2005 COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES
FOOTBALL WEEKLY RELEASE #7

Colorado School of Mines vs. Nebraska-Kearney
Saturday, October 8, 2005 - 1:00 pm
Brooks Field - Golden, Colo.

Click HERE for a complete .PDF version of the notes

ABOUT THE SERIES
Saturday’s game between Colorado School of Mines and Nebraska-Kearney will be the 15th all-time meeting between the schools. UNK holds an 11-3 advantage in the series and won nine straight before CSM captured a 34-10 win in Kearney last season. CSM has never won back-to-back games against the Lopers.

THE HEAD COACHES
Bob Stitt is in his sixth season as the head coach at CSM and claims a 37-25 (.597) overall record. Stitt’s winning percentage is the highest by a CSM football coach who has coached in at least 20 games and the highest for a modern day coach at CSM. In addition, his 37 wins are the third most in CSM history and trail only Marv Kay (84 wins from 1969-1995) and Fritz Brennecke (78 wins from 1947-1969). Stitt is 1-4 all-time against Nebraska-Kearney.

Nebraska-Kearney is led by sixth-year Head Coach Darrell Morris who is 39-19 (.672) overall. He is 4-1 all-time against CSM.

Morris’s .672 winning percentage is tops among the nine current RMAC head football coaches. He is closely followed by CSM’s Stitt who is second among current RMAC coaches with a .597 winning percentage.

ALL-TIME RECORD
CSM claims a 361-505-30 all-time record since its first collegiate football game in 1888, a 6-4 win over Denver University.

CSM vs. THE “N’s”
CSM is 39-61-6 all-time against schools that begin with the letter “N”. Included in that total is a 52-31 loss to Division I-AA Northern Colorado in Week 2.

RMAC OPENERS
CSM’s 45-13 win over Western State on Sept. 10 was the second straight year that the Orediggers won their RMAC opener. CSM is now 2-11-1 record in 14 all-time RMAC openers since 1992. Last year’s 58-0 win at Western State was the first time CSM won its RMAC opener in school history.

LAST TIME vs. NEBRASKA-KEARNEY (10/9/2004)
The Colorado School of Mines football team won its school-record ninth straight game and knocked off Nebraska-Kearney for the first time in 65 years, 34-10, on Saturday afternoon at Foster Field. Chad Friehauf was once again the offensive catalyst for Mines as he completed 28-of-38 passes for 320 yards and four touchdowns, including two to Jonny Chan, and also ran for 79 yards and another score as he had a hand in all five CSM touchdowns. Friehauf helped CSM extend a 21-10 halftime lead as he threw second half touchdowns to Chan (13-yards) and a 1-yarder early in the fourth quarter to Brent Chacon. Chan caught four passes for 130 yards and two touchdowns to lead the way. The Oredigger defense, which forced four turnovers, recorded three sacks and held the Loper offense to just 101 yards in the second half, was led by Daniel Leger who totaled 10 tackles, two interceptions and a sack on the afternoon. Mark Donnelly and Marin Richardson each recovered fumbles, while Donnelly also registered a sack.

STITT IN OPENERS
CSM Head Coach Bob Stitt is 4-2 in season openers at CSM after a 28-17 loss to Washburn to open the 2005 season. CSM lost its first game under Stitt, 43-34, to MidAmerica Nazarene but rebounded to win four straight season openers before the loss to Washburn. In the last 19 openers, CSM is 15-4. In overall season openers, CSM is 57-54-5.

BACK IT UP
Last season, the CSM football team captured its first RMAC Championship since 1958. A second consecutive RMAC Championship in 2005 would give CSM back-to-back conference titles for the first time since 1906-07.

PRESEASON RMAC POLL
CSM was picked second in the Preseason RMAC Poll with 17 points and three first place votes. Chadron State was voted first with 12 points and four first place votes, while Adams State received the other two first place votes and 25 points to finish third. Nebraska-Kearney was fourth with 30 points and was followed by Fort Hays (35), Mesa State (42), Fort Lewis (47), Western State (54) and New Mexico Highlands (62).

PRESEASON ALL-RMAC SELECTIONS
CSM had six players named to the Preseason All-RMAC Team. Senior Justin Gallas was named to the team as a wide receiver and punt return speacialist. Also earning honors were senior right guard Travis Yenne, junior linebacker Danny Sprague, senior linebacker Jared Heath, senior defensive end Mark Donnelly and senior cornerback Nick Gilbreath.

PRESEASON ALL-AMERICANS
The following CSM players received 2005 Preseason All-American honors

Justin Gallas Senior WR 6-1 185 Westminster, Colo.
Street and Smith’s First Team Lindy’s Second Team
CollegeSportsReport.com Fourth Team Don Hansen’s National Football Gazette

Travis Yenne Senior OL 6-4 290 Murietta, Calif.
Lindy’s Second Team Don Hansen’s National Football Gazette

Jared Heath Senior LB 6-0 220 Highlnds Ranch, CO
Don Hansen’s National Football Gazette

THE DRIVE FOR FIVE
With four straight winning seasons in the books, CSM will be going after its fifth straight winning season, a feat that has never been accomplished in program history. The squad needs to post a minimum of three more wins to accomplish the feat.

RULE OF TWO
The number two has been pretty kind to CSM recently. In 25 of the last 30 games, including all 13 last season, CSM had at least one player find the end zone two times. The Orediggers are 21-9 during that span.

RMAC SMACK
CSM’s win at Fort Hays State on Saturday extended the Orediggers RMAC winning streak to 13 straight games. The last time CSM lost an RMAC game was Nov. 1, 2003, a 48-18 setback at Mesa State.

IT WAS ALL REGULAR
CSM had won 13 straight regular season games dating to the 2003 season before the season opener loss to Washburn. The last time it lost a regular season game before that was Nov. 1, 2003, at Mesa State (48-18).

HOME SWEET HOME
Prior to the Aug. 27 loss to Washburn, CSM had won nine straight at home, six last season and three in 2003. From 2001 to present, CSM is 19-7 at Brooks Field.

TOPPING THE CENTURY MARK
CSM has had at least one wide receiver top the 100-yard plateau in 22 of the last 24 games. The only two times it did not happen was the 2004 regular season finale at Adams State when Jonny Chan led the team with 83 yards and the Sept. 24 win at Chadron State when Brent Chacon led the squad with 40 yards.

THIS JUST IN
Senior wide receiver Justin Gallas has proven he is among the best receivers in the RMAC and all of Division II. Through six games, he leads the team with 54 receptions, 707 yards and five touchdowns. In his stellar career, Gallas has totaled a school-record 229 catches, 3,045 receiving yards and 20 touchdowns. In Saturday’s win at Fort Hays, Gallas broke the previous RMAC record of 220 catches by Johnny Cox of Fort Lewis (1990-93) and his 229 career receptions are tied for 20th all-time in Division II. He now needs just 233 receiving yards to break the CSM career record of 3,302 set by Jonny Chan (2001-04). Gallas has gone over 100 receiving yards 13 times in his career, and is averaging 244.5 all-purpose yards per game this season, which is among the best in the nation.

MEHL ON THE MOVE
Junior Garrett Mehl made his first career start Sept. 3 at Northern Colorado and completed 37-of-54 passes for 395 yards and a touchdown. His 395 yards passing was the most by a CSM quarterback in his first career start. He followed that effort by accounting for 463 yards of total offense and six touchdowns in a 45-13 win over Western State on Sept. 10. He completed 23-of-33 passes for 349 yards and three scores and also ran 16 times for 114 yards and three more touchdowns.

FUNKY COLD MEDINA
Senior quarterback Danny Medina came into the Sept. 17 game against South Dakota in the fourth quarter and led CSM back from a 41-13 deficit to tie the game at 41-41 and send it into overtime. Medina completed 17-of-22 passes for 242 yards and two touchdowns, including a 27-yard “Hail Mary” touchdown pass to Justin Gallas on the final play of regulation. Since that time, Medina has gone 42-of-58 for 505 yards, four touchdowns and just one pick in wins at Chadron State and at Fort Hays State.

GO FLO
Junior running back Bryan Florendo has been solid as the No. 1 running back this season. He has 132 touches (rushing and receiving) for 844 yards and 10 touchdowns this year, including four scores in the Sept. 17 loss to South Dakota (three rush and one receiving). In the Sept. 24 win over Chadron State, Florendo ran 21 times for a career-best 171 yards and followed that up with 21 carries for 141 yards and three more touchdowns in Saturday’s win at Fort Hays State. He leads the team with 10 touchdowns and 60 points this year.

THE CURL ROUTE
Sophomore wide receiver Michael Curl is making his prescence felt on the field. The Blinn J.C. transfer has caught 20 passes for 291 yards and one touchdown this season and his 14.6 yards per catch is tops on the team. In Saturday’s win at Fort Hays State, Curl hauled in six passes for a career-best 90 yards.

EXPERIENCE UP FRONT
The CSM offensive line is one of the most experienced groups this year. The line features four returning starters from last year’s group which allowed just 15 sacks in 13 games and none through the first three games. The group has given up nine sacks this year. The four returnees include junior left tackle Zach Ballard, senior All-American right guard Travis Yenne, junior two-time All-RMAC honoree Nick Belden and sophomore right guard Stephen Immel. In addition, sophomore James Reeves has seen significant playing time on the right side due to injuries.

ON THE DEFENSIVE
The CSM defense returns nine starters from last season, along with senior cornerback Grant Newton, who was a two year starter before missing last season with an injury. In all, eight of the projected 11 starters on defense have earned All-RMAC honors, while three players have earned All-American accolades in Newton, senior cornerback Nick Gilbreath and senior linebacker Jared Heath at some point in their careers.

TURNING IT OVER
Last season, the CSM defense forced 32 turnovers in 13 games and had three or more turnovers six times. CSM forced a season-high six turnovers in its 52-33 win over Midwestern State in the first round of the NCAA II Playoffs. In 2005, the Oredigger defense has forced 11 turnovers in the first six games and is minus-3 in turnover margin.

PICK OFFS
In each of the last four seasons, a CSM defensive back has recorded at least five interceptions. Three of the players who accomplished the feat return this year. Junior free safety Tim Miller posted six last season, while senior cornerback Nick Gilbreath tallied five in 2003 and senior cornerback Grant Newton notched eight in 2002. Junior linebacker Luke Salmans picked off his team-leading second pass of the year in the win at Chadron State on Sept. 24, while Newton notched his second pick of 2005 Saturday at Fort Hays State to tie Salmans for the team lead.

IT’S MILLER TIME
Junior free safety Tim Miller enjoyed a breakout season last year en route to First Team All-RMAC honors after leading the team with six interceptions, five of which came in the first four games. He also finished with 72 tackles, three forced fumbles and three pass breakups. Miller picked off his first pass of the season in the loss at Northern Colorado on Sept. 3 and returned in 33 yards. He is currently sixth on the team with 29 tackles.

TURN UP THE “HEAT”HER
Senior linebacker Jared Heath has begun the season just as expected as he earned RMAC Defensive Player of the Week honors following his 11 tackle performance in the season opening loss to Washburn on Aug. 27. In addition, he posted three tackles for loss, two sacks and recovered a fumble. In the Sept. 17 loss to South Dakota, Heath posted a school-record 20 tackles en route to RMAC Defensive Player of the Week honors. He currently leads the team with 59 tackles, six tackles for loss and three sacks. During his tenure in Golden, Heath has amassed 337 tackles and 42 tackles for loss. Last year, he recorded 117 tackles and as a sophomore, Heath was in on a then school-record 114 stops.

OH DANNY BOY
Junior linebacker Danny Sprague will once again be counted on to control the middle of the field. Sprague has been a regular for the CSM defense since making his first career start two seasons ago in a 37-7 win over Fort Lewis. In that game, Sprague posted eight tackles and two sacks en route to RMAC Defensive Player of the Week honors. Last year, he totaled 103 tackles, including 17 in a 40-39 win over Chadron State. In the Sept. 24 win against the Eagles, Sprague was in on a team-high 10 tackles. He is currently second on the squad with 40 tackles.

A.J. TO THE RESCUE
Freshman linebacker A.J. Montalvo was forced into action against Western State on Sept. 10 due to injuries at the position. The true freshman came through with three tackles, including a tackle for a four yard loss on his first play from scrimmage. Of his five tackles this year, two are for losses.

RING ‘EM UP
Senior defensive lineman Caleb Ring had one of his finer games in a 45-13 win over Western State. Ring posted three tackles, a half sack and also recovered a fumble. In Saturday’s win at Fort Hays, Ring was in two tackles, both sacks.

READY, WILLING AND ABEL
Sophomore placekicker Aaron Abel is having a great year. In the Sept. 3 loss at Northern Colorado, Abel broke the CSM career record for extra points as he made all four PAT’s to raise his career total to 70 (now at 87) . Abel has nailed 24-of-25 extra point attempts and 11-of-13 field goals, including a career long 45-yarder in the win at Chadron State on Sept. 24. He also connected on the game-winning 24-yard field goal with three seconds left against Chadron. In Saturday’s win at FHSU, Abel nailed all four of his field goal attempts. He is second on the team in scoring with 57 points.

WELCOME BACK
CSM will welcome back a pair of seniors after the duo missed last season due to injuries. Returning are senior cornerback Grant Newton and senior wide receiver Andrew Schmid. Newton, an All-American honoree in 2002 after leading the RMAC with eight interceptions, has notched 190 career tackles and 11 interceptions, which is four off tying the school-record. Schmid has hauled in 75 passes for 942 yards and nine touchdowns in his career. As a sophomore, Schmid tied for the team lead with seven touchdown catches.

WORKIN’ OVERTIME
The 44-41 overtime loss to South Dakota on Sept. 17 was the first overtime game for CSM since a 52-45 overtime victory at Fort Hays State on Sept. 22, 2001, a span of 45 games.

EDGING THE EAGLES
Saturday’s 27-26 last second win at Chadron State was the second consecutive year that CSM defeated the Eagles in the final seconds. This year, CSM trailed 26-24 with a minute to play and drove 55 yards for Aaron Abel’s game-winning kick. Last year, CSM trailed 39-25 with just over six minutes to play and won it with 39 seconds left when Chad Friehauf scored on a QB keeper and then hit Derek Dykstra for a two-point conversion.

POINTS ON THE BOARD
Saturday’s win at Fort Hays State extended CSM’s streak of not being shutout to 59 straight games dating back to a 47-0 loss at Mesa State on Oct. 16, 1999. During Bob Stitt’s tenure as coach at CSM, the Orediggers have scored at least 30 points 37 times (out of 60 games).