Weber State University Athletics
Saturday, March 27
Ogden
1:00 p.m.
Weber State University
vs
Northern Arizona
Josh Davis and the second-ranked Wildcats host NAU Saturday.
Photo by: Robert Casey
Game notes: No. 2 Weber State hosts NAU Saturday
3/23/2021 4:24:00 PM | Football
• After another bye week, Weber State football returns to the field this Saturday with another home game at Stewart Stadium. The Wildcats, ranked second in the nation, will take on Northern Arizona on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Stewart Stadium. The game will be televised throughout the state of Utah on KJZZ TV and will be streamed on Pluto TV 1054 and WatchBigSky.com. It will also be broadcast on the radio on 103.1 FM "The Wave".
Tickets available for Wildcat football
Season and individual game tickets are available for Wildcat football. This season WSU is limiting attendance to 5,000 people due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Tickets are available at WeberStateSports.com or by calling the WSU Ticket Office at 801-626-8500.
WSU ranked second in the nation in coaches poll
Weber State is ranked second in the nation in the AFCA Coaches national poll, and the 'Cats are third in the Stats Perform poll. The second place ranking is the highest in school history. Weber State has been ranked in at least one of the national polls every week since November 2016. The 'Cats have been in the top 10 in every poll since October 2018.
James Madison is first in both polls with North Dakota State ranked second in the Stats poll and third in the coaches poll.
Wildcats 2-0 on the spring season
Weber State is off to a 2-0 start in this unprecedented spring season. The Wildcats opened the season with a 49-21 win at Idaho State on February 27, then had a bye week before an 18-13 home win over UC Davis on March 13. Beginning this weekend, the 'Cats are scheduled to play four-straight games to close out the regular season.
Home winning streak
Weber State enters Saturday's game with a nine-game home winning streak, which is the second longest in school history, and the 'Cats have won 18 of their last 19 games at Stewart Stadium. WSU was a perfect 8-0 at home in 2019 with the last home loss coming in the quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs to Maine in 2018. The Wildcats can tie the school record with 10 straight home wins this Saturday. Weber State won 10-straight home games from 1991-92.
WSU has also won 14 straight home games against Big Sky opponents.
'Cats rally to beat UC Davis in home opener
In the last game played on March 13, Weber State overcame a halftime deficit and rallied for an 18-13 win over No. 23 UC Davis. WSU did not score in the first half and trailed 10-0 at halftime. It marked the first time since October 2016 against Portland State that Weber State did not score in the first half of a home game.
The 'Cats scored 15 points in the third quarter with touchdowns by Donate McMillan and Daniel Wright Jr., and added a field goal in the fourth quarter. WSU totaled 257 yards in the game but forced two UC Davis turnovers.
Conner Mortensen named Big Sky Player of the Week
For his part in helping the defense in the UC Davis win, Wildcat senior and captain Conner Mortensen was named the Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week. Mortensen had a team-high 11 tackles and had 3.5 tackles for loss in the win. His 11 tackles included nine solo tackles and the 3.5 tackles for loss totaled 12 yards. He also added one pass breakup in leading the No. 2 ranked Wildcats to the win.
Mortensen, a native of Overton, Nevada, leads the Wildcats with 18 tackles in the two games this season. The UC Davis game was his 40th career game at Weber State. He now has 152 career tackles and 14.5 tackles for loss.
Turnover battle
Through three games, Weber State is +3 in turnover margin, second only to this week's opponent Northern Arizona at +4. The Wildcats have three interceptions and one fumble recovered this season, with just two fumbles as turnovers.
Weber State is 2-0 this season and 34-6 in the seven seasons under Jay Hill when leading in turnover margin. The Wildcats are 15-24 under Hill when tied or trailing in the turnover battle.
Jay Hill seeking 50th career win
Weber State head coach Jay Hill is seeking his 50th career win in his seven seasons at Weber State. Hill enters Saturday's game, which will be his 80th career game, with a 49-30 overall record and is 36-14 in Big Sky play. He would become just the third coach in Weber State history to reach 50 career wins, joining the father-son combo of Sark and Dave Arslanian. Sark Arslanian was 50-26-2 in eight seasons as head coach from 1965-72, and Dave Arslanian was 53-47 in nine seasons as head coach from 1989-97.
Hill is already WSU's all-time leader in career Big Sky wins with 36 and his overall winning percentage of .620 is second only to Sark Arslanian at .654. Over the last four seasons, Hill has led the Wildcats to a 23-3 record in Big Sky games.
Josh Davis moves into fourth in career rushing yards
Wildcat junior running back Josh Davis continues to move up in the Weber State record book. In the win over UC Davis, Josh Davis moved past Morgan Welch into fourth place on the Weber State all-time rushing list. Davis now has 2,675 career rushing yards in 30 career games at Weber State, fourth most in WSU history. He needs 375 yards to become just the fourth player with 3,000 career yards. The Draper, Utah native also ranks 10th in WSU history in career all-purpose yards with 3,502, just behind teammate Rashid Shaheed. Through two games, Davis has 31 carries for 177 yards, averaging 88.5 yards per game. He had a 64-yard touchdown run in the season opening win at Idaho State.
Team captains
Weber State has named six captains for the 2021 spring season, as voted on by the Wildcat players. This year's captains are sophomore offensive lineman Noah Atagi, junior running back Josh Davis, junior wide receiver Ty MacPherson, senior linebacker Conner Mortensen, senior wide receiver Rashid Shaheed and senior defensive lineman Jared Schiess.
About Northern Arizona
Northern Arizona enters Saturday's game with a 1-1 overall record. The Lumberjacks opened the season with a wild 34-33 comeback home win over Southern Utah, then followed that with a 45-13 loss at No. 22 Eastern Washington.
Through two games, the Lumberjacks are first in the nation in turnover margin at +4. NAU has forced two fumbles and two interceptions and has not turned the ball over yet this season. Terrell Hayward leads the conference and is seventh in the country in all purpose yards at 139.5 per game.
The Lumberjacks are coached by Chris Ball who is in his second season at NAU. There are some connections to Weber State on the NAU staff. Robin Pfulgrad is the Associate Head Coach for the Lumberjacks and was the offensive coordinator at Weber State during the 2013 season. Aaron Price is the Special Teams Coordinator and wide receivers coach. He grew up in Ogden and is the son of former Weber State head coach Mike Price.
Series history
This will be the 54th all-time meeting between the two schools, with Northern Arizona holding a 27-26 series lead. The Wildcats are 18-8 all-time against the Lumberjacks in Ogden. The 26 wins over NAU is the second-most victories for Weber State against any opponent in its history.
This is NAU's second-straight trip to Stewart Stadium. The Wildcats beat the Lumberjacks 51-28 in October 2019 behind a school record 328 rushing yards and four touchdowns by Josh Davis.
Up next
No more scheduled bye weeks for the Wildcats as WSU has three more regular season games on the schedule after this week. Weber State will hit the road at Southern Utah on April 3. The final home games will be Idaho State at home on April 10 and at Cal Poly on April 17.
Tickets available for Wildcat football
Season and individual game tickets are available for Wildcat football. This season WSU is limiting attendance to 5,000 people due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Tickets are available at WeberStateSports.com or by calling the WSU Ticket Office at 801-626-8500.
WSU ranked second in the nation in coaches poll
Weber State is ranked second in the nation in the AFCA Coaches national poll, and the 'Cats are third in the Stats Perform poll. The second place ranking is the highest in school history. Weber State has been ranked in at least one of the national polls every week since November 2016. The 'Cats have been in the top 10 in every poll since October 2018.
James Madison is first in both polls with North Dakota State ranked second in the Stats poll and third in the coaches poll.
Wildcats 2-0 on the spring season
Weber State is off to a 2-0 start in this unprecedented spring season. The Wildcats opened the season with a 49-21 win at Idaho State on February 27, then had a bye week before an 18-13 home win over UC Davis on March 13. Beginning this weekend, the 'Cats are scheduled to play four-straight games to close out the regular season.
Home winning streak
Weber State enters Saturday's game with a nine-game home winning streak, which is the second longest in school history, and the 'Cats have won 18 of their last 19 games at Stewart Stadium. WSU was a perfect 8-0 at home in 2019 with the last home loss coming in the quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs to Maine in 2018. The Wildcats can tie the school record with 10 straight home wins this Saturday. Weber State won 10-straight home games from 1991-92.
WSU has also won 14 straight home games against Big Sky opponents.
'Cats rally to beat UC Davis in home opener
In the last game played on March 13, Weber State overcame a halftime deficit and rallied for an 18-13 win over No. 23 UC Davis. WSU did not score in the first half and trailed 10-0 at halftime. It marked the first time since October 2016 against Portland State that Weber State did not score in the first half of a home game.
The 'Cats scored 15 points in the third quarter with touchdowns by Donate McMillan and Daniel Wright Jr., and added a field goal in the fourth quarter. WSU totaled 257 yards in the game but forced two UC Davis turnovers.
Conner Mortensen named Big Sky Player of the Week
For his part in helping the defense in the UC Davis win, Wildcat senior and captain Conner Mortensen was named the Big Sky Defensive Player of the Week. Mortensen had a team-high 11 tackles and had 3.5 tackles for loss in the win. His 11 tackles included nine solo tackles and the 3.5 tackles for loss totaled 12 yards. He also added one pass breakup in leading the No. 2 ranked Wildcats to the win.
Mortensen, a native of Overton, Nevada, leads the Wildcats with 18 tackles in the two games this season. The UC Davis game was his 40th career game at Weber State. He now has 152 career tackles and 14.5 tackles for loss.
Turnover battle
Through three games, Weber State is +3 in turnover margin, second only to this week's opponent Northern Arizona at +4. The Wildcats have three interceptions and one fumble recovered this season, with just two fumbles as turnovers.
Weber State is 2-0 this season and 34-6 in the seven seasons under Jay Hill when leading in turnover margin. The Wildcats are 15-24 under Hill when tied or trailing in the turnover battle.
Jay Hill seeking 50th career win
Weber State head coach Jay Hill is seeking his 50th career win in his seven seasons at Weber State. Hill enters Saturday's game, which will be his 80th career game, with a 49-30 overall record and is 36-14 in Big Sky play. He would become just the third coach in Weber State history to reach 50 career wins, joining the father-son combo of Sark and Dave Arslanian. Sark Arslanian was 50-26-2 in eight seasons as head coach from 1965-72, and Dave Arslanian was 53-47 in nine seasons as head coach from 1989-97.
Hill is already WSU's all-time leader in career Big Sky wins with 36 and his overall winning percentage of .620 is second only to Sark Arslanian at .654. Over the last four seasons, Hill has led the Wildcats to a 23-3 record in Big Sky games.
Josh Davis moves into fourth in career rushing yards
Wildcat junior running back Josh Davis continues to move up in the Weber State record book. In the win over UC Davis, Josh Davis moved past Morgan Welch into fourth place on the Weber State all-time rushing list. Davis now has 2,675 career rushing yards in 30 career games at Weber State, fourth most in WSU history. He needs 375 yards to become just the fourth player with 3,000 career yards. The Draper, Utah native also ranks 10th in WSU history in career all-purpose yards with 3,502, just behind teammate Rashid Shaheed. Through two games, Davis has 31 carries for 177 yards, averaging 88.5 yards per game. He had a 64-yard touchdown run in the season opening win at Idaho State.
Team captains
Weber State has named six captains for the 2021 spring season, as voted on by the Wildcat players. This year's captains are sophomore offensive lineman Noah Atagi, junior running back Josh Davis, junior wide receiver Ty MacPherson, senior linebacker Conner Mortensen, senior wide receiver Rashid Shaheed and senior defensive lineman Jared Schiess.
About Northern Arizona
Northern Arizona enters Saturday's game with a 1-1 overall record. The Lumberjacks opened the season with a wild 34-33 comeback home win over Southern Utah, then followed that with a 45-13 loss at No. 22 Eastern Washington.
Through two games, the Lumberjacks are first in the nation in turnover margin at +4. NAU has forced two fumbles and two interceptions and has not turned the ball over yet this season. Terrell Hayward leads the conference and is seventh in the country in all purpose yards at 139.5 per game.
The Lumberjacks are coached by Chris Ball who is in his second season at NAU. There are some connections to Weber State on the NAU staff. Robin Pfulgrad is the Associate Head Coach for the Lumberjacks and was the offensive coordinator at Weber State during the 2013 season. Aaron Price is the Special Teams Coordinator and wide receivers coach. He grew up in Ogden and is the son of former Weber State head coach Mike Price.
Series history
This will be the 54th all-time meeting between the two schools, with Northern Arizona holding a 27-26 series lead. The Wildcats are 18-8 all-time against the Lumberjacks in Ogden. The 26 wins over NAU is the second-most victories for Weber State against any opponent in its history.
This is NAU's second-straight trip to Stewart Stadium. The Wildcats beat the Lumberjacks 51-28 in October 2019 behind a school record 328 rushing yards and four touchdowns by Josh Davis.
Up next
No more scheduled bye weeks for the Wildcats as WSU has three more regular season games on the schedule after this week. Weber State will hit the road at Southern Utah on April 3. The final home games will be Idaho State at home on April 10 and at Cal Poly on April 17.
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