Game Notes: DIXIE STATE - PDF | SDSU - PDF
Dixie State Football Media Central
Live TV: NONE
Live Streaming Video: ESPN+
Live Audio: ESPN RADIO 97.7 FM
Live Stats: at SDSU
Twitter: @DixieAthletics | @DixieState_FB | #DixieBlazers | #WeAreONE | #TheRISE | #WACfb

OPENING KICK: After enjoying a bye week last weekend, Dixie State (0-3) returns to action this Saturday night as the Trailblazers travel to the "Mount Rushmore State" for a date at No. 3 South Dakota State (3-0). Kickoff is slated for 5 p.m. (MT) at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium (19,340) in Brookings.

DIXIE STATE ON THE AIR: All Dixie State home and away games this season will be 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/SDSU SERIES HISTORY: Saturday's game at South Dakota State will be the first-ever meeting between the Trailblazers and Jackrabbits on the football field.

ALL-TIME IN THE "MOUNT RUSHMORE STATE": Dixie State will make its sixth trip to South Dakota (and the first as a D-I) in the program's NCAA era when the Trailblazers travel to Brookings for this weekend's tilt.
    The Trailblazers are 3-2 all-time in the "Mount Rushmore State," with all five of their previous visits coming as former members of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.
    DSU went 2-1 in three games at South Dakota Mines (in Rapid City), including bookend wins in the program's first visit to the state (W, 48-25; 10/31) in the 2015 season, and the last visit (W, 28-16; 9/28) in the 2019 campaign.
    Dixie State also split a pair of games at Black Hills State played in Spearfish (L, 14-20, 9/17/16; W, 41-38, 9/29/18).

LAST TIME OUT: Dixie State fell to 0-3 on the season after dropping a 60-27 road decision at current No. 8 UC Davis back on Sept. 18.
    After spotting the homestanding Aggies a quick 15-0 lead, the Trailblazers countered with a pair of Kenyon Oblad touchdown passes to make a 15-13 game early in the second quarter.
    However UC Davis answered with three TDs over the final 10-plus minutes of the period to take a 36-13 lead into the halftime break.
    DSU managed to make a two-possession game with a pair of Oblad scoring strikes in the third quarter, including an Oblad-to David Fisher 26-yard connection as the quarter ended, which made it a 39-27 game. However the Aggies would turn a pair of Blazer turnovers into points as UCD found the end zone three more times in the final 15 minute to salt away the victory.

NEW YEAR-NEW HOME: After making its D-I debut as one of three FCS independents last spring, Dixie State has started its first season as a football playing member of the WAC, joining the other 14 Trailblazer Athletic programs under the conference umbrella.
    Due to previous game contract agreements for 2021, the Trailblazers were not eligible to be listed in the preseason WAC Coaches' Poll, and will face only three of the five football playing conference members (at home vs. both Tarleton State and Stephen F. Austin; on the road at Sam Houston) this season.
    Starting in 2022, Dixie State, Tarleton, SFA, Sam Houston, Lamar and Abilene Christian, and current Big Sky member and soon-to-be a new in-state rival Southern Utah, will make up the seven-team WAC FCS conference.

SO ABOUT THAT SCHEDULE: To paraphrase the legendary Ric Flair - "To be the best, you gotta beat the best!!!" And judging by who is on the Trailblazers' 2021 schedule, they will have plenty of opportunities to do just that.
    Dixie State's 2021 fall slate is arguably the toughest schedule in the country at the FCS subdivision, a schedule that features seven FCS Spring playoff teams, and an 11-team list that posted a combined .714 overall winning percentage (record based on last completed season).   
    To date, eight of the 11 teams on DSU's slate are listed in the current 2021 AFCA FCS Coaches' top-25 poll, including seven ranked opponents, five of which are ranked in the top-10 overall.
    Defending NCAA FCS champion and WAC newcomer Sam Houston tops the poll and will host DSU on Nov. 6, while the Blazers' game Saturday at third-ranked SDSU will come against the 2020-21 FCS runner-up.
    In addition to having already played current No. 18 Weber State and current No. 8 UC Davis, the Blazers will play another road game at Big Sky member No. 4 Montana (10/9), and at CAA member No. 10 Delaware (10/30). Meanwhile, Missouri State, which will visit St. George in DSU's season final on Nov. 20, is ranked 16th in the latest the AFCA poll.
    Along with all the ranked teams listed, DSU will host to Stephen F. Austin, which received votes in this week's AFCA poll, on Homecoming Saturday, Oct. 23.

DIXIE STATE AGAINST RANKED OPPONENTS: Dixie State's 2021 schedule will also give the Blazers a chance to improve on their record against ranked opponents, which currently stands at 3-20 all-time (FCS and D-II combined) after the loss at UC Davis on Sept. 18.
    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.

ALL-TIME IN SEASON OPENERS: Dixie State fell to 3-13 all-time in season openers (2-5 at home), in its NCAA era following its loss to Sacramento State (9/4).
    DSU has now dropped four of its last six season openers overall, though the Blazers did collect a win in their FCS debut last February, a 26-14 road win at then-No. 22 Tarleton State (2/27).
    In road openers, Dixie State is now 2-14 all-time following the UCD loss, which snapped the Blazers' modest two-game road-opening win streak.

HITTING THE TRAIL: Last spring, Dixie State traveled over 7,500 miles for its three road games at Tarleton State (Stephenville, Texas - 2,220 miles), at New Mexico State (played in El Paso, Texas - 1,458 miles), and at Kennesaw State (Kennesaw, Ga.)
    In fact, the KSU jaunt was a near 3,844-mile round trip, which was the longest road trip in program history, and marked the first time that the Trailblazers played a game EAST of the Mississippi River.
    This season, the Blazers are scheduled to travel over 12,000 miles for their five road dates, including a new program record trip to Newark, Delaware (4,664 miles) for their game at UD on Oct. 30. DSU will also travel nearly 2,700 to play at South Dakota State (10/2), and just over 2,000 miles to play at Sam Houston (11/6).
    
TRAILBLAZER QUICK HITS: 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).
• Oblad completed 32 of his 58 pass attempts, though he was intercepted five times, and the UCD defense sacked him six times.
• Oblad's five INTs tied a DSU single game record (5, Skyler Ence vs. Colorado Mesa, 2007), while the six sacks were the most by an opponent since the 2018 season, when DSU surrendered six sacks vs. Western Colorado (10/13/18).
• Last spring the DSU offensive line surrendered only five total sacks in five games.
• Junior QB Kody Wilstead became the second player DSU's NCAA era to reach the 3,500-yard career total offense plateau in the loss to Weber State (9/11) ... Wilstead (3,583 yards) rushed nine times for 52 yards and completed eight passes (8-14-1) for 67 yards in three quarters against the Wildcats.
• Wilstead (3,190 yds) is also the second player in Dixie State's NCAA era to eclipse the 3,000-yard total passing yard plateau (Griff Robles - 5,096 yds; 2012-13).
• Wilstead's second-quarter touchdown rush against Sacramento State (9/4) was the fifth of his DSU career.
• Wilstead accounted for all 70 yards in that eight-play scoring drive vs. the Hornets, with 54 of those yards coming through the air, including a clutch 25-yard strike to freshman WR David Fisher on 3rd and 10, which was followed by a 31-yard connection with senior WR Jalen Powell on 3rd and 19, which set up the junior QB's scoring run one play later.
• Wilstead saw his streak of not throwing an interception halted at 28-straight quarters and 231-straight pass attempts when a deflection on his second throw of the game resulted in the Blazers' lone turnover in the Sacramento State loss.
• Wilstead had not thrown an interception since midway through the 2019 season, when he was picked off just before halftime in a road win at Western Colorado (10/19/19).  
• Well it took three games, but freshman RB Quali Conley notched his first touchdown of the year, which came on a first quarter 8-yard screen pass from Oblad that got the Blazers on the board at UC Davis (9/18).
• Conley has now scored at least one touchdown in five of his first eight collegiate games, including four of five starts last spring ... four of Conley's seven TDs have come on the ground, while his catch at UCD was his third TD reception.
• Conley saw his streak of leading Dixie State in rushing end at six-straight games after he was held to just 23 yards on eight carries vs. Weber State ... he also managed 21 yards on eight carries in the UCD loss, though he did record 45 yards on four receptions.
• Conley was DSU's leading rusher in all five spring games, highlighted by a 97-yard night vs. Tarleton State (3/13), and a pair of 81-yard outings at both New Mexico State (3/7) and at Kennesaw State (3/20) ... the freshman also tallied a team-high 26 yards on eight carries in the Sacramento State (9/4) loss.
• Senior RB Drew Kannely-Robles rushed for a season-high 61 yards on nine carries at UC Davis (9/18) and caught two passes for nine yards ... his 70 all-purpose yards surpassed his previous high of 66 yards set a week earlier vs. Weber State (9/11).
• Powell extended his streak of catching at least one pass to 19-straight games in the UCD loss, and he did so with authority as he hauled in a career-high 13 balls for 107 yards.
• Powell's 107 receiving yards more than doubled his season total (103 yds through the first two games) and was his third-career 100-yard receiving game.
• Meanwhile, Powell's 13 receptions was one off of DSU's single-game record of 14, which was which was set by former DSU All-American Joe Don Duncan (vs. Western Oregon) in 2013.
• Sophomores Taylor Alvarez and Malcolm Ross-Turner each collected their first collegiate TD receptions at UC Davis (9/18) ... Alvarez, who had played offensive line during his first two seasons as a Trailblazer before moving to tight end this year, found himself wide open for 4-yard TD toss in the first quarter.
• Ross-Turner found the end zone on DSU's second possession of the third quarter when he broke two tackles on his way to a 35-yard catch-and-run score.
• Fisher racked up a career-high 77 receiving yards and his fourth-career TD at UC Davis, which came on a 26-yard strike from Oblad as time expired in the third quarter.
• Fisher's 77 receiving yards eclipsed his previous high of 63 yards, which came on two TD tosses, last spring vs. Tarleton State (3/13).  
• Freshman DB Tyrell Grayson tied a DSU single-game record with 19 total tackles (15 solo) in the UC Davis loss ... 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 against Sacramento State (9/4) when he racked up a then-career high 13 tackles, including 12 solo stops, and registered one TFL ... he followed that up with five solo tackles against Weber State (9/11).
• Malaki recorded his third-career double digit tackle game with 11 stops (1 TFL) in the opener vs. Sacramento State (9/4) ... the junior also led the DSU defense with nine total tackles (8 solo) vs. WSU, and recorded nine more tackles (3 TFLs) at UC Davis.  
• 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 a week earlier in DSU's D-I debut win at Tarleton (2/27).
• Senior DL Livingston Paogofie enjoyed a solid Trailblazer debut in the Sac State (9/4) game ... the Colorado State transfer was credited with four solo tackles, including three TFLs and one of DSU's two sacks ... Paogofie added three more tackles to his season ledger in the Weber loss (9/11), including 2.0 TFLs and his third sack of the year.
• Speaking of debuts, freshman LB Will Leota made an immediate impact against Sac State (9/4) as he collected eight tackles (6 solo) in his first collegiate game.
• After not notching a sack last spring, junior DL Dylan Hendrickson picked up his 11.0 career sack in the opener vs. Sac State (9/4) ... Hendrickson now stands three sacks shy of becoming DSU's career sack leader.
• Freshman punter Andrew Day punted five times for 241 yards (48.2 ypp) vs. Weber State (9/11), including a 76-yard blast, which was the third-longest punt in DSU's NCAA era ... meanwhile his 48.2 ypp average was the fourth-best single game average in program history.

TEAM NOTES:
• Dixie State tallied a season-high 442 yards (90 plays) of total offense in the UC Davis loss on Sept. 18, including a season-best 389 yards passing.
• 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).
• However, for just the third time in the Peterson-era, and second time this season, the Trailblazers were held under 300 yards of total offense in the Weber State loss (9/11; 253 yards in 52 plays).  
• DSU was also limited to 209 yards (in 55 plays) in the opener against Sacramento State, which broke a string of 15-straight games that the DSU offense had gained 300-plus yards.
• Prior to the first two games of this season, the last time DSU failed to gain at least 300 yards offensively came in Peterson's coaching debut at home vs. Colorado State-Pueblo (9/7) nearly two years to the day.
• After scoring 10 total points over its first two games, Dixie State put 27 points on the board in the first three quarters at UC Davis (9/18), though the Blazers were held scoreless in that decisive fourth quarter.
• Last spring Dixie State averaged 31.4 ppg, and scored at a 34.4 ppg clip in Paul Peterson's first year as head coach in 2019.
• Dixie State has been flagged 20 times for 144 yards over its first three games this fall, including six penalties for 35 yards at UCD (9/18).
• Last spring the Trailblazers were penalized just 21 times for 208 yards in five 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. In all, 109 student-athletes from all divisions across the nation were with stories of exemplary community service, alongside academic dedication and impact on and off the field.
    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.
    "Deven receiving this award doesn't surprise me a bit," said DSU Head Football Coach Paul Peterson. "He has embraced what it means to be selfless. A natural leader, he is constantly looking for ways to serve his teammates, the university and community. He has a bright future in whatever he chooses to do."
    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 SOUTH DAKOTA STATE JACKRABBITS": No. 3 South Dakota State enters Saturday night's game with a 3-0 mark, which includes a 44-0 triumph in its Missouri Valley Football Conference opener at Indiana State last Saturday.
     The Jacks kicked off the season with a convincing 42-23 win at FBS member Colorado State (9/2), and followed that up with a 52-7 drubbing of Lindenwood (9/11) in their home opener.
    SDSU RB Pierre Strong Jr. earned MVFC Player of the Week after he ran for a season-high 150 yards on 20 carries and threw a 22-yard TD pass on a trick play. The senior back, who is a 2021 Walter Payton Award candidate, has topped the 100-yard mark in all three games this season and is averaging nearly 10 yards a carry.
    Graduate transfer QB Chris Oladokun has thrown for 611 yards and nine touchdowns over his first three starts. Oladokun has not thrown an interception nor has he been sacked to this point of the season.
    On defense, senior LB Logan Backhaus (17 tackles, 2 QBH), who is a 2021 Stat Perform Buck Buchanan Award candidate, headlines a stout SDSU unit that has surrendered just under 300 yards and 10.0 points per game through the first three games.
    John Stiegelmeier (South Dakota State, 1979) is in his 26th season as head coach at his alma mater, where he is 177-107 overall. Stiegelmeier has led the Jacks to nine-straight FCS playoff appearances, including a trip to the 2020-21 FCS National Championship game last May, and consecutive semifinal appearances in 2017 and 2018.

NEXT UP FOR THE TRAILBLAZERS: Dixie State closes its three-game road swing in Big Sky Country next Saturday, Oct. 9, when the Trailblazers head to Missoula for a road test at No. Montana. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. (MT).