Utah Tech gave visiting No. 19/20 Northern Arizona all it could handle and more, but the Trailblazers could not overcome a slow start and were felled by a 35-23 count on Saturday night inside Greater Zion Stadium.
The Trailblazers (0-4/0-1 Big Sky) found themselves staring at a 14-0 deficit in the early moments of the second quarter. NAU struck for the game's first touchdown late in the first quarter when, on play action, Lumberjack quarterback Ty Pennington found his tight end Jeter Purdy all alone over the midde for a 15-yard touchdown connection at the 5:22 mark on the game clock.
NAU (3-1, 1-0 Big Sky) later extended to a two-score advantage nearly two minutes into the second quarter thanks to a Kenveon Stone 8-yard run.
Utah Tech looked like it would answer that second 'Jack score on its ensuing possession after a pair of chunk plays helped set the Blazers up in the NAU red zone.
Ace Chatman rattled off a 20-yard run on 3
rd and 3 play, while quarterback
Bronson Barben hit tailback
Kona Crowell for a big 27-yard gain one play later to the NAU 21.
The Trailblazers got as close as the NAU 17, but two costly penalties took them out of field goal range and Utah Tech was forced to punt.
Still facing a the same two-score deficit coming out of the halftime break, Utah Tech clawed back into the game in third quarter, outscoring NAU 17-7 in the frame to make it a 21-17 game heading to the final 15 minutes.
The Trailblazers broke through, thanks to their defense, on NAU first possession of the second half, when on 3
rd and 11 on the Lumberjack 17,
Brady Sorenson stepped in front of a Pennington pass at the NAU 35.
The sophomore defensive back then turned back up field and won the race to the goal line for his first collegiate touchdown, which cut the deficit in half at 14-7.
Sorenson's pick-six was Utah Tech's first interception return for a touchdown in three years, with the last coming, coincidentally, in a road win at NAU in 2023 (
Sam Kanongata'a – 53 yards; 9/16/23).
Utah Tech's momentum was quickly dashed, albeit momentarily, two plays later when Pennington found Darius Haskin deep down the middle for a 63-yard catch-and-run touchdown that pushed NAU's lead back up to 21-7.
The Blazers countered on their next drive as they methodically marched 75 yards on 11 plays, with the payoff coming on a 15-yard Chatman touchdown run.
Utah Tech gained 57 of those 75 yards on the ground, including 37 from Chatman, who recorded his second rushing score of the young season.
Utah Tech's defense kept the vibe going by forcing a three-and-out on NAU next time with the football, and the Trailblazers responded with a 45-yard
Dax Iverson field goal with six seconds left to play in the third quarter.
NAU wrestled the momentum back on its next drive, which ended with a Pennington 7-yard scamper that pushed the Lumberjack advantage to 28-17.
After a Utah Tech three-and-out, the Trailblazer defense came up with another takeaway on NAU's next time with the football.
On 2
nd and 10 on the NAU 40, running back Quran Gossett had the ball knocked out by freshman safety
Shaun Niu Jr.
Fellow freshman
Ryan Tillman then came up with the loose ball at the bottom of the pile to set Utah Tech up at the NAU 43.
The Trailblazers turned that miscue into points six plays later when on 1
st and 10 on the NAU 25, Barben rolled left then passed back to the right to a wide-open Chatman at the 22 yard line. Chatman made the catch and raced untouched to end zone for his second touchdown of the night.
Utah Tech decided to go for a two-point conversion to pull to within a field goal, but NAU snuffed out the try and clung to a slim 28-23 lead.
NAU answered on its next possession with a dagger 33-yard Stone touchdown run, and the 'Jacks held off Utah Tech from there to escape with the road victory.
Chatman finished with a career-high 149 all-purpose yards on the night, highlighted by his second-career 100-yard rushing effort. The junior ran for a career-high 110 yards on 19 carries and caught four passes for team-high 39 yards.
Meanwhile, Chatman's two total touchdowns tied a career high he set last season in a home win over North Alabama (11/1/25).
Utah Tech finished with 266 yards of total offense on the night, with Barben throwing for 143 yards on 16-for-32 passing.
On defense, Niu Jr. racked up a game and career-high eight total tackles (7 solo) and was credited with a pass breakup to go with his first collegiate forced fumble. Linebacker
Will Alovao collected seven tackles and recorded one of Utah Tech's three tackles-for-loss, and Tillman tallied six stops along with his first career fumble recovery.
NAU compiled 495 yards of total offense in the win. Pennington accounted for 311 of those yards in the air on 18-for-27 passing with a pair of touchdowns, while Stone ran for 90 yards and two scores.
After three straight non-conference games, Utah Tech returns to Big Sky Conference play next Saturday when the Trailblazers head to Greeley to face Northern Colorado. Kick-off at Nottingham Field is set for 6 p.m. (MT).
