MEDIA INFORMATION Date Sat., Sept. 23 | 6 p.m. MT Location Legend Solar Stadium (5,500) | St. George, UT  TV CEC-TV (TDS Channel 22) Radio ESPN SportsRadio 97.7 FM WATCH/LISTEN WATCH (Dixie State Live Video) LISTEN (Online Radio Stream)   Live Stats Dixie State Live Stats Ticket Info Purchase Tickets Game Notes Dixie State (PDF) , Central Washington (PDF) Twitter @DixieAthletics #RMACfb #BlazeForward DIXIE STATE - CWU SERIES Series Central Washington leads, 15-2 At DSU CWU leads, 6-2 At CWU CWU leads, 9-0 First Meeting 8/30/08; CWU 44, DSU 38 (OT) - St. George Last Meeting 9/24/16; CWU 40, DSU 18 - Ellensburg, WA DIXIE STATE TRAILBLAZERS Record 1-2, 1-2 RMAC Ranking NR Last Game Sept. 16, 2017 (won vs. BHSU, 38-16) Head Coach Shay McClure (Southern Oregon, 1995) Career: 7-7 (2nd Season) DSU Record: Same CENTRAL WASHINGTON WILDCATS Record 3-0, 2-0 GNAC Ranking AFCA No. 20 Last Game Sept. 16, 2017 (won at Azusa Pacific, 17-16) Head Coach Ian Shoemaker (Grinnell, 1996) Career: 22-12 (4th Season) CWU Record: Same

The Dixie State football team is set to host No. 20 Central Washington at Legend Solar Stadium on Saturday at 6 p.m. in its lone non-conference matchup of the season.

Live coverage is scheduled on radio (ESPN Radio 97.7 FM), television (CEC-TV – TDS Cable Channel 22), and online on the DSU Stretch Internet Portal, with Keric Seegmiller providing play-by-play. After its first win last week, the Trailblazers (1-2, 1-2 RMAC) will look to win back-to-back games for the first time this season.

LAST MEETING: Sept. 24, 2016. Dixie State dropped a non-conference matchup at Central Washington, falling 40-18 to the Wildcats at Tomlinson Stadium in Ellensburg, Washington. CWU built a 27-10 lead at halftime and never looked back, dealing the Trailblazers their biggest road loss of the 2016 season.  Dixie State finished the game with 362 yards of total offense (276 pass, 86 rush), falling short of the 100-yard rushing mark for the second consecutive game. Josh Thompson (Ontario, Calif./Colony HS) went 15-of-24 for 238 yards and a touchdown with one interception. Orlando Wallace (Cathedral City, Calif./Cathedral City HS) finished with seven catches for 84 yards and a touchdown, with another 46 yards rushing. The Trailblazers allowed 490 yards of total offense to CWU (275 rush, 215 pass), the most DSU has given up in four games this season. Colton Olson (Spanish Fork, Utah/Spanish Fork HS) finished with a team-high nine tackles, while sophomore linebacker Peter Brown (St. George, Utah/Desert Hills HS) added eight tackles. Senior defensive lineman Keanu Foki (Honolulu, Hawai'i/Farrington HS) and junior linebacker Shiloh Pritchard (American Samoa/Leone HS) each finished with six tackles and combined for one sack.

ALL-TIME VS. CWU: Saturday's game marks the 18th meeting between Dixie State and Central Washington. The teams first met in St. George on Aug. 30, 2008, with CWU grabbing a 44-38 victory. The Wildcats went on to win the next seven games between the teams, and DSU recorded its first win in the series at home on Oct. 6, 2012, outlasting CWU 29-21. Dixie State notched its second victory in the series on Sept. 5, 2015, rushing for 404 yards and six touchdowns en route to a 49-20 win. The Wildcats responded with a 40-18 win in Ellensburg last season to increase its series lead to 15-2, including a 6-2 mark in St. George.

KNOW YOUR FOE: Central Washington enters the game with a 3-0 overall record and a 2-0 mark in GNAC play. The Wildcats are nationally-ranked at No. 20 in the AFCA Division II Top-25 poll. CWU opened the season with a 34-10 win at Texas A&M-Kingsville, before securing conference wins over Western Oregon (30-23) and Azusa Pacific (17-16).

Central Washington ranks second in the GNAC in total offense, averaging 421 yards (222.3 pass, 198.7 rush) per game. Junior quarterback Reilly Hennessey captains the offense, and has completed 59-of-93 passes for 624 yards and three touchdowns through three games. Junior running back Christian Cummings leads the CWU ground attack with 218 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 52 carries. Four different Wildcat receivers have made touchdown catches, led by senior Justin Peterson with nine catches for 164 yards and a score.

CWU leads the GNAC in scoring defense (16.3 points per game) and total defense, allowing just 295 yards per game. Senior defensive back Jackson Huerta leads the Wildcat defense with 27 tackles and one interception, while senior linebacker Kevin Haynes has logged 21 tackles and one sack.

ALL-TIME VS. AFCA RANKED OPPONENTS: Saturday's game marks the 12th meeting between Dixie State and an opponent ranked in the AFCA Top-25.  The Trailblazers are 1-10 all-time in matchups against ranked opponents, securing its first win over a ranked opponent in a 38-31 victory over No. 23 Colorado Mesa last season.

RMAC DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Dixie State sophomore safety Mike Jones (San Diego, Calif./Mount Miguel HS) was named RMAC Football Defensive Player of the Week on Monday for his performance in the Trailblazers 38-16 win over Black Hills State. Jones recorded eight tackles (six solo) and one sack to lead the defensive charge in Saturday's victory. He also forced two fumbles and broke up one pass.

LAST TIME OUT: Dixie State rolled past Black Hills State on Saturday for a 38-16 victory in the Trailblazers 2017 home opener at Legend Solar Stadium.

Dixie State racked up 422 yards of total offense, including 255 yards on the ground, en route to its first victory of the 2017 season. Redshirt sophomore Blake Barney (St. George, Utah/Dixie HS) rushed for 116 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries, while junior receiver Orlando Wallace (Cathedral City, Calif./Cathedral City HS) snagged touchdown catches of 20 and 40 yards, as the Trailblazers broke in the new field at Legend Solar Stadium in winning fashion.

But it wasn't all roses. Black Hills State took advantage of two early Dixie State miscues to take a 10-0 lead less than eight minutes into the game.

The Yellow Jackets forced a DSU punt on the game's first possession, and after a low snap, senior punter Corey Stens (Corona, Calif./Santiago HS) was forced to fall on the ball, giving BHSU the ball at the DSU 23-yard line. Black Hills State ran the next play 23 yards to the end zone to open the scoring. Then, after a DSU fumble on the ensuing kickoff, the Yellow Jackets converted a 21-yard field goal to build the two-score advantage.

Dixie State responded on its next possession, driving 70 yards in only four plays to cut the lead to 10-7 with 6:40 remaining in the first quarter. Sophomore running back Sei-J Lauago (Paramount, Calif./La Mirada HS) and Barney split the load on the drive, as Barney broke free for 37 yards to set up the Trailblazers in BHSU territory. Lauago put the finishing touches on the drive two plays later, sprinting to the end zone from 29 yards for DSU's first score of the game.

The Trailblazers seized control of the game in the second quarter, finding the end zone three more times before halftime to take a 28-10 lead at the break.
 
DSU marched 71 yards in seven plays to take its first lead at 14-10 early in the second quarter. Graduate senior running back Jeffrey Coprich (Watts, Calif./West Ranch HS) rushed for 29 yards on the drive, while graduate senior quarterback Malik Watson (Pittsburg, Calif./Pittsburg HS) found junior receiver Brad Duran (Corona, Calif./Santiago HS) across the middle for a 15-yard strike to help set up the scoring play. After a Barney first-down run, Watson hit Wallace in stride for a 20-yard touchdown pass to cap the drive and give DSU the lead.

The Trailblazers continued to build the lead later in the quarter when Barney scampered into the end zone from nine yards out with 12:41 remaining in the period to extend the lead to 21-10. The touchdown run marked Barney's first touchdown run since Oct. 31, 2015, when he rushed for three touchdowns at South Dakota Mines.

Dixie State capped the half with another Watson-to-Wallace connection across the middle, this time from 40 yards out to push the advantage to the eventual halftime score of 28-10.

The scoring slowed in the second half, as Anthony Reyes (Queen Creek, Ariz./Dobson HS) converted a 31-yard field goal with 5:17 remaining in the third quarter for the only points of the period, pushing the lead to 31-10. Barney closed the DSU scoring early in the fourth quarter, capping a 12-play, 85-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown run to give the Trailblazers their largest lead of the game at 38-10.

And while the offense ran on all cylinders, the defense matched the effort, keeping Black Hills State out of the end zone until midway through the fourth quarter when the Yellow Jackets scored the final points of the game on a 5-yard touchdown run to push the score to the eventual final tally of 38-16.

Dixie State allowed 324 yards of total offense, but held the Yellow Jackets to just 115 yards in the first half, while forcing three key turnovers to keep BHSU off the scoreboard for more than 40 minutes of the contest. Junior defensive lineman Remington Kelly (Bountiful, Utah/Bountiful HS) led the charge with a team-high nine tackles, while sophomore safety Mike Jones (San Diego, Calif./Mount Miguel HS) added eight tackles. Junior safety Trayvon Watson (Los Angeles, Calif./West Adams Prep HS) contributed seven tackles.

The Trailblazer defense recorded its first two sacks of the season, as Jones and freshman defensive lineman Kyle Murray (Los Angeles, Calif./St. John Bosco HS) each tallied a takedown. Freshman defensive back Cameron Coleman (Woodland Hills, Calif./Crespi HS) also added his first career interception in the fourth quarter.

UP NEXT: Dixie State heads back on the road, making its first trip to Gunnison, Colorado, to take on Western State next Saturday at 1 p.m.