• Saturday's game vs. Abilene Christian will be the first-ever meeting between the Trailblazers and Wildcats on the gridiron.
• Utah Tech fell to 3-11 all-time in conference openers (2-6 GNAC, 2008-15; 1-3 RMAC, 2016-19; 0-2 WAC, 2021-current) after its 31-17 loss at Southern Utah last Saturday night in Cedar City.
• The SUU loss was UT's fifth-straight loss in a conference debut. The last time UT opened a conference slate with a win was during the 2016 season in a 21-14 home win over New Mexico Highlands (9/1/16). 
• The Trailblazers are 6-7 all-time in conference home openers, though they have lost their last two, including a 41-20 loss to Tarleton State (10/16/21) in their first-ever WAC game last season.
• UT went 3-1 in its first four home RMAC games (2016-19), including a 31-3 triumph vs. Fort Lewis (9/18/18), while the Blazers were 3-5 in eight GNAC home league debuts. 
• Saturday's game will also be the second of five games Utah Tech will play against a team wearing purple, and the second against a team known as "Wildcats." 
• UT has already played the purple cladded Weber State Wildcats (9/17), and are slated to play at Northern Iowa (10/15) and Stephen F. Austin (10/29), before hosting Tarleton State (11/12) in its home finale.

QUICK HITTERS

• Utah Tech's "Spread-N-Shred" offense enters Saturday's game vs. ACU ranked fourth "unofficially" in all of FCS in passing offense at 362.8 yards per game, and ninth in the country at the FCS level in total offense at 461.8 ypg. UT is currently in its third transition season to NCAA Division I status and is not eligible for national rankings.  
• RS-Sophomore QB Kobe Tracy (3,048 yds) became the third signal caller in the program's NCAA era to surpass 3,000 passing yards after he threw for 277 yards on 19-36-2 passing at SUU last Saturday.
• Tracy remains the WAC leader and in the top-10 in the FCS in passing yards (7th; 1,229 yards), passing yards/game (8th; 307.5 ypg), and total offense (#9; 312.5 ypg).
• Sophomore WR Joey Hobert continued his offensive tear at SUU last Saturday, against which he caught six passes for 105 yards and one touchdown.
• Hobert heads into Saturday's game second in the FCS in receiving yards (572) and yards per game (143.0 ypg), while he is t-third nationally in TDs (5), t-fourth in receptions (33) and receptions/game (8.2), t-fourth in TDs (4), and 11th in all-purpose yards (146.8 ypg), all of which (except TDs - T2) are good for the WAC lead in each stat category.

HI MY NAME IS...: The Trailblazers began the 2022 season with a new institutional name - Utah Tech University. This past July 1, the university re-branded to the new moniker, replacing "Dixie State University," while the "Trailblazers" nickname remained in place. 

NEW RADIO HOME OF UT ATHLETICS: Along with the new name, Utah Tech University Athletics announced in July a new five-year multimedia agreement with Canyon Media Corporation. 
        Beginning this fall through the 2026-27 season, all Trailblazer football and men's basketball games, including comprehensive pregame and post game coverage, will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Southern Utah (99.5/95.3 FM in St. George; 93.1 FM/1400 AM in Cedar City).
        The agreement will also feature select coverage of several other Trailblazer Athletic events throughout the year.

AND A NEW VOICE: In conjunction of the new radio home announcement, longtime Utah sportscaster Rod Zundel was introduced as director of broadcasting and multimedia content for Trailblazer Athletics, and will serve as the new radio voice for football and men's basketball.
        Along with complete radio coverage, Zundel will host "The Paul Peterson Coaches Show" every Tuesday night on Fox Sports Southern Utah at 6 p.m. He will also oversee the production of several weekly Trailblazer student-athlete, coach and team online video feature stories, along with other digital content throughout the year. 
        Joining Zundel in the broadcast booth this season is former NFL and Super Bowl winning quarterback Jay Schroeder, who will provide color analysis, while former UT linebacker Steve Cook (2006-08) will serve as sideline reporter for select games.  

WELCOME TO THE WAC: Utah Tech kicked off the 2022 season as a full football member of the Western Athletic Conference.
        Utah Tech will play a full five-game conference schedule this year, three of which will be played at home, including Saturday's WAC home opener vs. ACU. 
        Due to previous game contract agreements last season, the Blazers were only able to play a limited three-game WAC schedule. 

HITTING THE TRAIL: After traveling nearly 13,300 miles for five road dates last season, Utah Tech will "only" have to navigate a grand total of 7,424 miles to-and-from its six road dates this season.
        Three of the Blazers' six road games will be played in the Beehive State, including the last two at Weber State (9/17) in Ogden (676 total miles), and last Saturday's 102-mile round trip on I-15 to Cedar City for their WAC opener at SUU.
        Utah Tech will also stay in-state for its season finale at FBS member BYU, which will be played in Provo (516 miles) on Saturday, Nov. 19.
        Including the season-opening round trip to Sacramento (9/3; 912 miles), the Blazers will fly to and from Cedar Falls, Iowa (2,544 miles) for their game at Northern Iowa (Oct. 15), and will make their longest trip of the season to Nacogdoches, Texas (2,674 miles) to play at Stephen F. Austin on Oct. 29.
        Last season, UT covered 4,697 round trip miles just to play at Delaware (10/30/21), which was the longest trip to play a football game in the program's NCAA era.

LAST TIME OUT: Utah Tech and Southern Utah met for the first time as conference foes on the gridiron in 60 years on Saturday night in a renewal of the "Battle for the Ax" rivalry.
        However three fourth quarter turnovers doomed the Trailblazers as the Thunderbirds claimed round one of the 2022 home-and-home season series, and the ax by a 31-17 decision in the WAC opener for both teams inside Eccles Coliseum.
        UT trailed 24-10 at the half, but managed to make a one-possession game with a Kobe Tracy-to-Joey Hobert TD late in the third quarter. However, SUU would tack on an insurance touchdown with 4:55 to play, and the Blazers, who were limited to only 21 yards in 4:13 of possession time in the fourth quarter, could not overcome those late miscues as SUU claimed the Ax in game one of the two-game set.

UTAH TECH VS. RANKED OPPONENTS: After playing six top-25 teams in arguably the toughest schedule in the entire FCS subdivision last fall, Utah Tech has "only" three top-25 opponents on its 2022 docket to this point of the season.
        Including the losses earlier this season to current No. 5/5 Sacramento State (9/3) and No. 7/8 Weber State (9/17). UT is slated to face all three ranked opponents on the road, with a WAC match-up at No. 14 SFA (10/29) still to come. 
        Meanwhile, future home opponent Tarleton State (11/12) is receiving votes in the polls, as did ACU earlier this season.
        Following the loss at Weber State, Utah Tech fell to 3-26 all-time (2-26 AFCA) against ranked opponents in its NCAA era, which includes 14 years as a Division-II program, and two-plus years at the D-I FCS subdivision. 
        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. 
        UT's 2021 slate featured seven 2021 FCS Fall playoff teams, and the 10 FCS teams the Blazers played combined to post 82-39 (.677) overall record.
        Utah Tech did split a pair of games against ranked opponents during the Spring 2021 season, highlighted by its third-ever triumph over a ranked foe in the opener at then-No. 22 Tarleton (Stat Perform ranking, 26-14; 2/27/21). UT 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 UT 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 (D-II/RMAC). DSU claimed its first win over a ranked opponent in a 38-31 victory at then-No. 23 Colorado Mesa in Grand Junction (D-II) in 2016.

O CAPTAINS! MY CAPTAINS!: Utah Tech will take the field in 2022 with five team captains leading the charge. As selected by their teammates, senior offensive lineman Nathen Aceves, redshirt freshman quarterback Victor Gabalis, senior linebacker Malaki Malaki, and senior safety Darrius Nash were all announced before the season opener. In addition, sophomore WR Joey Hobert was named a captain prior to the SUU game. 

YO JOE: Speaking of Hobert, he made a more history last Saturday night at SUU as he became the first Trailblazer in the program's NCAA era to record four-straight 100-yard receiving games in his first four career games as a Trailblazer.
        The sophomore also became just the second player in the program's four-year era to record four-straight, 100-yard receiving games. The last to do it was former Blazer tight end Joe Don Duncan, who achieved the feat twice in 2011 (five-straight) and 2013 (four-straight) during his All-American career.
        Hobert announced his presence with authority in his Blazer debut at Sacramento State (9/3), against which he caught 11 balls for 183 yards and a touchdown. His 183 yards were the eighth-most in a single game in the program's NCAA era, while his 11 catches were tied for sixth-most. 
        He followed that up with six receptions for 161 yards (#10 on UT's single game list) and two TDs in the Chadron State home win (9/10), both of which came in the second half on receptions of 38 and 50 yards. He then went for 10 receptions for 123 yards and a score at Weber State (9/17). 

TD STREAKS: Hobert also became just the second player in UT's NCAA era to catch at least one touchdown pass in the first four games of a season, and is the fourth player in program history to have a streak of four or more games with at least TD catch.
        Joe Don Duncan holds the record for the longest streak to open a season as he caught 10 of his single-season record 13 touchdowns over the first six games in 2013. Duncan also had a five-game TD streak during second half of the 2011 season.
        Former WR Kyser Christensen was the first to achieve the feat with a four-game streak in 2010, while former WR Mitch Frei caught a TD pass in five-straight games in 2012.   

BLAZING TRAILS
• Kobe Tracy's 388-yard night vs. Chadron State (9/10) was his fourth-career 300-plus passing game, which moved him into a tie for second place (Griff Robles 2012-13) on UT's career list. 
•  Tracy's two TD tosses at Southern Utah last Saturday was his sixth multi-TD game of his career, while is three TD passes vs. Chadron State (9/10) tied his career high (3 vs. Fort Lewis; 11/13/21).
•  Tracy also extended his streak with at least on TD pass to nine-straight games with his first scoring toss at SUU.
•  Tracy enters the week as the WAC leader in passing (1,229 yds - #7 FCS) and total offense (312.5 ypg - #9 FCS), and second in the conference in TDs (9 - t-13th in FCS)
• Utah Tech's 506 yards passing at Sacramento State (9/3) was the highest total since the program began its NCAA FCS transition in 2020-21, and is the third-highest single-game total in the program's four-year era.
• Meanwhile, the 579 total yards gained at Sac State were the program's most during its FCS transition.
• - UT's offense went "Big Play" at Sac State, completing eight passes of at least 25 yards, highlighted by a Victor Gabalis-to-David Fisher 72-yard strike in the first quarter ... four of those eight connections were north of 45 yard, including a pair of 46-yard pitch-and-catches, and a 47-yarder. 
• Meanwhile, UT's 579 total yards at Sac State were the most yards gained in a season opener since the Blazers went for 640 yards on the road at Colorado Mesa (9/6/14). 
• In addition, the 579 yards gained at Sac State are the third most in Paul Peterson's tenure as head coach (677 vs. Black Hills State - 10/5/19; 591 vs. Colorado Mesa - 11/2/19), while the 561 yards vs. Chadron are the fourth-most.
• The two 500-plus yard games at both Sac Stat and vs. Chadron marked the first time in the program's NCAA era that the Trailblazers gained more than 500 yards in back-to-back games to start a season.
• In all, it was the sixth time overall that UT/DSU posted consecutive 500-plus yard games, and the second instance in the Paul Peterson era (2019) ... Utah Tech also did it twice in both 2013 and 2018.
•  Sophomore RB Quali Conley earned WAC Offensive Player of the Week honors this past Sept. 12, after he rushed for career highs of 139 yards and three touchdowns in the win over Chadron State (9/10). 
•  The sophomore carried the ball a season-high 21 times en route to his first collegiate 100-yard rushing game, while his three touchdowns vaulted him sixth place (9 TDs) on UT's career rushing TD list. 
• Conley rebounded from a season-low 10 yards rushing at Weber State (9/17) with a game-high 112 yards on 14 carries at SUU last Saturday ... Conley who averaged 8.0 ypc vs. the T-Birds, enters the weekend as the WAC's leading rusher (310 yds/77.50 ypg), while his four rushing TDs are also tops in the conference.
• Conley also caught three passes for 50 yards at SUU, including a 47-yarder to set up a second quarter Blazer field goal.
• Conley currently stands ninth (972 yards) on UT's career rushing list, and stands just 28 yards shy of becoming the ninth running back in the program's NCAA era to reach the 1,000-yard rushing plateau.  
• Conley recorded his sixth career game with a TD run in the Chadron (9/10) win ... prior to his career night vs. Chadron, Conley's previous career-high rushing game came at home vs. Tarleton State (3/13/21), against which he ran for 97 net yards (100 yards gained) on 22 carries. 
• Conley became the eighth different running back, and the 15th different player, in UT's NCAA era to score at least three touchdowns in one game ... former Trailblazer RB Drew Kannely-Robles broke both single game TD records with four rushing touchdowns in last year's home win vs. Fort Lewis (11/13/21).
• Conley also has three career TD receptions to go with his nine scoring runs, and his 12 combined TDs are one shy of breaking into the top-10 on that career list. 
• For the second time this season, and just the second time in the last 20 games overall, UT had a 100-yard rusher (Conley) and a 100-yard receiver (Hobert) in the same game, doing so last Saturday at SUU.
• The dynamic duo first did it in UT's win vs. Chadron State (9/10), which was the first occurrence since the 2019 campaign, when RB Sei-J Lauago (185 yd) and WR Jalen Powell (127) did it vs. Colorado Mesa (11/2/19).
•  UT also snapped a 28-game stretch between having a 300-yard passer (Tracy) and a 100-yard rusher (Conley) in the Chadron win ... the last time that happened came all the way back to the 2018 season when Michael Sanders also threw for 388 yards, and Lauago rushed for 103 yards at Adams State (11/10/18). 
• While Hobert was doing his thing at Sac State, fifth-year WR Deven Osborne caught six balls for 113 yards and a TD, which was his third career 100-yard receiving game.
• Osborne notched a pair of 100-plus yard games during the 2021 Spring season, highlighted a 147-yard effort with a pair of TDs vs. Fort Lewis (3/27/21) ... he also hauled in a career-best nine balls for 127 yards and a score at Kennesaw State (3/20/21). 
• Hobert and Osborne's combined effort at Sac State marked the first time since the 2019 season that Utah Tech had two 100-yard receivers in one game (Kasey Allison – 126/Chase Hess – 107, vs. Black Hills State; 10/5/19).
• In fact, Utah Tech's receiving corps just missed making history at Sac State as sophomore WR David Fisher tallied 96 yards on three catches, including the 72-yard first quarter connection with Gabalis.
• Utah Tech has never had three receivers go for 100 or more yards in a single game in the program's NCAA era, with the Sac State game marking the closest UT has come to achieving that feat.  
• Utah Tech has only had two 100-yard receivers in one game just 11 times in 171 games during its NCAA era. 
• Six different receivers have caught TD passes through four games this season ... along with Hobert and Osborne, junior wideout Rickie Johnson added his name to the list with his third career TD catch last Saturday night at SUU ... junior Michael Moten also notched his third career TD in the Sac State opener, while fellow junior Malcolm Ross-Turner made his second-career TD reception in the third quarter vs. Chadron ... Fisher then added his name to the list with his first of the year which got UT on the board at Weber State (9/17).
• Unfortunately all the news is not all good in the Blazers' receiving corps as junior WR Keith Davis suffered a season-ending injury during practice ahead of the Sac State game.
•  While Utah Tech has had 75 instances where a player gained 100 or more yards receiving in its NCAA era, Hobert (161 yards) became the first player to finish a game with a yardage total in the 160s ... that said, UT is still waiting for the first receiver to finish in the 190s. 
•  Hobert has only played in four games and he is already t-fifth on UT's career 100-yard receiving list ... meanwhile his 26.8 ypc average vs. Chadron State on Sept. 10, tied him for eighth on the program's single game list.
• While the UT offense was doing its thing in the second half vs. Chadron, the Blazer defense was the story, forcing five second half Eagle turnovers, including four INTs, and held Chadron to just 288 total yards, including only 129 on the ground on the night.
• UT's defense also held Chadron State without a touchdown pass in the win, which marked the 32nd time in 171 NCAA-era games the defense had achieved that feat.
• Utah Tech scored seven touchdowns in the second half vs. Chadron, two of which came on the defensive side thanks to a pair of pick-6s by senior linebacker Kaejin Smith-Bejgrowicz and sophomore safety Tyrell Grayson.
• Smith-Bejgrowicz kick-started Utah Tech's dominant second half with his third career interception, which he returned 32 yards to pay dirt for his first career touchdown just 1:22 in the third quarter.
• Grayson followed suit in the fourth with his third career pick, which he returned 51 yards for his first collegiate TD.  
• The two defensive scores marked the second time the program's NCAA era that Utah Tech's defense achieved that feat. In 2019, the Trailblazers housed two interceptions in a big 55-0 home win over New Mexico Highlands (Aaron Simpson/Augustus Fraser; 9/21/19).
• Grayson's TD was one of three scores Utah Tech recorded in a span of 1:42 to begin the fourth quarter ... Tracy and Hobert hooked up for a 38-yard TD on the first play of the period (14:52) ... Grayson followed with his TD just 33 seconds later (14:19), before another Chadron INT set up a Tracy-to-Hobert 50-yard catch and run on 3rd-and-10 at the 13:18 mark.  
• Senior DBs Darrius Nash and Steven Ashby accounted for the other two interceptions for the Blazers defense, while freshman DB Jonah Henry collected his first collegiate fumble recovery, forced by sophomore DL Laytan Tanuvasa, as Utah Tech scored touchdowns on all five Chadron miscues on the night.  
• Grayson led the Blazer defense with 11 total tackles (7 solo) at Weber State (9/17) ... he also racked 10 solo tackles at Sac State (9/3), which was his third double-digit solo stop game in his two-plus standout seasons in the Blazer defensive backfield.
• Grayson also had 12 solo tackles (13 total) in last year's home match-up against the Hornets (9/4/21), and posted a career-high 15 solo stops at UC Davis (9/18/21) in a game where he tied the program's NCAA-era record for total tackles with 19.
• Grayson is second in the WAC in total tackles (34) and is tops in the WAC in solo stops (22- t-13th in FCS). 
• Grayson led all of FCS, albeit unofficially, in solo tackles with 79 and led the WAC with 103 total tackles last season on his way to freshman All-America honors. 
• Sophomore DL Syrus Webster recorded the Blazer defense's first (and to date only) sack of 2022 when he strip-sacked Hornet QB Jake Dunniway in the third quarter, which later led to a Conley 5-yard TD run.  
• Webster finished with five tackles (3 solo) at Weber State ... he also racked up six tackles (5 solo) and two TFLs at Sac State (9/3) ... the sophomore now has 3.0 sacks and 8.0 TFLs in 14 career games.
• Freshman DL Justin Kirkland made the most of his collegiate debut as he got the start, recorded one assisted tackle, and recovered the fumble on the Webster sack.
• Senior LB Malaki Malaki, sophomore DB Jordan Scott and freshman LB Jared Fotu each tallied season highs of eight tackles at Weber State (9/17) ... for Scott and Fotu, the eight stops were both career highs, while Malaki added a third quarter forced fumble and recovery to his stat line.
• Scott collected a team-high seven total tackles at SUU last Saturday ... Fotu also had a olid night, recording five tackles, including his first TFL, and had a fumble recovery. 
• Utah Tech tied a school record with eight total touchdowns in the Chadron win (9/10) ... sophomore PK Connor Brooksby also tied his own school PAT record, which he shares with former kicker Jameson Schultz (8 PATs at Simon Fraser 2011). 
• Brooksby went 8-for-8 in PAT tries in the game, which matched his first 8-for-8 effort that came last season vs. Fort Lewis (11/13/2021) ... Brooksby is now a perfect 34-of-34 (7th on career PAT list) after he hit both tries at SUU last Saturday. 
• Utah Tech's 56 points scored vs. Chadron State tied for third on the program's single game points list, while the 46-point margin of victory was also the third-highest in UT's NCAA era. 
• Sophomore punter Andrew Day averaged 49.0 yards per punt last Saturday at SUU, highlighted by a 57-yard kick in the first quarter ... Day punted four times for 196 yards with one boot inside the opponent's 20 yard line ... Day punted a career-high 10 times at Weber State (9/17), including a season-best 59 yarder. 

#AB3FOREVER: Senior linebacker Malaki Malaki has once again been awarded the No. 3 jersey for the 2022 season. The senior captain is the second Trailblazer player to wear the coveted number since the 2021 spring season. 
        The awarding of the No. 3 jersey has become an annual tradition honoring the memory of former Trailblazer football player Abraham Reinhardt, who passed away unexpectedly on March 22, 2019. UT 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 Utah Tech. He is tough, works tremendously hard, is a great student and leader. Malaki will continue to wear AB3's jersey this season in honor of his legacy."

WE'RE GOING STREAKING: Heading into Saturday's game vs. Abilene Christian, six Trailblazers enter the game with some impressive streaks on the line.
        On offense, Tracy will look to extend his streak of throwing at least one touchdown pass to 10-straight games, while Johnson hopes to extend his catch streak to 13-straight games.
        Meanwhile on defense, Malaki and Nash have recorded at least one tackle in 31-straight games, while senior CB Colby Williams (18-straight), Grayson (15-straight) will seek to continue their impressive double-digit game tackle streaks. 

RECORDS WATCH: We are on "Records Watch 2022" as several Blazers look to continue to move up the career charts this season.    
        Conley (972 yards) is 28 yards away from becoming the ninth running back in UT's NCAA era to amass 1,000 career rush yards. In addition, he sixth in career rushing TDs (9), and is sixth in yards/game (48.6).
        Meanwhile, Tracy (3,048 yards/19 TDs) is third in career passing yards, t-fourth in TD passes, and third in total offense (3,045 yards). 
        On defense, Malaki (249) needs 27 more total tackles to become UT's career leader in that category, and is 3.0 TFLs shy of vaulting to second (22.0 TFL) on that list.
        In addition, senior DL Dylan Hendrickson (11.0) enters his final season just 3.0 sacks shy of becoming UT's career sacks leader. 
        Brooksby (13 FG) is currently fourth in career field goals and needs two more to vault into solo second on the career list.

ABOUT THE ABILENE CHRISTIAN "WILDCATS": Abilene Christian travels to St. George with a 3-1 record in tow after posting a 34-7 home win over Division-II Western New Mexico last Saturday night. In fact, all three Wildcat victories have come at home against former WAC member Lamar (28-14; 9/1) and Prairie View A&M (21-13; 9/10), while their lone loss came at SEC member Missouri two weeks ago (17-34; 9/17).
        ACU boasts a stout 1-2 running back combination in Rovaughn Banks Jr. (76.0 ypg) and Jermiah Dobbins (64.3 ypg), who rank second and third in the WAC in rushing, respectively, behind Trailblazer RB Quali Conley. Both ACU backs posted 100-yard games last week vs. WNMU, with Banks Jr. going for 143 yards and two touchdowns, while Dobbins rushed for 105 yards. 
        Junior QB Ethan Long came off the bench and threw for 251 yards on 22-of-34 passing with a pair of TDs in the WNMU win last Saturday. Long connected with senior receiver Kobe Clark (18 rec./216 yds/2TDs) seven times for 92 yards and a score last Saturday, all of which were season highs for the wideout. 
        ACU is averaging 25.0 ppg and 461.8 ypg of total offense, while allowing 27.0 ppg and 389.0 ypg on defense through four games this season.  

NEXT UP FOR THE TRAILBLAZERS: Following its bye week next week, Utah Tech hits the road for a non-conference date at Northern Iowa on Saturday, Oct. 15. Kick-off inside the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls is set for 3 p.m. (MT).