| Northern Arizona at No. 20 Arizona |
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (Sept. 5, 2024) – In a complete flip of competition level from week one, the Northern Arizona football team is preparing for an opportunity at Arizona this week. The Lumberjacks face the No. 20 Wildcats this Saturday, Sept. 5 at 7 p.m. Mountain Standard time inside Arizona Stadium in Tucson.
The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and the Northern Arizona Healthcare NAU Lumberjack Radio Network with Mitch Strohman and Kevin Stephens on the call. Tickets are available here for purchase.
The
Brian Wright era started off with a 66-6 victory over Lincoln (CA), who competes as an independent, at Findlay Toyota Field on Aug. 31. Fifty Lumberjacks took their first career snaps for the Blue and Gold, while 16 made their first career starts. For the first time since the Spring of 2021, NAU is 1-0 and have won three-straight games dating back to last season for the first time since 2017. The 66-point output also marked the fifth-highest scoring game since 1978 and the most in a single game since 2021.
Just like the Lumberjacks, Arizona is 1-0 to start the year under its first-year head coach Brent Brennan. The Wildcats also boast the nation's second-longest active winning streak at eight-straight games, also starting their season with a 60-point output, beating New Mexico in Tucson, 61-39. In the contest, UA's Tatairoa McMillan set a single-game program record with 304 receiving yards and tied a single-game record with four touchdowns to earn Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week and AP honors. In the win, Arizona put up 627 yards of total offense.
Arizona leads the all-time series 16-2, winning 14-straight games from 1933-2019. NAU has one win in 1932 and its most recent was an upset victory in Tucson, 21-19, on Sept. 18, 2021. The two squads last met on Sept. 2, 2023 in Tucson where NAU lost 38-3.
Northern Arizona dominated in every facet of its home opener. NAU put up 452 yards of total offense while holding the Oaklanders to just 168. On the ground, the Lumberjacks rushed for 235 yards – 6.7 yards per carry – and limited LU to 87. Northern Arizona had a balanced attack with 217 passing yards (13-17-1), keeping the Oaklanders to just 81 yards through the air (11-20-1). The Lumberjacks held the Oaklanders to 5-of-14 on third down and 0-2 on fourth down conversion attempts. In the red zone, NAU was 7-of-8 while also converting 4-of-7 on third down.
Ty Pennington, a redshirt sophomore who transferred in from Pittsburg State, earned the start at quarterback against Lincoln, completing seven of his nine pass attempts for 114 yards and one passing touchdown in his debut while he adding 34 yards on the ground and a rushing touchdown.
Prior to the Lincoln game, no Lumberjacks had taken a snap at running back for Northern Arizona before. By the conclusion, NAU had four different running backs rush for at least 30 yards with three finding the endzone.
J'Wan Evans led the way with 48 rushes on six carries and a touchdown, followed by
Seth Cromwell with 43 rushing yards on nine carries and two touchdowns.
Kenveon Stone also rushed for 34 yards and a touchdown in his first collegiate game.
Alex McLaughlin was the team leader in tackles with seven. In his collegiate debut in last year's season opener at Arizona, he started and led the way with 10 tackles.
Saturday's game marks the first of three-straight road games for NAU during non-conference play. Next week, the Lumberjacks head to St. George, Utah, to face Utah Tech. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. Mountain Standard time. Northern Arizona will be back in Flagstaff to open conference play on Saturday, Sept. 28 against Sacramento State.
