Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
Northern Arizona
Game 11: Regular season finale at NAU Saturday
11/15/2022 2:37:00 PM | Football
New Red Rock Rivalry trophy will be on the line Saturday in Flagstaff in the final regular season game of the season.
Weber State hits the road for the final regular season game of the season when the Wildcats play at Northern Arizona Saturday. The two teams will kickoff at 1 p.m. at the Walkup Skydome in Flagstaff.
Media coverage
The game will be televised on ESPN+ and on the ESPN app. The Weber State radio coverage will be on KLO 103.1 FM "The Wave" with Steve Klauke and former Wildcat head coach and athletic director Jerry Graybeal on the call.
Live stats available at WeberStateSports.com and the Weber State Wildcats app.
Wildcats get back to winning with dominating victory over Idaho State
Weber State got back on the winning track with a dominating 45-7 win over Idaho State last Saturday at Stewart Stadium. The Wildcats totaled 455 yards of offense, compared to 230 for Idaho State and forced three turnovers. WSU's defense also recorded five sacks.
Wildcats ranked seventh in nation heading into final regular season game
Weber State remained seventh in the country in the latest Stats Perform poll. The Wildcats are now 8-2 overall and 5-2 in Big Sky play heading into the regular season finale.
The Wildcats are one of six teams from the Big Sky in the Stats poll with three teams in the top seven. Weber State's two losses this season are to No. 2 Sacramento State and No. 3 Montana State by a total of eight points.
Weber State and Northern Arizona introduce new Red Rocky Rivalry trophy
This week Weber State and Northern Arizona will have a new trophy on the line. The two schools have introduced the Red Rock Rivalry Trophy for the annual meeting on the field.
Split right 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.
While Weber State has won the past two meetings, both in Ogden, 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, from 1965 to 1968, 1970 to 1973 and most recently from 2008 to 2011. Northern Arizona did so from 2001 to 2004 and again in the four meetings between 2014 and 2018.
The programs alternated their first 48 meetings between Flagstaff, the site of the inaugural meeting in 1964, and Ogden as they faced off every year from 1964 to 2011. The expansion of the Big Sky Conference in 2012 created an unbalanced schedule, with the series on hold in 2012 and 2013 before returning to Ogden in 2014. Skipping a meeting in 2017, Northern Arizona hosted in 2018 before Weber State served as the home team in 2019 and the Spring 2021 season.
Once again skipping a meeting during the Fall 2021 season, the departure of Southern Utah to the WAC returned Northern Arizona and Weber State to annual meetings. Resetting the unbalanced schedule of the 12-team Big Sky, the conference paired Northern Arizona and Weber State together as one of two regular opponents. The Lumberjacks also face Northern Colorado each season while the Wildcats play Idaho State annually.
8 wins for the Wildcats
Saturday's win over Idaho State gave Weber State eight wins on the season. The 'Cats have now reached eight or more wins in four of the last five full seasons under head coach Jay Hill. Prior to 2017, Weber State only reached eight or more wins five times in its Division I history beginning in 1962. WSU has only reached nine or more wins five times in its history with three under Jay Hill.
On the road again
After playing the last three games at home, Weber State hits the road for the regular season finale. The Wildcats played three-straight Big Sky home games for the first time in 33 years the Wildcats.
Under coach Jay Hill, Weber State is 24-9 in Big Sky Conference road games. The Wildcats had their school-record eight-game road losing streak snapped at Montana State on Oct. 22. Dating back to the loss at NAU in October 2018, Weber State has won 14 of its last 16 Big Sky Conference road games.
Winston Reid named National Defensive Player of the Week
Weber State junior linebacker Winston Reid has received national honors after his performance in Saturday's dominating win.
Reid was named the recipient of the Stats Perform FedEx Ground FCS National Defensive Player of the Week. He was also honored as the Big Sky Conference Player of the Week. In Saturday's win over Idaho State, Reid forced three fumbles, including two strip sacks, and one was returned for a touchdown. He also posted a team-high seven tackles, including four solo tackles.
Reid had two sacks for a loss of 15 yards. Both sacks resulted in fumbles by Idaho State. The second sack was picked up by Garrett Beck and returned 66 yards for a touchdown. He also forced one other ISU fumble.
On the season, Reid leads the Wildcats and is sixth in the Big Sky in tackles at 8.3 per game. He is also second in the conference with four forced fumbles. He is also serving as a team captain this season for the Wildcats.
Another big performance for Dontae McMillan
Sophomore Dontae McMillan had another big day for the Wildcats in Saturday's win. He finished with 15 carries for a season-high 139 yards and a touchdown in the win, averaging 9.3 yards per carry. It was the second time in the last three games he has reached 100 rushing yards and the fourth time in his career.
This season McMillan is leading the Wildcats at 65.1 yards per game. He has 101 carries for 651 yards and five touchdowns.
He also became the 20th player in Weber State history to reach 1,500 career rushing yards. He now has 1,501 career yards and 14 touchdowns in 28 career games.
National rankings
Weber State leads the nation in kickoff returns at 33.8 yards per return. Sophomore Abraham Williams is the only player in the country with three kickoff returns for touchdowns this season and all three have been 100 yards.
WSU is also second in the country in third down conversion defense, second in interceptions with 15 and second in team pass efficiency defense.
The 'Cats are also fourth in the nation in red zone defense, fifth in passing defense, sixth in turnovers gained, sixth in scoring defense and eighth in total defense.
Records watch
Wildcat sophomore quarterback Bronson Barron is now seventh in WSU history in career passing yards with 4,734 yards. He also ranks 10th in career total offense with 4,900 yards in his 23 career games at Weber State. On the season, Barron is sixth in the Big Sky in passing at 211.7 yards per game and is eighth in total offense at 229 yards per game.
Josh Davis missed Saturday's game against Idaho State, and has missed four of the last five games. He is just 31 yards away from passing Nick Chournos (2001-04) and moving into second place on the WSU all-time rushing list. Davis has the third most career rushing yards of any active player in FCS football. He also needs only seven all-purpose yards to pass Tim Toone (2006-09) for fifth on that all-time list.
Ty MacPherson continued his strong season with 77 receiving yards and a touchdown on Saturday. He currently ranks sixth in Weber State history in career receiving yards with 2,209 yards and is 15th in career receptions with 136. MacPherson is fourth in the Big Sky this season in receiving yards per game and has 820 yards and nine touchdowns.
Eddie Heckard is second in career pass breakups with 30, trailing only former Big Sky MVP and current Buffalo Bill Taron Johnson at 42. Maxwell Anderson moved into third with 27 career pass breakups.
Team captains
As selected by their teammates, Weber State has five captains for the 2022 season. This year's captains are junior offensive lineman Noah Atagi, junior cornerback Eddie Heckard, senior wide receiver Ty MacPherson, junior linebacker Winston Reid and senior safety Desmond Williams. MacPherson also served as a team captain during the spring 2021 and the 2021 seasons.
About Northern Arizona
Northern Arizona enters Saturday's game with a 3-7 overall record and a 2-5 mark in Big Sky play. The Lumberjacks have lost three of their last four games, including a 21-20 loss at Northern Colorado last Saturday.
NAU is second in the Big Sky in sacks allowed with 11 on the year and the Lumberjacks are third in the conference in passing offense and fourth in third down conversion defense.
Head coach Chris Ball
The Lumberjacks are coached by Chris Ball who is in his fourth season at NAU and enters Saturday's game with a 15-23 overall record and is 11-17 in conference play.
Series history
The series for the new Red Rock Rivalry is exactly even at 27-27. Weber State has won the last two meetings, a 51-28 win in Ogden in 2019 and a 28-23 win in Ogden in the spring of 2021 on a Hail Mary touchdown. Prior to that, NAU had won the last four games.
In games in Flagstaff, NAU holds a 19-8 all-time lead and the Lumberjacks have won the last two games, winning in 2015 and 2018. This will be just the fourth game for Weber State in Flagstaff since 2010.
The 54 games played by Weber State against Northern Arizona is the fourth most by the Wildcats against any opponent. And the 27 wins is the second-most against any team.
The two teams are now scheduled to play every season in Big Sky action.
Around the Big Sky
It's down to the wire for the final game in the Big Sky this season. Sacramento State and Montana State are both 7-0 heading into the final game of the year with a conference championship on the line. Montana State hosts Montana and Sacramento State hosts UC Davis. Weber State, Idaho and UC Davis are all tied for third at 5-2.
Quick hits
A win Saturday, would give Weber State a third-place finish in the conference standings, which would clinch a top three finish in the Big Sky for the sixth time in the last seven years...A win Saturday would be the 50th career Big Sky Conference win for Jay Hill.
Up next
The FCS Playoff Selection Show will be on Sunday, November 20 at 10:30 a.m. Mountain time and will be televised on ESPNU.
