FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (August 1, 2022) – With just a month before kickoff of the 2022 football season, the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks began their fall camp with the first of 27 practices running up to the season opener in Tempe, Ariz. against the Arizona State Sun Devils.
The fall schedule includes six practices per week with a pair of scrimmages, currently scheduled for Aug. 13 and 20, as well as a mock game on Aug. 30 before preparations for the season opener begin. Northern Arizona will be off during the first three Sundays of the fall as well as Aug. 26.
Lumberjack head coach
Chris Ball enters his fourth season with Northern Arizona this fall, with 37 letterwinners returning to the roster after finishing 5-6 overall, 4-4 in the Big Sky Conference last year. The Lumberjacks bring back nine starters on the offensive side of the ball in addition to six on defense. More than 70 players arrived in Flagstaff from high schools around the state of Arizona, with another 30 from neighboring California. Nearly 60 additions to the roster include a mix of transfers and true freshmen, with Northern Arizona's offensive line and specialists group seeing a considerable influx of new talent.
Among those new to the Lumberjacks, quarterback
Angel Flores, receiver
Caiaphas Ardoin,, offensive lineman Noah Nelson, tight end
Isaiah Gerena, defensive lineman
Alani Ma'afu, long snapper
Sean Farfan and punter
Eemil Herranen arrived early and participated in spring practice.
Northern Arizona also welcomed the arrivals of
Kenji Jackson (safeties and nickelbacks) and
Rudy Griffin (defensive line) to the coaching staff, with
Allie Banducci also joining the program as the director of recruiting.
Top returners to the roster include offensive tackle
Jonas Leader and safety
Morgan Vest, both Big Sky Preseason All-Conference honorees, as well as former All-Big Sky Conference honorees in quarterback
RJ Martinez, running back
Kevin Daniels, receivers
Hendrix Johnson and
Coleman Owen, and defensive back
Anthony Sweeney. Running back
Draycen Hall, offensive lineman
PJ Poutasi, defensive linemen
Eloi Kwete,
Cosmas Kwete and
Mark Ho Ching, and defensive back
Colby Humphrey also return to key roles for the Lumberjacks.
Kickoff for the season opener at Sun Devil Stadium is set for 7 p.m. MST, with the game on Pac-12 Network in Arizona. Tickets for Northern Arizona's five home games including North Dakota (Running of the Freshmen), Idaho (Hall of Fame Game), Cal Poly (Family Weekend), Montana State (Homecoming/Military Appreciation) and Weber State (Senior Day/Native American Heritage Day) are available online at NAUAthletics.com/BuyNow. For questions regarding tickets call 928 (523-0639) or contact the office at
LumberjackTicketOffice@nau.edu.
