Weber State University Athletics
Wildcats take on Utes Saturday in Salt Lake
9/3/2013 4:20:00 PM | Football
Game #2 Weber State (1-0) at Utah (1-0)
Saturday, Sept. 7 • 12:00 p.m.
Salt Lake City, UT • Rice-Eccles Stadium (17,500)
TV: Pac-12 Networks
Radio: KLO 1430 AM/103.1 FM
Internet audio: WeberStateSports.com
Live stats: WeberStateSports.com
Series: Utah leads 3-0
Streak: Utah 3 wins
In Salt Lake: Utah leads 3-0
Last Meeting: 09/27/08 - Salt Lake City - Utah 37, WSU 21
QUICK HITS
Coming off a thrilling 50-40 win over Stephen F. Austin to open the 2013 season last week the Weber State Wildcats will head south to take on the Utah Utes Saturday at noon at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City. Saturday's win was WSU's first season-opening win in five years. This week's game will be the first of two-straight FBS games for the Wildcats and the first of three-straight road games. This will be the fourth meeting ever with the Utes. Utah is 3-0 all-time against Weber State with the last game coming in 2008.
MEDIA FOR SATURDAY'S GAME
Saturday's game with the Utes will begin at 12:00 p.m. at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City. The game will be broadcast live on KLO 1430 AM and 103.1 FM with Carl Arky and former Wildcat standout Ty Sparrow calling all the action. It can also be heard online at kloradio.com and WeberStateSports.com.
The game will also be televised on the Pac-12 Networks with Matt McConnell and former Utah and NFL star Jamal Anderson calling the action. Pac-12 Network is available on Comcast channel 37 and Dish Network channel 413. It is not available on DirecTV. Live stats of the game will be at UtahUtes.com or WeberStateSports.com.
'CATS OPEN SEASON WITH 50-40 WIN OVER SFA
Weber State started the season on a high note with a 50-40 win over Stephen F. Austin Saturday at Stewart Stadium. The Wildcats totaled 484 yards of offense with 315 yards on the ground. They also scored on a kickoff return and an interception return. The two teams ran 88 plays each and combined for more than 1,000 yards.
The win marked the first season opening win for Weber State since the 2008 season. It was the first season opening win over a Division I opponent since beating Eastern Washington in 1996.
FAST-PACED WILDCAT OFFENSE TOTALS 88 PLAYS
Weber State's new fast tempo offense, under the direction of new offensive coordinator Robin Pflugrad, ran 88 plays in Saturday's win. The 'Cats totaled 484 yards of offense for an average of 5.5 yards per play.
The 50 points scored by the Wildcats was the most since a 50-47 quadruple overtime win over Northern Colorado in 2010. It was the most points scored in regulation since 2008.
FIRST QUARTER CHANGE
During the 2012 season the Wildcats totaled just 29 points in the first quarter in 11 games. They did not score a point in the first quarter until week six last season and didn't score a touchdown until their 10th game.
That all changed Saturday as the 'Cats jumped out to 23 first quarter points in Saturday's win over Stephen F. Austin. WSU scored less than two minutes into the game on an Erik Walker 39-yard run. D.J. Bush had a 70-yard interception return and Bo Bolen had a 100-yard kickoff return in the first quarter. The 'Cats also went for, and converted, two two-point conversions in the first quarter for the 23 points.
BO BOLEN SHINES IN RETURN
WSU running back and kickoff returner Bo Bolen played his first game in nearly three years Saturday after returning from a two-year LDS Church mission to the Philippines. He made a splash in his return totaling 215 all-purpose yards, including a 100-yard kickoff return to lead the Wildcats to the season-opening win. He returned a kickoff 100 yards in the first quarter to give Weber State a 23-7 lead. He became the sixth player in Weber State history to return a kickoff 100-yards for a touchdown. He finished the day with three kickoff returns for 135 yards, for an average of 45 yards per return. He currently ranks third in Weber State history in career kickoff return yardage.
Bolen also had a strong day on the ground as he totaled 20 carries for 88 yards and two touchdowns, an average of 4.2 yards per carry. He had touchdown runs of 1 yard and 19 yards in the third quarter in leading the Wildcats to the win.
Bolen, a native of Aurora, Colo., was an All-American kickoff returner as a freshman in 2009 and also played in 2010 for the Wildcats.
BUSH POSTS INTERCEPTION TOUCHDOWN IN FIRST GAME AT WSU
In his first game with Weber State, junior D.J. Bush recorded a 70-yard interception return for a touchdown in the first quarter, helping lead Weber State to Saturday's win. His interception came just six minutes into the game and gave Weber State a 16-0 lead. The 70-yard interception return is the third longest in Weber State history. He also finished the day with seven tackles and had one pass breakup.
Bush, a native of San Jose, Calif., transferred to Weber State last spring after two seasons at Foothill Junior College.
CAREER-DAY FOR ERIK WALKER
WSU senior wide receiver Erik Walker had a career-day in Saturday's victory. The Park City, Utah native totaled 166 all-purpose yards in the win and had two touchdowns. He started the game off with a bang for the Wildcats with a 39-yard touchdown run for the first score of the game, less than two minutes into the game. It was just his second career rushing attempt.
He also had seven catches for a career-high 127 yards and had one 27-yard touchdown reception. Walker has appeared in 31 career games and has 657 career receiving yards and seven touchdowns.
ANTHONY MORALES LEADS WILDCAT DEFENSE
Weber State senior Anthony Morales, a preseason All-American and All-Conference selection, led the Wildcat defense Saturday, recording 13 tackles and two tackles for loss. Morales had five solo tackles and eight unassisted tackles in the win.
Morales, a native of Edmond, Okla., is one of the top returning linebackers in the Big Sky and was named to the Big Sky Preseason All-Conference team. He also has earned several preseason All-American honors, including being named preseason all-American teams by the College Sports Journal and Phil Steele.
Morales, who has played in 31 career games at Weber State, led the Big Sky and finished third in the nation in tackles last season, averaging 12.0 per game. He averaged 13.9 tackles per game in Big Sky games. He now needs just 19 more tackles to move into the WSU career top 10 list.
JORDAN ADAMCZYK GETS START AT QUARTERBACK
In just his second career start and just his 10th career game at Weber State, senior quarterback Jordan Adamczyk finished the day 14-29 passing for 118 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Adamczyk, a native of Canyon Country, Calif., found Erik Walker for a 27-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter. He also had six rushes for 27 yards.
FRESHMEN MAKE BIG CONTRIBUTIONS FOR WILDCATS
A total of 20 true freshmen or red-shirt freshmen saw action in Saturday's win over Stephen F. Austin. Several freshman made key contributions in the win. True freshman running back Zach Smith led the Wildcat rushing attack with eight carries for 88 yards and a touchdown. Smith, a native of Kissimmee, Fla., had a 57-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter that sealed the win for the 'Cats.
True freshman A.J. Coney, a native of Orlando, recorded an interception in the win. True freshman quarterback Austin Chipoletti, a native of Jacksonville, Fla., finished the day 2-3 passing for 51 yards.
True freshman Dakota Jenkins-Baty started at center for the Wildcats. True freshman Carson Fackrell led the kicking game, finishing 3-3 on extra points and had seven kickoffs for 414 yards, an average of 59.1 per kick.
TEAM CAPTAINS
Coach Sears has selected four team captains for the season. Bo Bolen, Anthony Morales, Connor Myers and Shelton Robinson will serve as the Wildcat team captains for the year. Morales is serving as captain for the third straight season. Combined the four players have appeared in 100 games for Weber State.
AROUND THE BIG SKY
It was a terrific opening weekend for the Big Sky Conference as the league combined for a 9-3 record and recorded two wins over FBS schools. Eastern Washington won 49-46 at #25 Oregon State, the first victory in conference history over a ranked FBS team. Southern Utah also won 22-21 at South Alabama.
The Big Sky has four teams ranked in the top 25 of the Sports Network FCS poll. Eastern Washington is now ranked second in the country with Montana State fourth. Cal Poly is 12th and Montana is ranked 13th.
FIRST OF TWO STRAIGHT FBS GAMES FOR WILDCATS
Saturday's game at Utah will be the first of two-straight FBS games the Wildcats will play as they will play at Utah State next weekend. This will mark the sixth straight season the Wildcats will face two FBS opponents.
In the opening weekend around the country eight FCS teams picked up wins over FBS teams, including two in the Big Sky Conference.
WEBER STATE ALL-TIME AGAINST FBS TEAMS
In 51 seasons of playing football at the four-year level, Weber State is 3-48 all-time against FBS teams. Weber State beat Utah State in 1978 and beat Nevada twice (1992 and 1993), the first two years Nevada was playing at the Division I-A level. The Wildcats have lost 25 straight games to FBS opponents.
INJURY REPORT
WSU junior wide receiver Shaydon Kehano suffered a leg injury during fall camp and is expected to miss another three to five weeks of action. Kehano suffered a similar injury to the same leg last season in the third game of the year and missed the rest of the season. He earned Big Sky All-Conference honors as a sophomore in 2011 and has appeared in 20 career games at Weber State.
ABOUT UTAH
The University of Utah Utes enter Saturday's game with a 1-0 record after a 30-26 win over Utah State last Thursday in the season opener.
In the win over the Aggies the Utes totaled 450 yards of offense, with 302 yards in the air. Sophomore quarterback Travis Wilson finished the day 17-28 passing for 302 yards and two touchdowns. He threw first quarter touchdowns to Dres Anderson and Jake Murphy. Senior Anthony Denham had six catches for 113 yards. On defense, junior Eric Rowe led the Utes with 10 tackles and junior Nate Orchard had eight tackles, including one sack and forced and recovered a fumble. Freshman kicker Andy Phillips, who was a member of the U.S. Ski Team and never played organized football before this season, was a perfect 3-3 on field goals with a long of 45 yards.
The Utes trailed 23-14 early in the third quarter but responded to score 16 of the games final 19 points.
Utah finished 5-7 last season and was fifth in the Pac-12 South Division with a 3-6 conference record. The Utes are returning 50 lettermen from last season including 13 starters. Utah was picked to finish fifth in the Pac-12 South this season in the preseason polls.
Head Coach KYLE WHITTINGHAM
The Utes are coached by Kyle Whittingham who is now in his ninth season as head coach. He has posted a career record of 72-32 at Utah and has led the Utes to a 7-11 mark in two seasons in the Pac-12. He has led Utah to three 10-win seasons and a 7-1 record in bowl games. Whittingham was an assistant coach at Idaho State in the Big Sky from 1988-93.
This season Utah added veteran coach Dennis Erickson as the new co-offensive coordinator. Erickson has been the head coach at six different schools and two NFL teams. He won two national championships as head coach at Miami. Weber State head coach Jody Sears played two seasons for Erickson at Washington State. Erickson has ties to the Big Sky and was head coach in the Big Sky at the University of Idaho from 1982-85 where he posted a 2-2 record against Weber State. He played quarterback at Montana State from 1966-68.
SERIES HISTORY
This will be the fourth meeting ever between the Utes and the Wildcats and the first since 2008. The Utes are 3-0 all-time against the Wildcats with all three games coming in Salt Lake City.
The two teams first met in 1978 with Utah winning 30-7. Utah won again 51-7 in 1984. In 2008 the Utes beat the Wildcats 37-21. The Utes were ranked 17th in the nation in that game and were on their way to a undefeated season and a victory over Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. The Wildcats finished the 2008 season 10-4 and captured the Big Sky title. In that game Utah had 450 total yards of offense, compared to 359 for Weber State. Cameron Higgins threw for 303 yards and three touchdowns for the Wildcats. Current Utah co-offensive coordinator Brian Johnson threw for 194 yards and two touchdowns for Utah.
Utah is the only team in the Pac-12 that Weber State has ever played. The Wildcats are scheduled to play Arizona State and Oregon State in the season openers in the next two seasons.
WILDCATS COME FROM ALL OVER
Weber State's roster this season includes players from 13 states and Canada. A total of 25 of WSU's roster come from the state of Utah. The 'Cats have 13 players each coming from California and Florida. Eight players come from Idaho, six from Hawaii, five from Oklahoma and four from Texas. The 'Cats also have players from Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Louisiana, Nevada, and Washington, as well as one from Alberta, Canada.
JODY SEARS RETURNS FOR SECOND SEASON AT WSU
Weber State head coach Jody Sears returns for his second season as head coach of the Wildcats. Sears is the 10th head coach in Weber State history and led the Wildcats to a 2-9 record last season, his first year with the program.
Prior to coming to Weber State Sears spent three seasons at Washington State where he spent the last three seasons as the co-defensive coordinator with the Cougars under head coach Paul Wulff, a former college teammate at Washington State.
He is no stranger to the Big Sky Conference as he spent five seasons (2003-07) as the defensive coordinator at Eastern Washington, also under Paul Wulff. During his time with the Eagles he coached safeties, linebackers and defensive backs. In his five seasons at Eastern Washington he coached seven players to Big Sky All-Conference honors.
Prior to his time at Eastern Washington Sears spent three seasons (2000-02) as an assistant coach at Army where he coached cornerbacks and the defensive line. He also spent time as an assistant coach at St. Ambrose University, an NAIA school in Davenport, Iowa and Iowa State.
Sears played football at Washington State where he was a two-year letterwinner with the Cougars after walking on as a wide receiver. He played under head coaches Jim Walden, Dennis Erickson, and former Weber State head coach Mike Price. He graduated from Washington State in 1991 and received his master's degree from Iowa State in 1996.
Sears, 45, is a native of Pullman, Washington. He and his wife Molly are the parents of five children.
COACHING STAFF CHANGES
The Wildcats made several key changes to the coaching staff in the offseason. Steve Morton returns for his second season with the Wildcats and was elevated to the position of Associate Head Coach. He also continues to coach the offensive line for the Wildcats.
Robin Pflugrad, a former head coach at Montana, joined the program in February as the new offensive coordinator. Pflugrad brings nearly 30 years of coaching experience to Weber State, including several years coaching in the Big Sky. Pflugrad has brought a new up-tempo offense to the Wildcats this season. Pflugrad missed Saturday's game due to an NCAA suspension while he was head coach at the University of Montana. He is back coaching with the Wildcats this week.
Eric Lewis is the new defensive coordinator for the Wildcats. Lewis is in his second season as an assistant at Weber State and also coaches the secondary.
2013 SCHEDULE
The Wildcats will face 12 games this season with five at home and seven on the road. After Saturday's opener with Stephen F. Austin the 'Cats will hit the road for three straight games, playing at Utah, Utah State and McNeese State.
The Big Sky opener will be Sept. 28 when the Wildcats host Sacramento State, in a game that will also be the annual Homecoming game. WSU will also host Montana State, Southern Utah and Idaho State at home this season. Big Sky road games will be Eastern Washington, Cal Poly, Portland State and Montana. WSU will not play North Dakota, Northern Arizona, Northern Colorado or UC Davis this season.
Weber State was picked 11th by the coaches and 12th by the media in the Big Sky preseason polls. Montana State was picked to as the preseason favorite in both polls, followed by Eastern Washington, Montana and Cal Poly.
TV TIME
The Wildcats will have three games on television this season. The Sept. 7 game at Utah will be on the Pac-12 network and the Sept. 14 game at Utah State will be on ESPN3. The Oct. 19 home game against Montana State will be televised live on ROOT Sports, a part of the Big Sky Conference's TV contract with ROOT.
LOOKING AHEAD
After Saturday's game at Utah the Wildcats will head north to take on the Utah State Aggies, next Saturday night in Logan.
