Skyhawks Football Game Day Notes

Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015 | 1 PM
Fort Lewis at Western State Colorado University | Gunnison, Colo. | Mountaineer Bowl
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Fort Lewis College lost their first home game of the season Saturday afternoon against No. 23 Colorado Mesa University.  It was the third straight week and fourth time this season the Skyhawks have played a nationally ranked team.
 
Jordan Doyle attempted a season high 33 passes Saturday against the Mavericks.  Juquelle Thompson returned a kickoff a season high 58 yards, and Sione Folaumoeloa posted a season high 2.5 tackles for loss.
 
CMU tallied a season high 51 rushing attempts against the Skyhawks.
 
Western State holds the all-time series against Fort Lewis, 37-15.  FLC is 8-19 when playing at Western State.
 
The last time the Skyhawks defeated the Mountaineers was Oct. 26, 2013 at WSCU.  The last time the two teams met was Nov. 1, 2014 in Durango, Colo.
 
The last two meetings between the two teams have been decided in the fourth quarter.  Last year in Durango, the Skyhawks led 16-0 before Western State rattled off 21 straight points to take a 21-16 lead.  FLC came back to regain the lead after a touchdown, 23-21, before WSCU scored with 1:19 left in regulation for the win (two-point conversion failed).  The year prior, FLC trailed 9-0 heading into the fourth quarter but scored 10 unanswered points for the 10-9 win.
 
Both the Skyhawks and Mountaineers head into Saturday's game with a 3-3 record.  WSCU is 3-5 overall.  All three wins have come in their last three games.  Conversely, all three of the Skyhawks RMAC losses have come in the last three games against nationally ranked teams.
 
Western State is led by running back Austin Ekeler.  Ekeler is one of four running backs in the league to average more than 100 rushing yards per game.  His 183.7 yards on the ground per game are second to CSU-Pueblo's Cameron McDondle (193.1 yards per game).  Ekeler leads the league in all-purpose yards (222.9 per game) and is second in scoring (13.7 points per game).
 
Defensively, the Mountaineers boast the top two tacklers in the conference.  Jacob Bernhard leads the league with 15.9 tackles per game and Jordan Woodyard is second with 10.4 tackles per game.  Bernhard also leads the league in tackles for loss (15.0-49 yards).
 
PJ Hall is averaging nearly 100 rushing yards per game.  In eight games, he has carried the ball 165 times for 778 yards and six touchdowns (97.2 yards per game).
 
Jordan Doyle has the seventh best passing efficiency in the league (127.6) and the fifth best total offense (208.4 yards per game).
 
Allen Thigpen's 42.3 yards per punt is the second best punting average in the RMAC.
 
Andrew Ike's 7.2 tackles per game are the 15th most in the league.  Teammate Daniel Walker is averaging 6.6 tackles per game for the 20th most in the RMAC.
 
In eight games, Michael Benabides has defended eight passes, with two of them resulting in interceptions.  He is ranked sixth in the league in passes defended.