2002 Colorado School of Mines Football
(3-1 Overall, 0-1 RMAC)
Week #5 Notes - vs. Fort Hays State (1-3, 0-2)

THE HEAD COACHES: Bob Stitt (Doane College ‘86) is in his third season at the helm of the Oredigger football program. He claims an overall record of 12-12, including a 5-11 mark in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. A year ago, Stitt coached CSM to a 7-4 mark, which marked the most wins for a football team at Mines since 1958 and the first winning season in Golden since 1991. Fort Hays State is led by second-year Head Coach Tim O’Connor, who claims an overall record of 4-11. During his ten seasons with the Tiger football program, the teams have compiled a record of 56-55-3.

ALL-TIME SERIES: Fort Hays leads the all-time series with CSM, 12-3, including wins in 12 of the last 13 meetings. However, CSM defeated the Tigers, 52-45, in overtime last season in Hays, Kan.

NEXT WEEK: The Orediggers will be back on the road to face Nebraska-Kearney in Kearney, Neb., at 1:00 pm.

TAKE IT TO THE HOUSE: Senior wide receiver/kick returner Brian Sump recorded his sixth career touchdown off a return with a 45-yard punt return for a touchdown in the victory over South Dakota Tech. He now has five career kickoff returns for touchdowns and one career touchdown off a punt return.

LONG AND LONGER: The Orediggers executed the two longest plays in school history in the 49-7 victory over South Dakota Tech on September 7. Senior quarterback Nate Jackson tied an NCAA record when he connected with sophomore Jonny Chan for a 99-yard touchdown pass. Not to be outdone, backup sophomore quarterback Chad Friehauf threw a 97-yard touchdown strike to sophomore Andrew Schmid.

LAST TIME OUT (9/21/02): The Colorado School of Mines football team dropped its first game of the season as Chadron State handed the Orediggers a 35-21 setback at Brooks Field on Saturday afternoon in RMAC football action. The Eagles jumped out to a 21-0 lead 11 minutes into the first quarter. as quarterback Shawn Eisenreich hooked up with Gregg Trepka from 8-yards out to open the scoring with 9:40 left. Austin Forster added a 7-yard touchdown run and Amos Davis a 55-yard interception return for a touchdown to provide Chadron its 21-0 lead with 4:07 left in the first quarter. Mines responded with a pair of scores to end the first quarter trailing 21-14. Senior wide receiver Brian Sump opened the Oredigger’s scoring with a 20-yard touchdown reception from sophomore quarterback Chad Friehauf. Following an interception by CSM sophomore Brandon Carerra deep in Eagle territory, Friehauf connected with sophomore wide receiver Jonny Chan from 13-yards out to slice the Oredigger deficit to 21-14. Each team tacked on one second quarter touchdown as Chadron claimed a 28-21 lead at the half. The Eagles scored the lone touchdown of the second half on the opening possession of the third quarter as Eisenreich plunged into the end zone from 1-yard out. The drive took 13 plays, went for 70 yards and consumed 7:27. CSM was led by Friehauf who completed 29-of-41 passes for 305 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Sump concluded the game with nine catches for 117 yards and two touchdowns, while sophomore strong safety Daniel Leger led the defense with a game-high 12 tackles.

LAST TIME VS. FORT HAYS (9/22/01): The Colorado School of Mines football team pulled off one of the most dramatic wins in program history with a stunning 52-45 overtime victory against Fort Hays in Hays, Kan. It marked the first time since 1972 that Mines had won in Hays. The Orediggers scored first to claim a 7-0 lead, however, the Tigers would take a 25-9 lead at halftime. The Tigers then scored the first touchdown of the third quarter to claim a 32-9 lead. However Mines quarterback Nate Jackson hooked up with Dayven Johnston for a pair of scores to slice the lead to 10 points (32-22). A pair of touchdowns by Fort Hays pushed the advantage back to 23 points heading into the final stanza. CSM scored 23 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to send the game into overtime. Included in the frenzy was a 62-yard TD pass from Jackson to Brian Sump, a safety, an onside kick recovery and a 30-yard TD pass with one second left and a two-point conversion to send the game into overtime. In the extra session, Sump caught a 2-yard pass from Jackson on Mines’ fourth play from scrimmage and Tolu Lasaki snared an interception on the Tiger’s overtime possession to seal the victory. Jackson finished 36-of-58 for 494 yards and seven touchdowns, while Johnston caught 14 passes for 244 yards and five touchdowns.

THE THEIF: Sophomore cornerback Grant Newton is making a name for himself early in the season. Through the first four games, Newton is ranked second in the conference with three picks. His pick against Western New Mexico on September 21 proved to be a pivotal one as he took it 93 yards for a touchdown to extend the Oredigger lead to 27-10 early in the fourth quarter. In addition, Newton has posted 16 tackles through the first four games.

IT’S BEEN AWHILE: The CSM football team has not compiled back-to-back winning seasons in more than 25 years. In fact, the last time it happened was 1975 and 1976. The 1975 squad posted a 6-4 record and the 1976 team followed with a 5-4 record. Head Coach Bob Stitt and his unit will be out to follow last year’s 7-4 record with another winning season and post CSM’s first consecutive winning seasons in 26 years.

BUSTIN LOOSE: Senior wide receiver Brian Sump enjoyed his best day as a receiver this season and in his career during the 34-10 victory at Western New Mexico. Sump caught eight passes for 233 yards and three scores. The 233 receiving yards was a career high and were just 11 shy of the school record for receiving yards set by Dayven Johnston in last year’s 52-45 overtime victory at Fort Hays. Through three games, Sump leads the squad with 26 catches for 465yards and six scores. In addition, he leads the RMAC with 116.2 receiving yards per game, 193.0 all-purpose yards per contest, seven touchdowns, punt return average (20.7) and an average of 10.5 points per game.

RECORD SETTER: With his three TD receptions at Western New Mexico, senior wide receiver Brian Sump broke the school record for career touchdown receptions and now has 23 for his career. In addition, Sump is just 18 catches shy of breaking the CSM record for career receptions (144).

I’VE GOT YOUR BACK: Backup sophomore quarterback Chad Friehauf has been sensational while filling in for the injured Nate Jackson this year. Through four games, the duo claims very similar numbers as each has completed 43 passes in 66 attempts. Jackson has thrown for 679 yards, seven touchdowns and three interceptions, while Friehauf has thrown for 627 yards, six touchdowns and three picks. Jackson (177.48) and Friehauf (165.86) are the top rated passers in the RMAC.

SACK MASTER: Senior defensive end Casey Kraft has made a smooth transition from linebacker to defensive end this season. Through four games, Kraft is tied for second in the RMAC with four sacks, including three solo. In addition, he registered a pair of sacks in Saturday’s loss to Chadron State. This season, Kraft has tallied 15 tackles, including eight for loss.

ON THE OFFENSE: Through four games, the School of Mines offense is ranked near the top of the RMAC in several offensive categories. Below is a list of where the team ranks in several categories in the RMAC...

SCORING OFFENSE 1st, 29.5 ppg
PASS OFFENSE 1st, 333.2 ypg
TOTAL OFFENSE 1st, 404.8 ypg
PASS EFFICIENCY 1st, 168.0
SCORING POINTS 1st, 118
FIRST DOWNS 1st, 88
TIME OF POSSESSION 2nd, 31:54 per game

BUT DON’T FORGET THE DEFENSE: Not to be outdone, the Mines defense has been extremely impressive in the first four games. After allowing more than 480 yards of total offense and 35 points per game last season, the Oredigger defense is one of the top-ranked in the conference. Below is a list of where CSM ranks in several team categories in the RMAC...

SCORING DEFENSE 1st, 13.0 ppg
PASS DEFENSE EFFICIENCY 1st, 90.3
RED ZONE DEFENSE 1st, 5-of-12 (41.7 percent)
POINTS ALLOWED 1st, 52
SACKS T3rd, 12 for 109 yards lost

SCOUTING FORT HAYS: Fort Hays enters the week at 1-3 overall and 0-2 in the RMAC following a 30-6 setback at Adams State on Saturday. Adams State scored 27 unanswered second half points, 21 one of them in a 79-second third-quarter span to claim the win. The Grizzlies forced three Tiger turnovers and held the FHSU attack to just 142 yards of total offense, only 34 of it through the air. For the season, quarterback Dustin Demel has completed 30-of-61 passes for 345 yards, five touchdowns and one interception. Jason Broom leads the Tiger ground attack with 365 yards and three touchdowns on 82 attempts, while Beau Rebel has caught nine balls for 142 yards and three scores. The Tiger defense is led by Landon Johnson who has tallied a team-high 35 tackles, inlcuding one sack.