Game Notes: DIXIE STATE - PDF | MISSOURI STATE - PDF
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OPENING KICK: Dixie State (1-9/0-3 WAC)  closes out the 2021 season on Saturday night when the Trailblazers host No. 14 Missouri State (7-3). Kickoff inside Greater Zion Stadium is slated for 7 p.m.

SENIOR DAY: Prior to Saturday night's game, Dixie State will honor six senior players and two student assistant coaches prior to kickoff.
    The senior players who will be honored included running back Drew Kannely-Robles, defensive linemen Michael Fifita, Jayden Lacayo, Troy Murray, Livingston Paogofie and Tariq Wright. In addition, former players turned student assistants James Baird and Kyle Murray, along with student manager Jordan Pacheco, will also be honored.

DIXIE STATE ON THE AIR: All Dixie State home and away games this season are broadcast live on ESPN Radio 97.7 FM, with Devin Dixon calling the play-by-play action and Andy Thompson providing color commentary. A live stream of the radio broadcast will be available at sportsradio977.com.
    Along with the radio coverage, all Dixie State home games will be streamed live on ESPN+.
     In August, the Western Athletic Conference announced a new multi-year, multi-platform media rights agreement with the "The Worldwide Leader" that will see over 500 annual events on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. This will include all Dixie State football, men's basketball, and women's basketball home games and WAC road games.

DIXIE STATE/MSU SERIES HISTORY: Saturday's game vs. Missouri State will be the first-ever meeting between the Trailblazers and Bears on the football field.

LAST TIME OUT: Dixie State opened its final homestand of the season with a convincing 62-21 victory over former RMAC foe Fort Lewis last Saturday night at Greater Zion Stadium.
    The Trailblazers put the game away with a school record 35-point second quarter on their way to a NCAA-era record 62 points. DSU racked up a season-high 538 yards of total offense, including a season bests of 257 yards on the ground and five rushing touchdowns.

HITTING THE TRAIL: This season, the Trailblazers traveled over 12,000 miles for their five road dates, which included the program's record road trip (4,664 miles round trip) to Delaware two weeks ago.
    DSU also trekked nearly 2,700 to play at South Dakota State (10/2), and covered just over 2,000 miles to play at No. 1 Sam Houston two weekends ago.

NEW YEAR-NEW HOME: After making its D-I debut as one of three FCS independents last spring, Dixie State Football is completing its first season as a football playing member of the WAC. The program joined the other 14 Trailblazer Athletic programs under the conference umbrella over the summer.
    Due to previous game contract agreements for 2021, the Trailblazers were not eligible to be listed in the preseason WAC Coaches' Poll, and only faced three of the five football playing conference members.
    Starting in 2022, Dixie State, Tarleton State, Stephen F. Austin, Sam Houston, Lamar and Abilene Christian, and current Big Sky member and in-state foe Southern Utah, will make up the seven-team WAC FCS conference.

SO ABOUT THAT SCHEDULE: Dixie State's 2021 fall slate was arguably the toughest schedule in the country at the FCS subdivision, a schedule that featured at least six or seven teams consistently ranked in the 2021 AFCA Coaches' and Stat Perform rankings each week.
    In fact, the Trailblazers' 2021 gauntlet was rated as the second-toughest schedule at the FCS level (.640) behind only Northern Iowa (.651) by the folks at WarrenNolan.com.
    DSU's schedule featured seven FCS Spring playoff teams, and an 11-team list that posted a combined .714 overall winning percentage (record based on last completed season).   
    With the 2021 NCAA FCS playoff field expected to be announced next week, there is  a good chance that the Blazers will have faced at least seven teams which will be moving on to postseason play.

DIXIE STATE AGAINST RANKED OPPONENTS: Dixie State's 2021 schedule has given the Blazers a chance to improve on their record against ranked opponents, which currently stands at 3-23 all-time, and includes an 0-5 mark so far this season against teams ranked when DSU faced them.
    DSU did split a pair of games against ranked opponents last spring, highlighted by its third-ever triumph over a ranked foe in last spring's season opener at then No. 22 Tarleton (Stat Perform ranking, 26-14; 2/27/21). Dixie State also dropped a hard-fought 37-27 decision at then-No. 9 Kennesaw State (AFCA and Stat Perform; 3/20/21).
    Prior to the Tarleton road result, the last DSU win vs. a ranked opponent came on Nov. 3, 2018, in a 52-45 thriller at home against then-No. 6 Colorado School of Mines. DSU claimed its first win over a ranked opponent in a 38-31 victory at then-No. 23 Colorado Mesa in Grand Junction in 2016.

BROOKSBY KICKS HIS WAY TO WAC HONOR: Freshman place kicker Connor Brooksby was named TicketSmarter Western Athletic Conference Special Teams Player of the Week on Monday for his efforts in the Trailblazers' win vs, Fort Lewis last Saturday.
    Brooksby accounted for 14 of DSU's school record 62 points in the victory. The freshman converted on all eight of his PAT chances and on both of his field goal attempts, including a Dixie State NCAA era record-tying 50 yard make in the fourth quarter.
    For the season, Brooksby is a perfect 19-for-19 in PAT tries and he has hit on 9-of-14 of his field goal attempts, including eight of his last 10 FG attempts overall.

RUNNING ROUGHSHOD: Senior RB Drew Kannely-Robles continued his late season charge in record-breaking fashion last Saturday vs. Fort Lewis. The senior rushed for 158 yards and a DSU NCAA-era record four touchdowns against the Skyhawks.
    Kannely-Robles opened the game by rushing for all 68 yards on DSU's first scoring drive in just three carries (21 and 31), which culminated with a 16-yard scamper to the end zone. He also scored on runs of 3, 1 and 6 yards and caught two passes for 25 yards.
    In addition, his 11.3 yards/carry average is the third-highest individual single game rush average in DSU's four-year era.
    Kannely-Robles saved his best for his final Homecoming start as the senior rushed for a career-high 183 yards on 24 carries with his third touchdown of the year vs. Stephen F. Austin (10/23). He racked 141 of those yards after halftime, highlighted a 47-yard sprint up the middle untouched to the end zone in the third quarter, which was the longest run of his collegiate career, and was both DSU's longest run from scrimmage and rushing TD this season.
    Kannely-Robles now owns the first two 100-plus yard rushing performances in DSU's new FCS era, while his 183 rush yards vs. SFA were the ninth-most in a single game in the program's NCAA era.
    The senior one-upped that effort one week later with his first 100-yard receiving game at Delaware (10/30). He co-led the team with six receptions for a career-high 112 yards, highlighted by a 58-yard catch-and-run on the first play of the second half, which set up the Blazers' field goal.
    Kannely-Robles' 58-yard play is Dixie State's longest play from scrimmage this season, while his 112-yard receiving day is a DSU team season-high and the second 100-yard receiving game on the year overall (Jalen Powell 107 yards at UC Davis - 9/18).
    Kannely-Robles leads the team with an even 1,000 all-purpose yards on the year (100.0 ypg), with 758 of those yards coming over his last six starts (126.3 ypg).
    Thanks to his banner day vs. FLC, Kannely-Robles enters his final game as a Trailblazer needing only 53 more yards to become the eighth back in DSU's NCAA era to rush for 1,000 or more career yards ... Meanwhile, his 12 career rushing TDs are good for t-4th with former DSU QB Blake Barney (2015-17).
    The senior is also in eighth-place on DSU's single season rush list (651 yards), while his seven touchdowns on the year are ranked t-fourth on the season list.

BLAZING TRAILS:
• Freshman RB Quali Conley also got into the act as he rushed for a season-high 70 yards on 14 carries and his second TD of the year vs. FLC last Saturday ... Conley bested he previous season high of 66 yards rushing vs. Tarleton (10/16), which included a 39-yard second quarter scamper.
• Conley's first (and third overall) touchdown of the year came at UC Davis (9/18) on a first quarter 8-yard screen pass that got the Blazers on the board.
• Conley has scored at least one touchdown in six of his first 15 collegiate games overall, including four of five starts last spring ... five of Conley's eight career TDs have come on the ground, while his catch at UCD was his third TD reception.
• Conley was DSU's leading rusher in all five spring games, highlighted by a 97-yard night vs. Tarleton (3/13), and a pair of 81-yard outings at both New Mexico State (3/7) and at Kennesaw State (3/20).
• RS-Freshman QB Kobe Tracy enjoyed a banner night in the FLC win, throwing for 281 yards on 18-of-23 passing and a career-high three touchdowns ... Tracy had touchdown tosses of 22 (Keith Davis-1Q) and 12 yards (Rickie Johnson-2Q) before firing a 49-yard TD strike to David Fisher in the second quarter, which was DSU's the longest TD pass of the season.
 • Tracy's 78.2 percent completion percentage bested his previous starting season high of 64.1 percent, which he set in his second collegiate start at Delaware (10/30), when he threw for a career-high 314 yard on 25-39-1 passing and one TD.
• Tracy made his first collegiate start vs. SFA (10/23) and responded with 243 yards on 22-38-1 passing, highlighted by a 35-yard TD toss to sophomore WR Michael Moten late in the fourth quarter.
• Davis became the third different Trailblazer receiver to catch touchdown passes in back-to-back games ... along with his TD against FLC last Saturday, Davis also caught his first collegiate touchdown pass two weeks ago at No. 1 Sam Houston (11/6).
• Freshman TE Cade Veach was the first to achieve the feat with TDs at both UC Davis (9/18) and South Dakota State (10/2), while Moten followed suit with TD grabs vs. SFA (10/23) and at Delaware (10/30).
• Sophomore QB Kenyon Oblad made his first Trailblazer start at UC Davis (9/18), against which he threw for 342 yards and a collegiate career-high four touchdowns in the loss.
• Oblad's four TD passes eclipsed his previous career-high total of three, which he recorded twice, also on the road, during his freshman year at UNLV in 2019 (at Fresno State 10/18/19; at Nevada 11/30/19).
• Fisher just missed reaching the century mark in receiving yards in the FLC win as he caught three passes for a career-high 96 yards, including his 49-yard TD reception.  
• Meanwhile Moten, who made five catches for 73 yards vs. FLC last Saturday, had a pair of near misses of his own as he finished with a career-high eight receptions for 93 yards at Sam Houston (11/6), which came on the heels of a six-catch day for a career-best 99 yards at Delaware (10/30), including a 20-yard TD right before halftime.
• Moten leads the team with 388 receiving yards, with 338 of those yards coming over his last four games (84.5 ypg).  
• Johnson tied a career high with five catches vs. SFA (10/23) for 56 yards ... Johnson also led DSU's receiving corps with five receptions and 92 yards at Montana (10/9), including a highlight reel 47-yard diving grab in the fourth quarter, and racked up 33 yards to go with his second-quarter TD vs. FLC last Saturday.
• Well it took seven games, but senior WR Deven Osborne finally got into the catch column with two receptions for 34 yards vs. SFA (10/23), including a big 23-yard grab on 3rd-and-4 that set up a Kannely-Robles TD run.
• Osborne, who has DNP the last three weeks, has played in only three games this season due to injury ... the senior wideout recorded career highs in receptions (30), yards (441) and touchdowns (3) in five games last spring.
• Freshman DB Tyrell Grayson picked off his team-leading second pass in as many games late in the second quarter vs. FLC last Saturday, which the Blazer offense cashed in with its fifth TD of the quarter … Grayson, who recorded his first collegiate interception a week earlier at Sam Houston (11/6), which coincidentally also came in the second quarter, also collected three total tackles (2 solo) and a PBU.
• Grayson's earned WAC Defensive Player of the Week honors on Oct. 11, after he racked up 14 total tackles (eight solo) and forced a fumble at Montana (10/9) … the freshman's forced fumble came on his first collegiate sack inside the DSU red zone that thwarted a possible Grizzlies scoring drive ... the sack was one of two TFLs the freshman had on the day to go with a pair of PBUs.
• Grayson struck again with his third forced fumble of the year at Delaware (11/6), which also came in the red zone in the second quarter that stopped a possible Blue Hen scoring drive ... the freshman finished with a game-high 12 tackles (7 solo) - his fourth double-digit tackle game of the year.
• Grayson tied a DSU single-game record with 19 total tackles (15 solo) in the UC Davis loss (9/25) ... Grayson joined junior LB Malaki Malaki (at New Mexico State, 3/7/21) and former LB Robert Metz (at Central Washington, 11/14/15) atop the single-game list.
• Grayson had himself a night in the season-opener against Sacramento State (9/4) when he collected a then-career high 13 tackles, including 12 solo stops, and registered one TFL.
• Grayson's team-leading 91 total tackles would rank him 26th nationally at the FCS level, while his team-high 70 solo stops would rank him t-second in all of FCS, however Dixie State is not eligible to be ranked statistically during its NCAA D-I transition period.
• In all DSU's defense picked off a season-high three passes vs. Fort Lewis last Saturday, with fifth-year DL Livingston Paogofie and freshman DB Jordan Scott each collecting their first collegiate INTs … in fact – all three INTs led to Blazer touchdowns, with Scott's 23-yard return leading to the Tracy-to-Fisher long TD strike in the second quarter, while Paogofie's pick, which he returned 22 yards, led to the Kannely-Robles record-breaking TD.
• Scott's interception was not the freshman's only "first" on the night as he collected his first-career sack in the third quarter.
• In addition to Scott's sack, three more Blazer freshmen defenders recorded their first collegiate sacks in the FLC win, three of which, including Scott's, were posted by the defensive secondary … CB Devyn Perkins and DB Bryant Weekly notched their first sacks, as did freshman DL Nathan Anderson.
• Freshman DL Syrus Webster racked up his second collegiate sack and tallied two TFLs vs. SFA (10/23) ... Webster had himself a day at Montana (10/9) as well with a career-high nine tackles and 1.5 TFLs, including his first collegiate sack and forced fumble ... Webster also recovered the fumble on the Grayson strip-sack in the first quarter.
• Junior CB Devin Chandler scored DSU's first defensive touchdown of the season at Montana (10/9) when he returned the Webster forced fumble 38 yards in the fourth quarter to get the Blazers on the scoreboard ... Chandler finished the day with six total tackles and a PBU to go with his TD.
• Chandler's fumble return was the DSU's first in nearly four years, with the last instance coming during the 2017 season when Remington Kelly (46 yards) took one back to the house at home against Adams State (10/28/17).
• Junior DB/LB Kaejin Smith-Bejgrowicz registered his first career sack in the first quarter at SDSU (10/2) ... it was also the first sack the Jackrabbit o-line gave up this season (one of two on the night), and it came on a big 3rd-and-13 stop midway through the stanza … Smith-Bejgrowicz also led the Blazer defense with eight total tackles (7 solo) in the FLC win.
• Malaki padded his team TFL lead (8.5 TFLs) with 1.5 TFLs (five total tackles) last Saturday vs. FLC.
• Malaki recorded his fifth-career double digit tackle outing with 11 stops at UDel (10/30) ... the junior LB also posted a season and game-high 17 tackles (eight solo) three weeks earlier at Montana (10/9)
• Malaki opened the season 11 stops (1 TFL) in the opener vs. Sacramento State (9/4) ... the junior also led the DSU defense with nine total tackles (6 solo) and a sack at South Dakota State (10/2), this after he recorded nine tackles (3 TFLs) a week earlier at UC Davis (9/25).  
• Malaki reached double figures in tackles twice last spring, highlighted by his record day at NMSU (3/7), which came on the heels of a 10-tackle effort in DSU's D-I debut win at Tarleton (2/27).
• Freshman DB Troy Miller enjoyed a banner night vs. FLC with a career-high seven tackles (5 solo), including 1.5 TFLs.
• Freshman LB Will Leota posted his first collegiate double-digit tackle game with 11 stops at Montana (10/9) ... Leota also registered 1.0 TFL and picked off his first collegiate pass in the second quarter ... Leota tallied six total tackles and 1.5 TFLs at UDel (10/30), and registered his first collegiate sack at Sam Houston (11/6).  

TEAM NOTES:
• Dixie State broke a pair of team NCAA era scoring records in last Saturday's win vs. Fort Lewis … the 62 total points scored eclipsed the previous school record of 60, which coincidentally was set against FLC last March in the 2021 spring finale (W, 60-0; 3/27/21).
• Meanwhile, the 35-point second quarter broke the record for points in a single quarter … the previous record was 28 done twice, with the last instance coming at home, in the second quarter, in a 52-22 victory over Black Hills State (10/5/19) … DSU also scored 28 points, in the second quarter, in a 49-24 road win at Humboldt State (9/28/13) during the 2013 campaign.
• Dixie State's five rushing TDs vs. FLC last Saturday just missed the school record of six done twice during the 2015 season (vs. Central Washington/at SD Mines), and were the most since the Blazers put up five at BHSU (10/5/19).
• Bolstered by Kannely-Robles' big night vs. Fort Lewis, Dixie State rushed for a season-high 257 net yards and five total rush TDs vs. the Skyhawks … the 257 yards were the most in the program's young D-I FCS era, and were the most yards gained on the ground since the Blazers put up 323 yards against Colorado Mesa in the 2019 season (11/2/19).
• Dixie State out-rushed FLC 257-194 overall, which marked just the second time this season that the Trailblazers out-gained an opponent on the ground … DSU also out-rushed Stephen F. Austin (10/24) by a 167-134 count last month.
• DSU wound up with a season and D-I FCS era high 538 yards of total offense in just 63 plays vs. Fort Lewis ... last Saturday's yard total blew past DSU's previous season high of 442 yards (90 plays) at UC Davis (9/18), which included a season-best 389 yards passing.
• The last time the Trailblazers eclipsed the 500-yard plateau also came against Colorado Mesa (11/2/19) during the 2019 season.
• Dixie State racked up 400-plus yards of offense in two of five games this past spring, including a season-high 483 yards at New Mexico State (3/7).  
• DSU eclipsed the 400-yard plateau offensively nine times in Paul Peterson's first year at the helm in 2019, highlighted by a 677-yard day (#2 all-time at DSU) vs. Black Hills State (10/5/19).
• Dixie State only had the ball for 23:49 in the Fort Lewis win, thanks in large part having five of its eight scoring drive last less than one minute.
• DSU's first two scoring drive lasted 48 and 30 seconds, respectively, while the Tracy-to-Fisher 49-yd TD connection took just eight seconds on the clock ... overall the Trailblazers had the ball for a combined 15:30 in all 10 scoring drives.
• Despite the loss at then-No. 3 South Dakota State (10/2), Dixie State's defense hung a pair of "firsts" on SDSU - including being the first team hold the Jackrabbits scoreless in the first quarter.
• DSU also became the first team to register a sack against the SDSU offensive line and finished with two sacks and five total TFLs on the night overall.
• Speaking of sacks, DSU's offensive line has surrendered only one sack over its last two games, including no sacks at No. 1 Sam Houston (11/6) two weeks ago ... DSU has allowed 32 total sacks (minus-221 yards) over its first nine games of the 2021 fall season, this after giving up only five total sacks in five 2021 spring games.

YOU'RE IN GOOD HANDS: Allstate and the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) announced on Sept. 24, that Dixie State post-graduate student wide receiver Deven Osborne has been named to the 30th-Anniversary 2021 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.
    Osborne is among 22 football student-athletes and one honorary coach selected to the 30th-Anniversary team. The final 22-member team and honorary coach, were selected by a committee made up of former Allstate AFCA Good Works Team members and journalists.
    Osborne is the fifth college football student-athlete from the state of Utah to be selected to the Good Works Team, joining former Utah defensive backs Morgan Scalley (2004) and Eric Weddle (2006), former BYU quarterback Riley Nelson (2010) and former Utah State quarterback Chuckie Keaton (2014). In addition, Osborne is one of two Trailblazer football players to have earned the honor as former DSU transfer running back Jeffrey Coprich (2017) was named to the 2014 Good Works Team while at California.
    Fans will have the opportunity to help Osborne become the 2021 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team captain through online voting by visiting ESPN.com/Allstate. Voting is open now through Nov. 22, 2021.

#AB3FOREVER: Junior linebacker Malaki Malaki has been awarded the No. 3 jersey for the 2021 season.
    The awarding of the No. 3 jersey is the second instance in what has become an annual tradition honoring the memory of former Dixie State football player Abraham Reinhardt, who passed away unexpectedly on March 22, 2019. DSU Head Football Coach Paul Peterson noted that the No. 3 jersey would be awarded to a student-athlete who best exemplified Reinhardt's leadership, both on and off the field.
    "When we lost a great young man in Abraham [in 2019], we wanted to honor him and his legacy the best we possibly could," Coach Peterson said. "Abe was a perfect representative of our team culture which focuses on toughness, hard work, trust and accountability.
    "Malaki exemplifies everything that we are trying to build here at Dixie State. He is tough, works tremendously hard, is a great student and leader. Malaki will wear AB3's jersey this season in honor of his legacy."
    
ABOUT THE MISSOURI STATE "BEAR": Missouri State comes to St. George riding a three-game winning streak, which includes wins over then No. 7-ranked Southern Illinois (W, 38-28) and then No. 20 Northern Iowa (W, 34-27).
    Senior QB Jason Shelley, who spent two seasons at Utah (2018-19) and another at Utah State (2020) before transferring to MSU, has thrown for 2,351 yards and 16 touchdowns this season, and has eight rushing TDs.  
    Shelley's favorite target is junior WR Tyrone Scott, who has caught 47 balls for 407 yards and seven TDs, while senior RB Tobias Little has eight TDs of his own to go with 510 yards rushing.
    Bobby Petrino is in his second season as head coach at Missouri State. Petrino has also had head coaching stops at Louisville (2003-06, 2014-18), Western Kentucky (2013) and at Arkansas (2008-11), along with a one-year stint as head coach for the NFL's Atlanta Falcons (2007).

NEXT UP FOR THE TRAILBLAZERS: Dixie State is slated to open the 2022 season on the road at Big Sky member Sacramento State on Saturday, Sept. 3.