogden against the Lumberjacks while Northern Arizona leads 18-8 when playing in Flagstaff. Though Weber State has won the past two meetings, the teams have evenly split their past four, eight, 12 and 14 meetings. Additionally, neither side has won more than four consecutive meetings in the series. Weber State achieved the feat on three occasions, most recently from 2008 to 2011, while Northern Arizona's two instances include four wins in the meetings between 2014 and 2018.
"Me and Jay (Hill) thought it was a great idea," said Lumberjacks head coach
Chris Ball. "We lost our rivalry with Southern Utah and they didn't really have a rival, so we were fired up about it. It's tied 27-27, split right down the middle, and we've been playing since 1964, so we are excited about it."
The newly named rivalry and trophy will also stand as the final game for multiple Lumberjacks, with XX being celebrated for Senior Day.
Noah Barta,
Logan Bayus,
Stacy Chukwumezie, Alonzo Davis,
Jalen Hooper,
Jonas Leader,
PJ Poutasi,
Jorim Powell,
Anthony Sweeney,
Morgan Vest,
Dyvine Wallace and
Demetrick Watts II will walk out on Senior Day before kickoff.
"They mean the world to me. You talk about the guys that have been here since Day 1, all those guys mean the world to me," Ball said. "They have been through a lot here. A little disappointed we are sending them out with a losing record, that's very disappointing. We always like to send those guys out with a great experience, but they are great kids and great human beings. They are going to be successful no matter what they put their mind to."
Leader played six seasons with Northern Arizona since arriving in 2017 from Canyon Del Oro. While Sweeney has missed the entire season since going down with an injury against Arizona State, he also began his career in 2017 after finishing his high school career at De La Salle in California. Wallace too began his Lumberjack career in 2017, playing in 44 career games through this past Saturday. Meanwhile, Chukwumezie spent five years with the Lumberjacks after arriving in 2018 from Cerritos College in California and Hooper is completing his fifth season after joining the Lumberjacks from St. John Bosco High School in Southern California. The five make up most of the final holdovers from Northern Arizona's previous coaching staff.
Vest, the first signee by Ball when he took over the Lumberjacks in December 2018, spent four seasons with the Lumberjacks after two years with Kilgore College in Texas. Powell also spent four years with the Lumberjacks, arriving in 2019 from Stuart Hall High School in California. Barta arrived in the same class, playing in nearly 20 games during his tenure.
Watts II spent two seasons with the Lumberjacks after arriving from Akron for the Fall 2021 season. Poutasi did the same, moving from Cal where he spent four years as a Golden Bear before playing the past two years in Flagstaff. Bayus completed his college career with Northern Arizona this season after spending the first five years of his career at Colorado Mesa. Davis did the same, playing in four seasons for Southern Utah before transferring to Northern Arizona.
Saturday's game will be available on
ESPN+, as well as
Hulu with a subscription to the Disney Bundle, with Mitch Strohman and Kevin Stephens on the call for the stream while Lindsey Ridgway handles sideline duties. The team will also handle the call on the Northern Arizona Healthcare NAU Lumberjack Radio Network with coverage beginning at 12 p.m. MST.
A LOOK AT WEBER STATE
The Wildcats enter Saturday all but assured of a return to the FCS Playoffs after missing the postseason in 2021. Weber State reached the playoffs each season from 2016 to the Spring 2021 season, including a run to the FCS semifinals in 2019. Ranked No. 7 in the Stats FCS Top 25 and No. 10 in the FCS Coaches Poll last week, the Wildcats are also in contention for a Top 8 seed and a bye through the first round of the FCS Playoffs.
Ranked near the top of the FCS in multiple defensive categories, the Wildcats sit second in third-down defense (28.6 percent), second in passing efficiency defense (96.66), second in interceptions (15), fourth in red zone defense (66.7 percent), fifth in passing yards allowed (166.7), sixth in scoring defense (17.0) and eighth in total defense (293.5).
Weber State ranks atop the Big Sky Conference in five of those categories and second in two while also leading the Big Sky in fourth down defense (33.3 percent), blocked kicks (3) and defensive touchdowns (2).
Offensively, Weber State sits fifth in total offense (411.3) and fifth in scoring (36.1) as the Wildcats are led by their ground game. Ranking 22nd in the FCS and fourth in the Big Sky with 194.7 rushing yards per game, the Wildcats have three players among the Big Sky's Top 17 in rushing yards with Dontae McMillan's 651 (8th), Damon Bankston's 539 (11th) and Josh Davis 398 (17th).
CHANCE FOR A RANKED WIN
With Weber State ranked among the Top 10 in the FCS, Northern Arizona will get another shot against a ranked opponent in 2022. Three-point losses to No. 22 North Dakota and No. 2/3 Montana State at Findlay Toyota Field this season nearly snapped its skid against ranked opponents.
Having lost 12 straight since the start of the 2019 season, the Lumberjacks have dropped four of those games by less than seven points. Among that list is their most recent meeting with the Wildcats, a 28-23 final score in Ogden with Weber State connecting on a 50-yard Hail Mary to survive while ranked No. 2/3 in the nation.
GAMEDAY INFO
Tickets for Saturday's Homecoming game can be purchased online at
www.nauathletics.com/buynow. With Saturday's game also serving as Northern Arizona's Native American Heritage Day, a special ticket package can be purchased
here with an exclusive Native American Heritage NAU beanie. Ticketing questions can be directed to the Lumberjack Ticket Office at
LumberjackTicketOffice@nau.edu or 928-523-0639.
As a reminder, Northern Arizona now utilizes mobile ticketing. For step-by step instructions and resources, click
here. Students will also need to claim their tickets online this season with step-by-step instructions available
here.
The Tundra B Lot with assigned tailgating will open at 8 a.m., while the student tailgating lot opens at 10 a.m. The Ponderosa will open at 10:30 a.m. ahead of the 1 p.m. kickoff with the Lumberjack Walk from the Student-Athlete High Performance Center into Findlay Toyota Field set for 10:45 a.m. Doors open at 11:30 a.m., 90 minutes prior to kickoff.
Shuttle services also begin at 10 a.m. with pick up locations at the South Commuter Lot P62 and in the front of the campus bookstore.
Stay up-to-date on all NAU Football news this season by visiting NAUAthletics.com and following NAU Football on
Twitter,
Instagram and
Facebook for updates throughout the fall season.
