#23/23 Colorado School of Mines at Western State Colorado University, Saturday, 1 p.m.
Mountaineer Bowl, Gunnison, Colo. | Video: RMAC Network 
[Live Video] [Live Stats] [Mines Media Notes] [Western Media Notes] 
 

---

After a double-overtime loss last week, #23 Mines looks to rebound on the road against Western State in the next chapter of Colorado's longest continuous football rivalry.

WATCH US
Every remaining Mines game this season will be seen live online on the RMAC Network at MinesAthletics.com/tv. Archived games are available on demand any time as well.

IF YOU GO
Saturday will be Homecoming in Gunnison. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for students and seniors. Get directions from WSCU. The weather is forecast to be mostly sunny with highs in the upper 50s.

WEEK 3 REWIND
#23 Colorado Mesa held off a furious comeback by #10 Colorado School of Mines, winning on a blocked extra point in double-overtime 41-40. Mesa's Dustin Rivas blocked what would've been the game-tying extra point in double overtime after Justin Dvorak scored on a diving scramble to the pylon. Dvorak engineered a two-touchdown comeback to send the game to overtime, compiling 485 yards and four touchdowns on 47-of-67 passing. Down 27-13 entering the fourth quarter, Mines used tough defense and big offensive plays to bridge the gap. Ty Young rose up for a superb one-handed touchdown catch to start the rally, and Brody Oliver finished off a drive with his second score of the game to tie it at 27-27.  Mines missed a field goal from 42 that ended regulation; in overtime, Young caught a 19-yard touchdown to start things before David Tann's 14-yarder forced a second extra period. Mesa started off with Virnel Moon's 19-yard catch, and on Mines' turn, Dvorak scrambled out of a 4th-and-12 situation to hit the left pylon and scored. Rivas, however, blocked the extra point to win.

IN THE POLLS
After the loss to Colorado Mesa, Mines fell to #23 in both the AFCA and D2football.com polls this week. Mines was #10 in the AFCA and #8 in the D2football.com poll last week.

THE MINES-WESTERN STATE SERIES
With the 92nd meeting today, Western State is Mines' oldest continuous opponent, having played every season (save the World War II years) since 1925. Their series is the oldest continuous college football rivalry in Colorado. WSCU leads the series 51-38-2, but Mines has won eight of the last nine. Western State won 45-42 in Golden last season.

AIR VS. GROUND
Saturday's game will pit two of the nation's best offensive units, but in very different ways. Mines owns NCAA Division II's most potent passing attack, averaging 450.0 yards per game with 15 passing touchdowns, while Western State has D-II's 7th-ranked rushing offense at 284.3 yards per game. The good news for Mines? They have D-II's 10th-ranked rushing defense, allowing only 66.7 yards per game.

DVORAK MAKES HARLON HILL TROPHY CASE
Mines quarterback Justin Dvorak has put up videogame numbers through the first quarter of the season, cementing himself as one of the top early Harlon Hill Trophy candidates for NCAA Division II's best player. Dvorak leads the nation in virtually every passing stat, including yards (1,311), touchdowns (15), completions per game (32.3), points responsible for (96), and total offense per game (452.3). Coincidentally, this weekend's game features two men who are arguably the favorites to be Super Region 4's Harlon Hill finalists in Dvorak and Western running back Austin Ekeler; Ekeler has rushed for 172 yards per game and six touchdowns this season.

DVORAK BREAKS RECORDS
Three games, three career records broken for Justin Dvorak. After breaking the Mines passing touchdowns record in week 1 and the completions record in week 2, Dvorak surpassed former Harlon Hill Trophy winner Chad Friehauf as Mines' all-time passing yards leader last week, and now has 10,193 for his career. Dvorak is now four touchdowns away from the 100 milestone, and 13 passing attempts away from that Mines record.

LEADING THE WAY
Mines' impressive numbers to start the year have them at or near the top of the NCAA Division II statistical rankings. Mines leads the nation in passing offense at 450.0 yards per game and are fourth in scoring (50.3), fourth in total offense (565.7), eighth in tackles for loss allowed (3.0 per game), and third in sacks (5.0). 

OLIVER LEADS D-II
Brody Oliver leads NCAA Division II with seven receiving touchdowns this season, having caught multiple TDs in each of the last two games. Oliver has had at least 100 yards receiving and a touchdown in all three games this season, including 119 yards and two scores last week and 164 yards and four TDs at New Mexico Highlands. His yardage total of 385 ranks ninth in D-II.

YOUNG CROSSES 2K
Senior wide receiver Ty Young surpassed 2,000 career yards in last week's game at NMHU, and is Mines' active leader in every receiving category with 147 catches, 2,148 yards, and 18 touchdowns. Young has at least four catches and 90+ yards in each of the first three games this season, including two TDs last week against Mesa on a season-high 12 receptions.

PRECIOUS CARGO
Mines' offensive line, which has four returning all-RMAC starters from 2015, has been outstanding this season as expected. The Mines starters have allowed three sacks in three games, and the Orediggers have given up only 19 sacks in 14 games dating back to the start of last season. Already this season, Mines has allowed the eighth-fewest tackles for loss in NCAA Division II with only nine across three games.

BOTTLED LIGHTNING
25. 35. 28. 59. 31. 16. 9. 45. Don't worry, it isn't a math riddle. That's the length, in seconds, of eight different Mines scoring drives this season that have lasted less than a minute. The Orediggers have been lightning fast on offense, averaging an incredible 1:46 per scoring drive this season (19 drives). That includes seven of less than a minute and only seven over two minutes in length.

SACK HAPPY
Mines' defense has produced 15 sacks in three games, ranking third in the nation in that category. Matthew King (3.5), Michael Kelso (3.0), and Chris Brockman (2.5) lead the team with nine different Orediggers getting hits on opposing QBs this season.

MAKING THE MOST OF IT
If you're looking for efficiency on defense, you could do worse than Mines' Matthew King. The lineman has five tackles this season, and what he's done with them has been spectacular: four of the five are for a loss, and he recorded 3.5 sacks last week against Colorado Mesa. That's the second-most sacks ever in a game for Mines and only a half-sack off the program single-game record.

RIGHT AT HOME
After making the move from linebacker to safety in the offseason, Drew Stephon hasn't missed a beat. He leads the team so far with 20 tackles, and also has an interception this season. 14 of Stephon's 20 tackles are solo stops, a team best.

GOOD POINT
Mines has scored points in 107 consecutive games dating back to Nov. 10, 2007. The last time Mines was shut out was on Nov. 3, 2007 - an 18-0 loss at Colorado Mesa (then Mesa State).

SCOUTING WESTERN STATE
Western State is 2-1, led by reigning RMAC Offensive Player of the Week Austin Ekeler, who ran for 283 yards a week ago against Chadron State. Quarterback has been a question mark for Western State with starter Brett Arrivey hurt earlier this season and backups Spencer Shook and Cameron Shumway combining for 7-of-15 passing with three interceptions and no touchdowns. The Western offense relies heavily on the ground game, averaging 284.3 yards rushing to only 129 yards passing per game. Defensively, Western State has been very solid, allowing 24.6 points and 366.3 yards of offense per game. Cade Wasser and Carter Wasser lead the team with 27 and 23 tackles, respectively.

NEXT TIME
The Orediggers visit Fort Lewis next Saturday for a noon kickoff.