Game Notes: UTAH TECH - PDF | WEST GEORGIA
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FOR STARTERS: • After finally enjoying its bye week last week, Utah Tech will close out its 2024 home slate against United Athletic Conference newcomer West Georgia. 
• Saturday's game vs. West Georgia will be the first-ever meeting between the Trailblazers and Wolves on the gridiron.  
• Utah Tech is 4-4 all-time during its NCAA era coming off a bye, though the Trailblazers are 0-3 in their brief time at the FCS subdivision. In fact, the Blazers' last win after a bye week came all the way back in the 2015 season in a 48-25 road victory at South Dakota Mines (10/31/15) while as a member of the RMAC.  
• Utah Tech enters this Saturday's home finale vs. UWG looking for win No. 2 in the Lance Anderson-era, this after the Trailblazers posted a 34-21 home upset victory over then-No. 9/11 ranked Central Arkansas this past Nov. 2.  
• The UCA victory, which came in Utah Tech's 200th NCAA-era game, also snapped the program's 14-game losing streak.  
• Central Arkansas was the seventh of Utah Tech's first 10 2024 opponents overall that was either ranked at the time the Trailblazers played them, or at one time ranked, in either or both the FCS, and FBS (UNLV), top-25 polls. 
• Utah Tech improved to 5-33 (4-32 overall vs. AFCA) all-time record vs. ranked opponents (FCS and D-II), which includes an 1-4 record this season, and a 2-15 mark over the previous two seasons.  
• Utah Tech's 2024 schedule is currently ranked No. 4 (out of 129 FCS teams) in the latest WarrenNolan.com ELO strength of schedule ratings.
 
UTAH TECH ON THE AIR: All Utah Tech games this season are broadcast live on The Fan Sports Network (99.5/95.3 FM in St. George; 93.1 FM/1400 AM in Cedar City; 
www.thefansportsnetwork.com), while all home games will be streamed live online on ESPN+.
        The "Voice of the Trailblazers" Rod Zundel is in his third season calling the play-by-play action on ESPN+, and he will be joined this Saturday afternoon by former Utah Tech defensive lineman Max Christensen III. In addition, Devin Dixon (PBP) and Paul Ratliff (color) will have the call on The Fan Sports Network.  
        As part of this season's game day broadcast coverage, Utah Tech airs a 60-minute comprehensive pregame show, and 30-minute post-game show, both of which air live on The Fan Sports Network and streamed live on YouTube on the newly created Trailblazer SportsVision (youtube.com/TrailblazerAthletics).
        Along with complete Game Day coverage, Zundel hosts the weekly "The Lance Anderson Coaches Show" every Tuesday night on The Fan Sports Network and streamed on Trailblazer Sports Vision at 6 p.m. (MT).
 
FINALLY ELIGIBLE FOR POSTSEASON PLAY: Not only is the 2024 season Utah Tech's fifth Division I FCS season overall, it is also the FIRST season that the Trailblazers are eligible for NCAA postseason play. 
        The NCAA Division I Board of Directors officially approved Utah Tech's move to active Division I status on June 28. With that confirmation, Trailblazer Athletics is now officially eligible to participate in all NCAA postseason championships in its 15 intercollegiate programs.
 
LET'S PLAY 12: Utah Tech's 2024 football schedule features a program NCAA-era high 12 games, six home games and six road dates, and a full eight-game United Athletic Conference (UAC) slate. Add in the bye week (11/9), and the 13-week regular season will be the longest in program history.   
 
TOOK ON ALL COMERS: As Utah Tech wrapped up its four-year NCAA Division-I FCS transitional period last November, it was safe to say that the Trailblazers did not shy away from playing anyone, anytime, anywhere. 
        Over their 38 games during those four years, the Trailblazers faced 15 top-25 teams (2-13) and 12 total FCS playoff teams.   
        In fact, Utah Tech's 2021 fall schedule was rated as the second-toughest schedule in the entire country and featured seven 2021 FCS Fall playoff teams, including the 2021 spring national champion (Sam Houston) and runner-up (South Dakota State).
 
2024 JUST AS TOUGH: Utah Tech's 2024 schedule is currently ranked No. 4 (out of 129 FCS teams) in the latest WarrenNolan.com ELO strength of schedule ratings.
            To this point of the season, the Trailblazers have faced four teams currently ranked in both of latest AFCA and Stats Perform FCS top-25 polls, three of which are in the top-eight in both polls. 
            In fact, seven of Utah Tech's first 10 2024 opponents overall are either currently ranked, or have been ranked, in either or both the FCS, and FBS (UNLV), top-25 polls this year.
 
AS FOR ANYWHERE: Utah Tech were road warriors during that four-year transitional period, a stretch that saw the Trailblazers travel more than 43,300 round trip miles on 21 trips.
        Utah Tech played road games in 13 different states, seven of which the program had never played in before, including three last season with trips to Missouri, Alabama and Tennessee. The Trailblazers also made their first-ever visits to Georgia (Spring 2021), Delaware (Fall 2021) and Iowa (2022) over the four-year span.
        Utah Tech traveled just over 15,000 round trip miles last season, which eclipsed the previous high of just under 13,300 miles set during the 2021 Fall campaign. 
        In their first FCS season in Spring 2021, the Trailblazers covered 7,630 miles for three road dates. Then after the 2021 Fall season, Utah Tech traveled "only" 7,424 miles in 2022, thanks in large part to playing three in-state road games at Weber State, Southern Utah and BYU.
        Of note, Utah Tech's longest trip to play a football game came during the 2021 Fall season, when the Trailblazers traveled 4,697 miles round trip to play at Delaware (10/30/21).

TRAILBLAZERS HAUL IN UAC AND NATIONAL HONORS: Coming on the heels of its first victory of the 2024 season, and arguably the signature win in the program's newly minted NCAA Division I FCS era, Utah Tech football garnered three UAC player of the week awards, and one national player of the week award on Nov. 4.
            Redshirt freshman quarterback Reggie Graff was named Stats Perform FCS National Offensive Player of the Week and UAC co-Offensive Player of the Week. 
            Meanwhile sophomore placekicker Ilya Uvaydov was chosen as the UAC Special Teams Player of the Week, and redshirt freshman safety Quincy Lejay was tabbed as UAC's Freshman of the Week.
            Graff became the first Trailblazer in program history, and the first FCS player this season, to throw for, catch, and run for a touchdown in the same game in Utah Tech's 34-21 upset victory over No. 9/11-ranked Central Arkansas on Nov. 2.
            In all, Graff accounted for all four Trailblazer touchdowns on the day. He threw for 211 yards on 26-of-35 passing and two scores, and ran for a team and career-high 90 yards on 24 carries to go with his rushing touchdown. He also caught a 3-yard TD pass on the back end of Utah Tech's version of "The Philly Special" just before halftime.
            Lejay racked up a team and career-high 12 tackles to go with a fumble recovery and a pass breakup to highlight a strong Trailblazer defensive effort. 
            Lejay's first quarter PBU led directly to the first of Utah Tech's two second quarter interceptions. In fact, that interception was the second of the Trailblazers' four picks overall, and one of a school-record tying six total turnovers the Utah Tech defense forced on the afternoon.  
            Uvaydov was a perfect 6-for-6 on his kicks, including four PATs and a pair of field goals. He connected on field goals of 30 and 24 yards, in supporting the Blazers' first victory of the season.
 
GRAFF JOINS ANOTHER ELITE LIST: Graff not only etched his name on a list of one with his touchdown trifecta vs. UCA (11/2), he is now one of five QBs in Utah Tech's NCAA era to rush and pass for a touchdown in the same game at least three times in one season. 
        Former Blazer QB Kody Wilstead did three times during Utah Tech's five-game 2021 spring season, including in each of the program's first two FCS games. In addition, former QBs Griff Robles (4 in 2012 and 2013), Stefan Cantwell (3 in 2011) and Dexter Hill (4 in 2008) all achieved the feat multiple times during the program's D-II era, with Robles (three times in two years), Cantwell (once) and Hill (back-to-back-to-back) doing so in consecutive games.
        In all, 17 different players, including 16 quarterbacks and one running back, have both passed and run for a touchdown in the same game in the program's NCAA era overall. 
 
YOUR LOSS IS OUR GAIN: Utah Tech's defense racked up a season-high 9.0 TFLs (-40 yards) in the Central Arkansas win back on Nov. 2. Two of the nine TFLs were sacks, including a Fisher Jackson strip sack late in the second quarter that resulted in a 28-yard loss, which set the Blazers' up at the UCA 5 and a touchdown three plays later.
            The 9.0 TFLs eclipsed the previous high of 8.0 set in the Blazers' non-conference finale at UC Davis (9/21), against which the defense posted a season-best 4.0 sacks.
            In addition, the 9.0 TFLs vs. UCA marked the 10th time the Trailblazers had recorded at least 8.0 TFLs in a game during their NCAA Division I FCS era.
        Last season, the Blazers collected 10.0 TFLs and five sacks at Austin Peay (11/11/23). Meanwhile, the current FCS-era program high for TFLs is 12.0 (t-#5 all-time at Utah Tech), posted in a home win over Fort Lewis (3/27/21) and on the road at Montana (10/9/21). In addition, the Blazers tallied an FCS-era high 7.0 sacks in a home triumph over Southern Utah (11/5/22) during the 2022 season. 
 
MORE ON THE TRAILBLAZER DEFENSE: Utah Tech's defense tied a school record with six forced turnovers in the Central Arkansas win (11/2). The six turnovers forced are the most in the program's relatively new NCAA FCS era, and the most in over 12 seasons overall. 
            Four of the six UCA turnovers were interceptions, including two second-quarter picks by true freshman defensive back Brady Sorenson. Sophomore DB Scooter Jackson also picked off his first collegiate pass in the first quarter, while junior LB Jaxson Smith's four-quarter interception sealed the Blazers' win.
            The Trailblazers last forced six turnovers in a home win over Western Oregon (24-10; 9/8/12) during the 2012 season, and turned the trick against WOU three years prior to that in a home win (31-23; 10/10/09) in the 2009 campaign.
            In addition, the Blazers' four interceptions tied for the second-most in program history, and tied for the most in Utah Tech's FCS era (4 vs. Chadron State - 9/10/22).
 
EVEN MORE ON THE TRAILBLAZER DEFENSE: Utah Tech's defense held Austin Peay to 2024 opponent season lows in points (13) and total offense (311), and to only 93 passing yards this past Oct. 19.
            The 93 passing yards at the time were a season low, which was eclipsed at Eastern Kentucky (10/26), where the Trailblazers limited the Colonels to just 75 yards through the air. 
            In fact, EKU's 75 passing yards marked the 12th-time in the program's NCAA era, and the third time in its FCS era, that the Trailblazers had held a team under 100 passing yards. During the 2020 spring season, Utah Tech limited Fort Lewis (3/27/21) to 38 yards passing, which was the second-lowest opponent single game total in program history.
            Meanwhile, the 75 passing yards allowed at EKU were the eighth-lowest single game total in Utah Tech's four-year era. 
            Utah Tech currently leads the UAC in passing defense (1,931 yds; 193.1 ypg). 

LIGHT UP THE SCOREBOARD: Utah Tech scored a season-high 34 points in the UCA victory on Nov. 2 with four total touchdowns. The scoring bonanza halted a stretch that saw the Trailblazers reach the end zone only five times over its previous four games, two of which came at EKU (10/26) late last month. 
            The Trailblazers suffered their first FCS era shutout loss in a 42-0 road loss at current No. 12/13 Tarleton State back on Oct. 12, which broke the program's 109-game scoring streak. The shutout loss was also just the fourth in the program's NCAA era overall, and was the first since the 2013 season finale at home vs. Central Washington (44-0; 11/16/13).
 
ONE TRAILBLAZER LANDS ON PRESEASON ALL-UAC LIST: Utah Tech had only player voted onto the 2024 United Athletic Conference preseason all-conference team. 
        Redshirt sophomore long snapper Ryan Kean was the lone Trailblazer representative to crack the list, doing so on special teams.  
        Last season, Kean earned first team all-UAC and Stats Perform Freshman All-America honors after he was near perfect on every special teams snap as the Trailblazers' primary long snapper.
 
BARBEN STELLAR IN DEBUT SEASON: True freshman QB Bronson Barben recorded his second two-touchdown game of the season and finished with a career-high 231 passing yards at EKU (10/26). Barben, who DNP'd vs. Central Arkansas (11/2), also rushed for a career-best 37 yards on 13 carries vs. the Colonels. 
            Barben made a little history in his own right in his collegiate debut at North Alabama (10/5) when he came off the bench and threw for 137 yards on 5-of-8 passing and two second half touchdowns.
        Barben, who came on late in the third quarter at UNA, became the first true freshman in Utah Tech's brief FCS era, and the ninth true freshman in the program's NCAA era overall, to throw a touchdown pass in a game. He was the also the first to it since the 2016 season, when former Blazers signal caller Josh Thompson achieved that feat.
        In addition, Barben became just the fifth true freshman to throw multiple TD passes in the same game, and is only the second Trailblazer QB to throw a touchdown pass in his collegiate debut, joining former Blazer QB Cody Stevenson (2010) on that exclusive list. 
 
TRAILBLAZER QUICK HITS
• Utah Tech racked up a season-best 508 yards of total offense vs. ACU (9/28), including season highs in both rushing (180) and passing (328) yards ... the last time the Trailblazers gained at least 500 yards in a game was last season at North Alabama (507; 10/21/23).
• Utah Tech had 10 different players record at least one reception vs. ACU (9/28), which marked the fourth time in the program's brief FCS era, and the 15th-time overall in the four-year era, that the Trailblazer offense reached double-digits in pass catchers in a single game.
• Graff enjoyed a career night vs. ACU, throwing for a career-best 231 yards on 13-of-22 passing with one touchdown, and he led the Blazers with 79 yards and a fourth-quarter rushing TD - all off the bench ... Graff led three touchdown drives of 70-plus yards, including a 75-yard drive just before halftime that took only 18 seconds, and ended with a 32-yard pass to sophomore TE Eric Olsen with nine seconds to play until halftime. 
• That effort came a week after Graff made his first collegiate start at UC Davis (9/21), against which he ran for a team and then-career best 85 yards on 17 carries with one touchdown ... he also threw for 95 yards on 7-of-21 passing and another score.
• Graff rattled off 49 of those yards on consecutive plays in the third quarter, including a career-long 37-yard scamper down the right sideline, which ultimately set up his 12-yard TD run up the middle one play later.
• Graff also completed a 48-yard TD pass to fellow RS-freshman WR Bryce Parker with less than three minutes to play in the game. 
• Graff led the offense on its longest touchdown drive, in terms of yardage, of the season in the UCA win (11/2), a 12-play, 92-yard trek in the second quarter which culminated with a 6-yard pass to redshirt junior TE Eni Falayi.
• Falayi's TD catch vs. UCA, his second in as many games, highlighted his first career 100-yard receiving game, during which he hauled in a collegiate career-high 10 passes for 105 yards on the day. 
• In fact, Utah Tech's last 100-yard reception game came nearly one year to the day at Austin Peay (11/11/23), against which both former Trailblazer Rickie Johnson (14 rec./126 yds) and current Blazer WR Daniel Thomason (6 rec./100 yds./1 TD) reached the century mark in receiving yards. 
• Falayi's bested his previous career high of 52 yards on three catches and a touchdown a week earlier at EKU (10/26).
• Falayi returned to action last month vs. Austin Peay (10/19) and caught all four of his targets for 16 yards ... Falayi had not played since being injured in the season opener vs. Montana State (8/31), against which he caught four passes for 48 yards. 
• Junior RB Chris Street, who is expected to return to action on Saturday vs. West Georgia, recorded his first rushing touchdown of the year in the first quarter vs. ACU (9/28), which staked Utah Tech to its first lead of the season ... Street wound up with 44 yards on 15 carries, along with 37 more yards on two receptions en route to a season-best 81 all-purpose yards.  
• Street also hauled in his first collegiate TD pass at UNLV (9/7), a 31-yard catch and run on 4th-and-4 late in the third quarter. 
• Speaking of all-purpose yards, redshirt senior RB/WR/KR Shamar Garrett tallied a season-high 153 all-purpose yards in the UCA win (11/2) ... Garrett collected 37 yards on five receptions, including his first TD as a Trailblazer - a 2-yard pass from Graff just before halftime.
• Garrett also recorded a team season-high 116 yards on four kickoff returns, including a 66-yard return after a UCA score that ultimately led to Graff's first collegiate TD catch. 
• Sophomore RB Kona Crowell has seen an increased work load over the last two games, starting at EKU (10/26), against which he got the start in the backfield and responded with a career high in all-purpose (74) yards, including 34 yards (CH) on nine carries, and 40 yards (CH) on four receptions.
• Crowell tied his career high with 34 yards on 12 carries a week later in the UCA win (11/4) to go with 13 yards on four catches.
• RS-Junior RB Bretton Stone returned to action in the UCA win (11/2) and finished with three receptions for 14 yards and one carry for one year.
• Prior to missing the EKU game (10/26) due to injury, Stone had made the most of his opportunities of late, including at Tarleton State (10/12), where he racked up a career-best 72 all-purpose yards, including career highs of five receptions for 51 yards, and he finished with 21 yards on the ground. 
• Stone has rushed for 125 total yards over his last five outings ... Stone carried the ball nine times for a career-high 44 yards and his second collegiate TD vs. Austin Peay (10/19). 
• Sophomore RB Nygel Osborne ran for a season-best 39 yards on seven carries and his first TD of the season vs. NAU (9/14) ... Osborne's fourth quarter TD was his third rushing score of his brief career - all of which have come at home ... the sophomore also ran for two scores in last year's season finale vs. Southern Utah (11/18).
• Freshman RB Asa Chatman made his collegiate debut vs. Austin Peay (10/19), against which he rushed two times for eight yards and caught both of his targets out of the backfield for 15 yards.
• Chapman saw an increased role at EKU (10/26), where he carried the ball four times for 28 yards and caught a pair of passes for three yards. 
• True freshman WR Josh Rillos made the most of time on the field at EKU (10/26), against which he led the Trailblazer receiving corps with seven receptions for 72 yards - all were career highs. 
• Even though he was held to only one catch for 12 yards in the UCA win (11/2), Parker played a big role in the upset as he completed his first collegiate pass to Graff on the back end of "The Philly Special" in the second quarter. 
• Parker hauled in his team-leading third TD pass of the season on his lone reception of the day in the third quarter at EKU (10/26) ... Parker caught a screen pass from Barben at the EKU 7 and won the race to the pylon to cap the Blazers' first drive of the second half.
• Parker just missed recording his first career 100-yard game as he finished with a career-best 98 yards on three receptions at North Alabama (10/5) ... Parker's day was highlighted by a 75-yard touchdown pass from Barben with just over nine minutes to play in the fourth quarter. 
• After going two full years without one pass completion to a tight end, the new look Trailblazer offense has recorded 50 of its 175 total season completions (on 84 combined targets), and five of Utah Tech's 12 total TD passes, to tight ends through its first 10 games.
• Olsen's TD grab just before halftime vs. ACU (9/28) was his first collegiate touchdown ... Olsen finished with a career-high 60 yards on three receptions vs. ACU. 
• Senior TE Alec Burton was finally able to do the one thing he had waited his whole college career for - catch a touchdown pass ... Burton scored his first collegiate TD on the third play from scrimmage at UNLV (9/7) when QB Deacon Hill found him all alone over the middle for a 61-yard scoring strike.
• That touchdown catch was Burton's first reception as a Trailblazer, and just his 17th collegiate reception overall ... Burton spent six seasons at Ohio University, where he recorded 16 catches for 118 yards in 33 games as a Bobcat.
• Burton's TD catch at UNLV was also the first by a Blazer tight end in 24 games ... prior to the Burton grab, the last TD catch by a tight end came in the 2021 fall finale vs. Missouri State (Cade Veach - 11/20/21). 
• Two of Burton's three total receptions of the season have gone for touchdowns, including a 39-yard pass from Barben on 4th-and-1 early in the fourth quarter at UNA (10/5). 
• Sophomore safety Brevin Hamblin has been a one-man tackling machine for the Trailblazer defense of late ... Hamblin posted his fourth-straight, double-digit tackle start, with a co-game high 11 tackles (9 solo) at EKU (10/26).
• That effort came on the heels of a career-high 12 tackle day a week earlier vs. Austin Peay (10/19) ... Hamblin, who has recorded double figures in tackles five times this season and six times in his brief career overall, also registered 10 stops at Tarleton State (10/12), and 11 more at North Alabama (10/5), to go with 10 tackles and a forced fumble at UNLV (9/7).  
• Hamblin, who had three early tackles in the UCA win before he left the game early due to injury, is expected to be back at full strength this Saturday vs. UWG. 
• Not to be outdone, Lejay recorded the first of his two-straight double digit tackle games with 11 stops at EKU (10/26), including a career-high 10 solo stops. 
• Lejay was pressed into duty last month vs. NAU (9/14), and he responded with seven tackles, including a 0.5 TFL ... Lejay bettered that one week later with a then-career best nine tackles, and career highs in PBUs (2-team high) and TFLs (1.0) at UC Davis (9/21). 
• Freshman OLB Rick Mua'e vaulted into second place on the UAC's sack list (5.5) after recording a sack as part of his career-high 2.5 total TFL effort in the UCA win (11/2) ... the freshman has recorded all of his sacks over his last eight games overall, including 1.5 sacks (for 18 yards) at UC Davis (9/21), which was part of a six-tackle night.
• Mua'e enjoyed a breakout performance at UNLV (9/7), against which he collected eight total tackles and 1.5 TFLs, including his first collegiate sack late in the first half.
• Junior LB Jared Fotu racked up a career-high 1.5 TFLs vs. Austin Peay (10/19) and finished with eight total tackles on the day ... Fotu, who tallied five solo tackles at EKU (10/26), has registered at least 0.5 TFLs in five of his last six games overall, including a season-high 11 tackles with 1.0 TFL vs. ACU (9/28). 
• Utah Tech collected 6.0 total TFLs vs. Austin Peay (10/19), with sophomore LB Jarron Polu notching his first collegiate sack in the fourth quarter ... Fisher Jackson also tallied his second sack of the year in the first quarter, which was one of five total tackles he picked up on the day.
• Senior DL John Sniffen accounted for Utah Tech's lone sack and two of the three total TFLs at EKU (10/26) ... Sniffen's sack was his third (first solo) of the season, while his 2.0 TFLs were a career high.
• The EKU game also marked a few more firsts for a pair of defensive players as freshmen DBs Jeremiah Jimoh (career-high 5 tackles) and Kyle Parker (3 tackles) made their first collegiate starts ... Parker then chased that with a career-best four tackles in the UCA win (11/2).
• RS-junior DB Gabriel Valenzuela notched a career high with nine tackles, and picked off his second career interception, at Tarleton State (10/12) ... Valenzuela's nine stops eclipsed his previous high of eight set in the season opener vs. Montana State (8/31), while his interception was the Trailblazer defense's first of the year.
 • Valenzuela also recovered his first fumble of the year a tremendous touchdown-saving stop made by Hamblin and RS-junior DB Jayden Sheridan, who stripped the football away from APSU RB Corey Richardson near the goal line early in the fourth quarter.
• Sheridan racked up a season-high seven total tackles with a 0.5 TFL and one PBU in the UCA win (11/2) ... Sheridan also tallied six solo stops vs. ACU (9/28), against which both he (career-high 2 PBU) and sophomore DB Scooter Jackson (6 tackles; 1 PBU) combined for three PBUs.
• Junior DL Dane Whalen enjoyed his finest outing to date in a Trailblazer uniform with season-highs of five tackles, two TFLs and a forced fumble in the UCA win (11/2).  
• RS-junior safety Jagger Williams led the Trailblazer defensive effort with 10 total tackles (four solo), along with a 0.5 TFL and one PBU vs. Montana State (8/31) ... Williams' 10 tackles were one off of his career high of 11 he set last year vs. Eastern Kentucky (10/28/23).
• RS-junior DL Laytan Tanuvasa notched the game's lone sack in the season opener vs. MSU (8/31), which came in the second quarter as he bolted into the Bobcat backfield virtually untouched and dropped MSU QB Tommy Mellott for a nine-yard loss on 1st and 10 on the Blazer 11 yard line.
• Tanuvasa's sack served as a precursor for arguably the play of the night for the Trailblazers as the Utah Tech defense forced MSU to settle for a 26-yard field goal attempt, which was blocked by Scooter Jackson.
• Jackson got a great jump on the snap and flew around the left side to make the diving rejection, which was recovered by junior DL Cody Carlson at the Blazer 26 yard line.
• Jackson's field goal block was Utah Tech's first since former DL Max Christensen III blocked a field goal try nearly one year-to-the-day on the road at another "MSU" opponent in Missouri State (9/23/23). 
• Senior punter Andy Day was named UAC Football Specialist of the Week (9/2) after he tied his own school record with 10 punts in the opener vs. Montana State (8/31) ... Day punted for 468 yards (46.8 ypp), including two kicks downed inside the 20 yard line, while his 468 yards were the second-most in the program's NCAA era.
• Day, who is Utah Tech's career leader in total punts (238) and punt yardage (9,960), punted nine times for 372 yards (41.3 ypp) vs. Austin Peay (10/19) ... that effort came after he punted nine times for 383 yards (42.6 ypp) three weeks ago at Tarleton State (10/12), with a career-best five punts of those downed inside the Texan 20-yard line ... Day is also third on Utah Tech's career yards/punt list (41.84 ypp).
 • Day enters the week at the NCAA Division I leader at both FBS and FCS subdivisions in total punts (77) and punt yardage (3,215), and is the UAC leader in punts I20 (19) and second in 50-plus yard punts (11).
 
#AB3FOREVER: Just prior to the start of the 2024 campaign Utah Tech announced that junior running back Chris Street was awarded the No. 3 jersey for the upcoming season.
        The awarding of the No. 3 jersey is the fifth instance in what has become an annual tradition honoring the memory of former Trailblazer football player Abraham Reinhardt, who passed away unexpectedly on March 22, 2019. 
        Head coach Lance Anderson noted that he recently took some time to get familiar with the story of Reinhardt, both as a student-athlete and as a young man. He quickly realized the importance and the impact this tradition has on the Trailblazer football program, a tradition he is very eager to continue.
        "Once I heard the story about Abe Reinhardt, the kind of person he was, the kind of football player he was, and his tragic passing, I was very touched and felt like this is something we need to continue," said Coach Anderson. "I felt it was very important that our team understands who he was and what this jersey truly represents.
        "I have been impressed by Chris since I got here," Coach Anderson added. "His outgoing personality, his positive outlook, and I really feel like he also represents all the other traits that we talked about what this jersey represents. Toughness, hard work, accountability, trust, leadership – Chris demonstrates all those qualities, and I think he'll do a great job wearing that jersey and representing Abe."
 
ABOUT THE WEST GEORGIA "WOLVES": West Georgia will play its first-ever game in the State of Utah, and will be making just its second trip to the Mountain West overall, when the Wolves visit Greater Zion Stadium on Saturday.
        In fact, the farthest west UWG has traveled to play a football game prior to this Saturday's game was Pueblo, Colo., for a D-II national semifinal playoff game at CSU-Pueblo 10 years ago (12/13/14). 
        Saturday's game will also mark UWG's final game of the 2024 season, and only its fourth road game of the year overall. All three of the Wolves' previous road games this season have resulted in losses in UAC play, the last coming in a tight 34-33 road loss at Central Arkansas (10/12). 
        UWG enters the weekend second in the UAC in passing offense (263.6 ypg). rushing defense (141.8 ypg) and total defense (360.9 ypg), and third in total offense (408.5 ypg). 
        The Wolves have utilized a two quarterback system, with sophomore QB Davin Wydner (6-5; 212) accounting for the majority of the yardage and workload. 
        Wydner has played in all 10 games and has thrown for 1,521 yards on 127-of-210 passing with seven touchdowns and only one interception. Wydner has also run for 288 yards on 54 carries and a team-high six TDs.  
        Meanwhile, senior QB Quincy Casey (6-1; 194) has 1,098 yards on 82-of-147 passings with 11 TDs and four interceptions in seven games. 
        Graduate RB Rajaez Mosley (5-7; 200) is the Wolves' leading rusher with 533 yards on 121 carries and four touchdowns, while junior WR Dylan Gary (6-5; 208) is the top UWG receiver with 769 yards on 45 receptions and a UAC-leading nine TDs. 
        On defense, redshirt sophomore LB Jay Carter (6-0; 225) leads the unit with 71 totals tackles, and sophomore DL Malik Charles (6-5; 255) is third in the UAC with 5.0 sacks. 
 
NEXT UP FOR THE TRAILBLAZERS: Utah Tech wraps up the 2024 season next Saturday, Nov. 23, with the annual "Battle For The Ax"  showdown at in-state rival Southern Utah. Kickoff inside Eccles Coliseum in Cedar City is set for 1 p.m. (MT).