Colorado School of Mines vs. Adams State, Saturday, 12 p.m.
Marv Kay Stadium at Campbell Field, Golden, Colo.
[Streaming: RMAC Network] [Live Stats] [Mines Media Notes]
 

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After winning the final four games of 2017, Mines hopes to carry that momentum over to 2018 as it opens the season at home against Adams State with a veteran-laden squad.

WATCH US
Every Mines game this season will be seen live and for free on the RMAC Network at minesathletics.com/tv. Fans can also watch on their smart TV by searching "RMAC" in the app store of their Roku, Apple TV, or Amazon Fire device.

TICKETS
Walk-up tickets are available at Gates 1 (12th Street home side) and Gate 3 (11th Street visitor's side), cash or charge. Tickets are $15 for reserved seating, $10 general admission, $5 for military, seniors, and children 17 and under, and free for Mines students with Blaster Card and faculty/staff with pass.

WEATHER REPORT
The forecast calls for a beautiful day to play football - highs in the upper 70s and partly cloudy with small chance of a passing afternoon shower.

BY THE NUMBERS
1,563 - rushing yards in 2017 by all-American Cameron Mayberry, breaking the Mines single-season record that had stood since 1939
129th - season of Mines football. The Orediggers began play in 1888, defeating the University of Denver in their first game
38 - career touchdown catches by Brody Oliver, which is the Mines record and ranks third all-time in RMAC history
22 - returning starters, including nine on offense and eight on defense. Mines also returns starters at every specialist spot
6 - returning starters on the offensive side of the ball who were all-RMAC last year: Mayberry, Oliver, Riley Hoff, Riley Miller, Jason van de Graaf, and Grant Stewart

THE MINES-ADAMS STATE SERIES
Adams State narrowly leads the all-time series against Mines, 34-32-2 ... This will be the 69th game in a series that began in 1947 with a 20-13 ASU win ... The Orediggers have dominated the series in recent years, winning five in a row, 10 of the last 11, and 15 of the last 18 since the turn of the century ... Mines-Adams State games have been high-scoring as of late, with one team putting up 35+ in each of the last six meetings ... Mines has scored 42 or more in each of their last five meetings, all Oredigger wins ... Mines and Adams State have never met in a season opener.

CAPTAINS NAMED FOR 2018
Mines has elected four captains for the 2018 season: senior linebacker Logan Bock, senior linebacker Grant Gale, senior receiver Brody Oliver, and junior center Grant Stewart. Oliver is a returning captain from 2017.

OREDIGGERS PICKED THIRD BY RMAC COACHES
The RMAC preseason poll released on July 30 had Mines third behind CSU-Pueblo and Colorado Mesa, despite the Orediggers picking up two first-place votes and 84 points overall. Adams State was ninth in the poll. 

MINES EARNS NATIONAL LOOKS
Although not ranked in either of the two major polls in Week 1, Mines has gotten some preseason love from several pollsters. The Orediggers received votes in the AFCA preseason coaches' poll, and also appeared in the top 25 of two magazine rankings earlier in the summer with a #17 showing in Lindy's and #25 in Street & Smith's.

MAYBERRY, OLIVER RACK UP PRESEASON AWARDS
Running back Cameron Mayberry and receiver Brody Oliver picked up numerous preseason all-America nods this summer, the latest coming from D2football.com, which put Mayberry on its first team and Oliver on its second team. Mayberry was also a Lindy's Preseason First-Team All-American; the pair both picked up Preseason All-RMAC honors along with offensive lineman Grant Stewart, as well.

INSTANT IMPACT
Mines will look for a pair of Division I graduate transfers to make an instant impact on both sides of the ball in 2018. The Orediggers added quarterback Isaac Harker (Indiana State) and cornerback Anthony Makransky (Wyoming) before the spring semester, and both are competing for starting spots with one semester of eligibility remaining. Harker made 15 starts in three seasons of action at Indiana State, earning Honorable Mention All-MVFC honors in 2016. Makransky appeared in nine games for Wyoming in 2015 and 2016, compiling 11 tackles, but missed 2017 due to injury. Both are pursuing master's degrees in Mineral and Energy Economics.

LAST YEAR VS. ADAMS STATE
The Orediggers produced arguably their best offensive outing of 2017 in a lopsided 52-24 win in Alamosa a year ago. Cameron Mayberry went wild on the ground, rushing for a Mines single-game record 312 yards (the previous record, 229 yards, had stood since 1992) on 31 carries with three touchdowns; the Orediggers ran for 498 yards overall, the second-highest total in program history. After a nervy first half left it tied 24-24, Mines scored 28 unanswered points in the second half as the defense pitched a shutout. ASU had a fine game in the air as Nick Rooney threw for 410 yards and Chad Hovasse had 162 yards receiving, but Mines limited the Grizzlies to only 57 yards on the ground. Jimmy Bauer forced a fumble on a strip sack while Chase Nicholas led the defense with eight tackles.

OLIVER CHASES RECORDS
There's no doubt that Brody Oliver will leave Mines with some of the most impressive numbers ever seen by an RMAC receiver. The senior enters 2018 with 2,671 yards and 38 touchdowns in his career; the latter is already the Mines record and is tied for third in RMAC history. He's chasing the Mines career yardage record of 3,562, held by Justin Gallas from 2002-05. His next touchdown will give him sole possession of third in the RMAC annals with second place at 47 touchdowns.

QUARTERBACK BATTLE
After a spring and camp battle, Indiana State transfer Isaac Harker is the projected starter in week 1 against Adams State, with 2017 starters Ben Bottlinger and Cody Limmer behind him. Harker threw for 684 yards and three touchdowns in five starts for the Sycamores last year, and was Honorable Mention All-MVFC in 2016 throwing for 2,559 yards and 19 touchdowns. The depth will be a welcome option for Mines, however, as Bottlinger threw for 1,711 yards and 12 TDs, and ran for 289 yards and four scores, in nine games last year and Limmer 743 yards and 7 TDs in eight appearances with 169 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.

MAYBERRY LEADS DEEP TAILBACK GROUP
While Cameron Mayberry's name has gotten national headlines after his historic 2017, Mines will have a deep group of running backs behind him. Garrett Hyles showed promise as a redshirt freshman last year with a bruising style that netted 105 yards and a touchdown on 29 carries, while Josh Odom ran 20 times for 118 yards and two scores. Two redshirt freshmen are in the mix after impressing on the practice squad last year - Wheat Ridge native Michael Zeman, and Mines' offensive scout player of the year Carlos Ramos.

VETERAN RECEIVING CORPS RETURNS
Mines brings back all four starters and its top seven receivers overall from a year ago, accounting for 85.9 percent of its total receiving production back. The conversation starts with 2016 all-American Brody Oliver, who caught 64 passes for 950 yards and 12 touchdowns last year. Riley Hoff (50 catches, 698 yards, 5 TD) is on the other side as Sean O'Dell (21 catches, 262 yards) and David Sommers (17 catches, 240 yards, 1 TD) return to start inside. Zach Peterson (3 catches, 65 yards) will be the top choice in tight end formations.

O-LINE HEAVY ON EXPERIENCE
Four returning starters from one of NCAA Division II's best offensive lines last year highlight a position of strength for the Orediggers. Collectively in 2017, Mines allowed only 16 sacks in 11 games, and the line helped produce the NCAA's #10-ranked rushing offense at 245.6 yards per game, including four 300+ and one 450+ yard game. Preseason All-RMAC selection Grant Stewart, a two-year starter at center, is projected to move to right tackle for the season opener with Cody Ullestad, who appeared in eight games last year, starting in the middle. Riley Miller returns to start at left tackle after earning Honorable Mention All-RMAC honors last year, and Jason Van de Graaf is next to him at guard after also earning all-RMAC status last year. The right guard position is Joey Roselli's after the redshirt senior started five times in eight appearances there last year.

ROTATION PAYS OFF FOR D-LINE
The 2017 season was a trial by fire for the defensive line as injuries decimated the unit early. However, that forced some youngsters into the rotation, and that looks to pay off as experience in 2018. At end, redshirt senior Matthew King, a 2016 and 2017 all-RMAC selection, will keep his starting spot backed up by Luke Jeter, who played in eight games as a true freshman last year. Jack McAdams is slotted in as the starter at nose tackle after appearing in six games a year ago with Chantz Tanner, last year's starter, behind him. At tackle, Brockton Sterling started four games with 29 tackles last year and is expected to start ahead of Nicola Lonardo, who played in all 11 games with 21 stops.

GALE'S RETURN LEADS DEEP LB GROUP
Arguably the deepest group of returners for the Orediggers in 2018 is at linebacker, where only all-RMAC outside linebacker Dean Wenger is gone to graduation. Mines also has a key returner back in Grant Gale, who missed all of 2017 with an injury and looks to resume his starting spot in the middle. Gale produced 83 tackles with a sack and two turnovers for Mines' 2016 RMAC championship team. The rest of the group is deep on experience: all-RMAC pick Averie Mansfield was Mines' second-leading tackler last year (71 with 1.5 sacks) starting at the weak side, and all-RMAC selection RJ Phillips produced 45 stops in nine starts in the middle. Jimmy Bauer (34T, 1.0 S) returns to start on the outside after splitting time last year with Logan Bock (25T, 2.0 S), who will start on the other outside spot, and James Kohlschmidt produced 63 tackles in 2017 from the middle as he is slated to back up Mansfield at the weak-side position.

DBs MIX IT UP WITH NEW AND FAMILIAR FACES
On the corners, Wyoming transfer Anthony Makransky will start at one spot after missing all of 2017 with the Cowboys due to injury; he'll be backed up by an experienced Logan Braden, who started all 11 games at safety last year and made 62 tackles. The other corner spot is also full of experience as Miguel Rosendo (23T in 11 games) is projected to start ahead of Chase Nicholas (37T in 10 starts). At free safety, Geoff Keating will move over from corner after a promising start to his 2017 was cut short by injury; the strong safety spot will be occupied by Adam Leonard, who was a starter there for three games in 2016 before suffering an injury that kept him out through the 2017 season. A pair of redshirt freshmen, Kobe Brewster and Edwin Lovett, will back up the safeties.

SPECIAL TEAMS HAS VETERAN LOOK
Every specialist position will have a returner with starting experience as Mines returns one of the best units in the RMAC. Kicker Scott Marshall redshirted a year ago after starting as a true freshman in 2016, while punter Austin Toussaint is back for his third year as the starter. Chris Clore did an outstanding job at long-snapper as a true freshman a year ago, while Toussaint will also reprise holding duties. The return game is a strength for Mines as Cameron Mayberry and Brody Oliver will handle kicks (Mayberry was all-RMAC there last year) and Riley Hoff punts (also all-RMAC in 2016).

COACHING STAFF CHANGES PERSONNEL, ROLES
Mines' coaching staff will feature some new faces and roles in 2018. Mike McGlinchey (defensive line) and Brandon Moore (linebackers) have been promoted to co-defensive coordinators, while the Orediggers have added Yon Boone as the defensive backs coach and Opetaia Tuiava as a defensive assistant. On the offensive side of the ball, Tim Brandon returns to the staff as the offensive line coach; the son of head coach Gregg Brandon, he was an offensive assistant for Mines in 2015 before spending the past two seasons at Northwestern working with the offensive line.

WALK ACROSS THE STAGE
Four members of the 2018 roster are already Mines graduates as they pursue master's degrees in their final year of eligibility. Miguel Rosendo, Logan Bock, Matthew King, and Chantz Tanner have all earned one of Mines' signature silver diplomas; Rosendo and Bock in mechanical engineering, and King and Tanner in petroleum engineering. All four will wear a special helmet decal this season to denote their alumni status.

LOOKING AHEAD
Mines will visit Black Hills State on Sept. 8 before returning home to play CSU-Pueblo on Sept. 15.