2004 COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES
FOOTBALL WEEKLY RELEASE #11

#8 Colorado School of Mines (10-0, 7-0 RMAC) vs. Adams State (7-3, 6-1 RMAC)
Saturday, November 6 , 2004 - 1:00 pm
Rex Field - Alamosa, Colorado

Click HERE for a complete .PDF version of the notes

BOB STITT • DOANE (1986)
5th season as Mines Head Coach
32-21 Overall Record (.604)
20-19 RMAC Record (.513)
The 2004 season is Bob Stitt’s fifth as the head coach of the Colorado School of Mines football squad. He has Mines off to school record 10-0 start (7-0 RMAC) and has guided the team to a school-record 12 straight wins dating back to last season and wins in 13 of the last 14 games. Stitt has also guided the Orediggers to their fourth straight winning season, a feat that had not been accomplished at CSM since 1912-15. During his time at the helm, Stitt has led the Orediggers to an overall record of 32-21, including a 20-19 mark in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. Stitt’s .604 winning percentage is the highest by a Mines football coach who has coached in at least 20 games and the highest for a modern day coach at CSM. In 2003, Stitt led Mines to a 6-5 mark, marking the third consecutive winning season by the program. It was the first time since 1913-15 that the Orediggers had posted three straight winning seasons. Stitt led the 2001 and 2002 teams to identical 7-4 marks and the seven wins in 2001 were the most by the program since 1958 and also the first winning season for Mines since 1991. The 2001-02 seasons also marked the first time since 1975-76 that Mines football produced back-to-back winning seasons. In addition, it marked the first time in the history of the program that CSM teams produced a combined 14 victories in consecutive seasons. During his tenure at Mines, Stitt has coached 36 All-Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference honorees. He has also developed nine All-Region players and two All-Americans, including Brian Sump, who was named the National Special Teams Player of the Year in 2001 and signed a free agent contract with the San Diego Chargers in April of 2003.

SERIES HISTORY: Adams State leads the all-time series with Mines, 32-20-2, but the Orediggers have won the last three meetings and six of the last eight overall.

LAST CSM WIN: 26-22 in 2003
LAST ADAMS WIN: 29-25 in 2000

LAST TIME vs. ADAMS STATE (11/8/03): Colorado School of Mines running back Craig Van Horn scored on a 1-yard run with 28 seconds remaining in the game to life the Orediggers to a 26-22 victory over Adams State at Brooks Field. Mines claimed a 16-0 lead after one quarter, but the Grizzlies would score 14 unanswered points in the second quarter to slice their deficit to 16-14 at the break. Scott Hahn connected on a 20 yard field goal with 10:45 to play in the third quarter put Mines up 19-14 entering the fourth quarter, but the Grizzlies again responded and took their first lead of the contest with 6:37 to play when Lenard Semajuste plunged into the end zone from 1-yard out. The two-point conversion made it 22-19, but after an Oredigger punt, the Mines defense forced a three and out and drove 75 yards in nine plays to set up VanHorn’s heroics. The Grizzlies, who took the ensuing kickoff on their own 30 yard line, did manage to move the ball to the Oredigger 36 yard line with five seconds to play. However, a Hail Mary attempt was batted down as time expired. Chad Friehauf finished 21-of-30 for 262 yards, one touchdown and an interception to lead Mines.

UP NEXT FOR MINES: CSM will await word on the NCAA Division II Playoff pairings. The pairings will be announced on Sunday, Nov. 7, on ESPNews between 11:00 am - 12:00 pm.

COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES ON THE INTERNET
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http://athletics.mines.edu.

JOIN THE OREDIGGER EMAIL LIST
Get all the latest news on all of Colorado School of Mines Athletics by signing up for the Orediggers’ E-Mail List. Receive daily updates, game recaps and press releases on all of Mines’ athletic teams by emailing Sports Information Director Greg Murphy at gjmurphy@mines.edu. You can sign up to receive updates on one sport, numerous sports or all sports. Please indicate in your email what sports you would like to be included on or if you would like to be included for all sports.

SILVER AND BLUE LUNCHEONS
Every Wednesday throughout the season, the Colorado School of Mines athletics department will host a Silver and Blue Luncheon in the Ben Parker Student Center. The lunch, which begins at 11:30 am, features speeches by all of the in-season coaches. For more information, call 303-384-2254.

PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN
Junior cornerback Nick Gilbreath was named to the 2004 Don Hansen’s National Football Gazette Preseason All-American Team. A year ago, Gilbreath led the team with nine pass breakups and five interceptions en route to First Team All-RMAC, Second Team All-State and Second Team All-Region honors. Gilbreath, who picked off four passes in the first five games of the 2003 season, also totaled 49 tackles, including one for loss.

PRESEASON ALL-RMAC HONOREES
Nick Gilbreath, senior wide receiver Jonny Chan and junior punt returner Justin Gallas were all named to the 2004 All-Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) Preseason Team as voted on by the nine conference coaches. The trio was also named to the d2football.com Preseason All-Southwest Region Team.

MINES PICKED FIFTH IN RMAC POLL
CSM was picked to finish fifth out of nine teams in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll. Mesa State, the defending RMAC Champions, received six first place votes and 12 points to top the poll. Chadron State earned the other three first place votes and 13 total points to finish second in the voting. Nebraska-Kearney (23 points) was third and was followed by Fort Hays State (34), Colorado Mines (35), Adams State and Western State (44 points), Fort Lewis (57) and New Mexico Highlands (62).

ADAMS STATE HEAD COACH
The Grizzlies are coached by fifth-year Head Coach Wayne McGinn, a 1981 graduate of Adams State. He claims a 21-32 mark during his time at ASC and a 27-37 mark during his six years of coaching.

ABOUT ADAMS STATE
The Grizzlies are 7-3 overall and in second place in the RMAC with a 6-1 mark. Last weekend, ASC earned a 35-13 win over Western State in Alamosa. Scott Coxon led the Grizzlies as he completed 12-of-24 passes for 277 yards, three touchdowns and one interception and also ran eight times for 58 yards and two more touchdowns. He was named RMAC Player of the Week for his performance. Isa Abdul Aziz caught touchdown passes of 27 and 10 yards, while Kyle Jackson caught three balls for 101 yards, including a 53-yard touchdown.

WHEN THE GRIZZLIES HAVE THE BALL
Adams State is led on offense by Coxon who is 115-of-270 for 1,756 yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 picks. He also has 313 rushing yards and four scores. Chris Ross leads the ground game with 136 carries for 634 yards and two scores, while Gene Mejia leads the team in receptions (35) and yards (596). Isa Abdul-Aziz and Kyle Jackson each have five receiving touchdowns. As a team, Adams averages 20.4 points and 315.7 yards per game.

AND WHEN THEY DON’T
The Grizzly defense is regarded as one of the best, if not the best, in the entire RMAC. They are ranked 6th in the nation in pass efficiency defense (84.5) 7th in scoring defense (13.6 ppg), 10th in total defense (264.2 ypg), 15th in rushing defense (98.3 ypg) and 32nd in turnover margin (0.7 pg). Adam McGurk, the 2003 RMAC Defensive Player of the Year, leads the team with 114 tackles (17th in Division II), 16 for losses, 6.5 sacks and five forced fumbles, which is first in the nation. Charles Allgood leads the squad with five picks, 19th in the country, and is also sixth in passes defended (2.0 pdpg).

SOMETHING SPECIAL
ASC junior punter Jeff Williams has had an outstanding season for the Grizzlies. He has punted 66 times for 3,173 yards and has 15 punts inside the 20-yard line. His average of 48.1 yards per kick is tied for tops in all of college football with Brandon Fields of Michigan State. Williams also has a long punt of 73 yards this season.

FOR ALL THE MARBLES
Saturday’s game will determine if Mines will win the RMAC Championship outright of if it will share the title with Adams State. The Orediggers stand at 7-0 in the RMAC, while the Grizzlies are 6-1. A win by Mines would give them the outright title, but an Adams State victory would mean co-champions between the two squads. Mines has not won a conference title since 1958.

THE RANKINGS
Colorado School of Mines moved up in every national poll following its 42-21 win over Mesa State on Saturday. The Orediggers moved up one spot in the d2football.com poll to 12th, four slots in the American Football Coaches Association Poll to 8th and four slots in Don Hansen’s Football Gazette Top-40 to 9th and two spots to 7th in the CollegeSportsReport.com Poll.

Adams State is ranked 37th in Don Hansen’s Football Gazette Top-40, 31st in the CollegeSportsReport.com Poll and received one votte in this week’s AFCA Poll.

IN THE REGION
Following is the fifth edition of the Southwest Regional Rankings with records and conference. The top six teams qualify for the postseason and the top two teams will earn byes in the first round The No. 3 and No. 4 seeds will host the opening round with the top two seeds hosting second round games.

1. Northwest Missouri (10-0) - Mid-America Intercollegiate
2. Pittsburgh State (10-0) - Mid-America Intercollegiate
3. Texas A&M Kingsville (7-1) - Lone Star
4. COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES (10-0) - RMAC
5. Midwestern State (7-2) - Lone Star
6. Southeast Oklahoma (7-2) - Lone Star
7. Central Oklahoma (7-2) - Lone Star
8. Chadron State (7-3) - RMAC
9. ADAMS STATE (7-3) - RMAC

Pittsburgh State is the top-ranked team in all four national polls, while Northwest Missouri State comes in at No. 2 in every national poll.

MINES LAST TIME OUT (10/30/04)
The 12th-ranked Colorado School of Mines football team clinched a share of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Title with a 42-21 victory over Mesa State at Brooks Field. Mesa State took a 7-0 lead less than three minutes into the game when Charles Dukes scampered 55-yards for a score. After the Mavericks forced Mines to punt, the Mavericks were on the verge of taking a 14-0 lead with 10 minutes to play, but CSM senior strong safety Daniel Leger (Arvada, Colo./Faith Christian) stuffed Dukes just short of the end zone on fourth and one to keep the score 7-0. It was all Orediggers from there as they went on to score 35 unanswered points in moving to 10-0 overall and 7-0 in the RMAC. Senior quarterback Chad Friehauf got things going with 2:22 left in the first quarter with a 4-yard touchdown run. He then threw a 62-yard scoring pass to junior wide receiver Justin Gallas to make it 14-7 at the half. Senior running back Craig Van Horn then took things over as he scored on touchdown runs of 8, 1 and 3 yards in the third quarter to extend the lead to 35-7. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Sean McGraw threw a 49-yard touchdown pass to Jesse Preston, but Mines responded as Friehauf connected with Gallas for a 53-yard scoring toss to make it 42-14. McGraw threw his second touchdown pass of the game, a 12-yarder to Jeff Mowry, for the final score with 5:38 to play. Friehauf finished 18-of-27 for 287 yards and two touchdowns and also ran 14 times for 110 yards and another score. Van Horn toted the ball 19 times for 110 yards and three touchdowns, whiel Gallas hauled in eight passes for 202 yards and two touchdowns. The CSM defense was led by junior linebacker Jared Heath who amassed 14 tackles, while sophomore linebacker Austin Wagner registered a career-best 13 stops. Leger finished with seven tackles, one sack and an interception.

STITT IN OPENERS
CSM Head Coach Bob Stitt is now 4-1 in season openers at Mines after a 34-28 win at Washburn to open the 2004 season. CSM lost its first game under Stitt, 43-34, to MidAmerica Nazarene but has rebounded to win its last four season openers. In the last 17 openers, CSM is 15-3. In overall season openers, CSM is 57-53-5.

THE DRIVE FOR FIVE BEGINS ... IN 2005
The win over Fort Hays State on Oct. 2 assured the Orediggers of finishing above .500 for the fourth straight season, a first since 1912-15. In 2005, the Orediggers will go after their fifth consecutive winning season, a feat that has never occured at CSM.

65 YEAR ANNIVERSARY
The Oredigger Football Program is celebrating the 65th Anniversary of one of the greatest teams in school-history. The 1939 team posted a perfect 8-0 record and outscored its opponents, 268-45, that season. Leading the way was running back Lloyd Madden who was college football’s leading scorer that year with 141 points and ended the season rushing for 1,316 yards on 92 carries (14.3 yards per carry) and scoring 23 touchdowns. That same year, he captured the Blanchard Trophy as Colorado’s Most Outstanding Athlete.

ON A ROLL
Saturday’s 42-21 win over Mesa State extended the Orediggers school-record winning streak to 11 straight dating back to 2003. Dating back to last year, CSM has won 14 of its last 15 contests on the gridiron. The last loss was on Nov. 1, 2003, a 48-18 loss at Mesa State.

ON A ROLL PART, PART II
Saturday’s win also moved the Orediggers to 10-0 overall and extended the school-record for most wins in a season. The previous best mark was set by the 1939 team which posted a perfect 8-0 mark, while the 1912 team went 8-1.

RECORD BREAKER
Senior quarterback Chad Friehauf keeps adding to the career records he has broken at Mines. He holds school records for pass attempts (1,049), completions (655), passing yards (8,691) and touchdowns (75).

“HAUF” THE HOOK
Senior quarterback Chad Friehauf has been on fire this season and is seriously contending for the Harlon Hill Trophy, presented annually to the top player in Division II. He has completed 266-of-362 (73.5%) passes for 3,464 yards and 30 touchdowns. Friehauf, whose passing efficiency is 177.3, has thrown just seven interceptions and had his streak of consecutive passes without an interception end at 180 against Fort Hays. Friehauf is ranked first in the nation in total offense (398.4 ypg), second in passing efficiency (177.3) and has the Mines passing game ranked first in the nation at 358.4 yards per game, second in total offense (535.6 ypg) and 10th in scoring (39.7 ppg) among Division II schools.

GREAT GAMES IN 2004
Senior quarterback Chad Friehauf has turned in some outstanding performances in 2004. He has turned in the fourth and ninth best single game total offensive yards performances this season against Western State (502 yds) and Chadron State (484 yds). He also holds the 17th best passing day of 415 yards against Western State and the 18th best against Chadron State (411 yds). In addition, Friehauf has completed 33 passes against Fort Hays State and Fort Lewis, good enough for the 16th best in Division II this year in a single game.

CHASING THE RECORD BOOK
With his 397 yards of total offense against Mesa State, Friehauf moved into 21st place all-time in Division II with 9,300 career yards. Friehauf is also 13th all-time in Division II with a 152.2 pass efficiency, 26th on the all-time passing yards list (8,691) and needs five touchdowns to move into a tie for 18th place on the all-time list.

RECORD BOOK PART II
Chad Friehauf is just 318 yards away from breaking the all-time single season Division II record for total offense in a season. With 3,984 yards of offense this season, he needs 318 yards over the remainder of the season to break the record of 4,301 yards set by Wilkie Perez of Glenville State in 1997.

RECORD BOOK PART III
Chad Friehauf has already turned in one of the best single seasons by a Division II quarterback. He has the 6th best total offense single season (3,984), the 14th best single season passing yards per game total (346.6 ypg), the 27th best single season passing yardage total (3,464) and is five touchdown passes from entering the top-20 single season list (35).

FRIEHAUF vs. WESTERN STATE
Senior quarterback Chad Friehauf will be upset not to see Western State on the schedule anymore. In three career games against the Mountaineers, he completed 67-of-101 (.663) passes for 1,135 yards, 10 touchdowns and one interception. He surpassed the 400 yard mark two times and CSM was 3-0 against the Mountaineers.

THE EAGLES HAVE FINALLY LANDED
CSM’s 40-39 victory over Chadron State on Sept. 25 was the Oredigger’s first over CSC since a 51-28 victory on Oct. 16, 1993, a span of 10 games. It was also just the second win over the Eagles in the last 17 meetings.

AND SO HAVE THE LOPERS
CSM’s 34-10 victory at Nebraska-Kearney on Oct. 9 was the team’s first win over Kearney since 1939. UNK had won the previous nine meetings between the schools.

AND FINALLY, THE MAVERICKS
The Orediggers 42-21 win over Mesa State on Oct. 30 at Brooks Field was the first win for Mines over the Mavericks since 1997, a span of seven games. With the win, CSM Head Coach Bob Stitt has now defeated every school in the RMAC at least once. Prior to this season, he had never knocked off Chadron, Kearney or Mesa.

RULE OF TWO
The number two has been pretty kind to Mines recently. In 18 of the last 21 games, Mines had at least one player find the end zone two times and CSM has posted a 16-5 record in those games.

TWO IS BETTER THAN ONE
How many coaches in the country would go for two points to win a game in the final minute at home? Not many, but one resides in Golden, Colo. CSM Head Coach Bob Stitt opted to go for two points after pulling to within 39-38 with 35 seconds left against Chadron State on Saturday. The gamble paid off as quarterback Chad Friehauf hit a wide open Derek Dykstra in the end zone for the win.

HOP ON THE “VAN”
In Pittsburgh, the Steelers have tended to ride Jerome “The Bus” Bettis in dire times. Here in Golden, the Oredigger football team can always turn to senior running back Craig Van Horn when a big play is needed or when the team needs to grind out yards. Case in point, the win over Missouri Rolla on Sept. 4 when Van Horn ran 20 times for a career-high 185 yards and a touchdown. In addition, Van Horn came through in a large way against Chadron State on Sept. 25 as he busted through the line and went 36 yards to the house on a fourth-and-one on the first play of the fourth quarter to cut the CSM deficit to 25-22. He also grinded out 123 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries in a win over Fort Hays State on Oct. 2. In Saturday’s win over Mesa State, Van Horn helped out with the passing game struggling early and finished with 110 yards and a career-high three touchdown runs.

GO FLO GO
Van Horn’s backup, sophomore Bryan Florendo, is showing why the loss of the senior at the end of the season won’t be a tough pill to swallow. In games against Fort Lewis and New Mexico Highlands, with Van Horn out with an injury, Florendo ran the ball 22 times for 116 yards and a touchdown and also caught 14 passes for 184 yards and two more scores. He had eight catches for 121 yards and one touchdown in the Oct. 23 win over N.M. Highlands. It was the second time he went over 100 yards receiving this year as he caught six passes for 101 yards, including a 54-yard touchdown in a Sept. 25 win over Chadron State. Florendo has carried the ball 47 times this year, for 328 yards and has 48 catches for 523 yards and four scores. He has runs of 69, 18, 16 and 14 yards this season.

THE CHAN CHAN MAN
Senior wide receiver Jonny Chan is now the all-time leading receiver in Mines history. He holds CSM career records in receptions (167), receiving yards (2,891) and receiving touchdowns (29). For the year, he has caught 57 passes for 965 yards and a team-best 10 touchdowns. His 96.5 yards per game is second in the RMAC and 17th in Division II. Chan has five 100-yard receiving games and one 99-yard game this season. He has also caught a touchdown in seven of the 10 games this season.

JUST IN CASE
Junior wide receiver Justin Gallas is having his best season and could challenge Chan’s career marks next season. Through nine games this season, Gallas leads the team and the conference in receptions (75), yards (1,052) and is second on the team in touchdowns (8). His 105.2 yards per game is best in the RMAC and 13th in Division II. He has five 100-yard receiving games this season, including a 12-catch, 166-yard, one touchdown performance in a win at Fort Lewis on Oct. 16 and an eight catch, 202-yard, two touchdown performance in Saturday’s win over Mesa State. His 12 cathces are tied for 13th most in a single game in Division II this year, while his 202 receiving yards are also 13th best in a single Division II game this year.

S “LEDGE” HAMMER
Senior strong safety Daniel Leger, a three-time Honorable Mention All-RMAC selection, is on pace to become the first CSM player to record at least 100 tackles in four straight seasons. Leger posted a team-high 109 tackles as a freshman, set a school-record and led the conference with 110 stops as a sophomore and made 103 tackles a year ago. He leads the team with 94 stops this season, and is tops in the RMAC with eight sacks and second with 15 tackles for losses to go along with three interceptions and three forced fumbles. He ranks 25th in the nation in sacks (0.8 spg). Leger was named the RMAC and d2football.com National Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in an Oct. 9 win at Nebraska-Kearney. He led the team with 10 tackles, three for losses, a sack and two interceptions in the game. He posted three sacks in the Oct. 23 win over New Mexico Highlands, which ties him with the 12th best single game performance this year in Division II.

THE “HEAT”HER
Junior linebacker Jared Heath made quite a name for himself last season as he led the team and finished second in the RMAC with 114 tackles. His efforts led him to Honorable Mention All-RMAC and Third Team All-Region accolades. His 10.4 tackles per game ranked 26th in Division II a year ago. He is second on the team with 93 tackles this year, including 10 for losseses.

FOR ALL-PURPOSES
Last year, the Orediggers had three players who amassed more than 100 all-purpose yards per game. That includes rushing and receiving yards, as well as punt, kick and interception return yards. After 10 weeks, the Orediggers appear to be on their way to the same feat as senior wideout Jonny Chan (145.2), senior running back Criag Van Horn (139.0) and junior wide receiver Justin Gallas (123.6) are above the century mark and rank third, fourth and sixth, respectively in the RMAC. Chan is also ranked 24th in Division II.

100/100 MEN
Last season, the Orediggers experienced a rare feat as wide receiver Jonny Chan and running back Craig VanHorn each went over the 100-yard mark in the same game on two occasions. This season, the duo of Van Horn and junior wide receiver Justin Gallas have each topped the 100-yard mark on three occasions, including the Oct. 2 win over Fort Hays State. In that game, Chan just missed the century mark with 99 receiving yards. In Saturday’s win over Mesa State, Van Horn and Chad Friehauf each ran for 110 yards, while Gallas tallied 202 yards receiving.

TOPPING THE CENTURY MARK
The Orediggers have had at least one wide receiver top the 100-yard plateau in each of the last 15 games. Jonny Chan has done it 10 times, while Justin Gallas has been over 100 yards five times during that span. In the Sept. 25 win over Chadron State, Chan went for 105 yards and sophomore running back Bryan Florendo had 101 receiving yards.

EXPERIENCE UP FRONT
The Oredigger offensive line is one of the most experienced groups under Head Coach Bob Stitt. The line features senior Gary Metz and junior Travis Yenne at right tackle and left guard, respectively, while sophomores Nick Belden, an Honorable Mention All-RMAC pick last season, (center) and Zach Ballard (left tackle) and redshirt freshman Stephen Immel (right guard) are listed at No. 1 on the depth chart at their respective positions. Metz is a four-year starter and Yenne a three-year starter, while Belden started nine games last season and Ballard the final seven games. The five up front have allowed just 10 sacks all season. Last season, the Orediggers had allowed 10 sacks after three games, including nine in one game.

OH DANNY BOY
Sophomore linebacker Danny Sprague has made quite a name for himself since making his first collegiate start in a 37-7 win over Fort Lewis on Oct. 18, 2003. In that game, the Wheat Ridge High School graduate racked up a team-high eight tackles, including two for loss, and two sacks en route to RMAC Defensive Player of the Week honors. In a 40-39 win over Chadron State on Sept. 25, he registered 17 tackles, which is tied for 16th best in a Division II game this season. He is third on the team with 82 tackles this year, including three sacks.

PICK OFFS
Over the last four seasons, the Orediggers have featured a defensive back who has notched at least five interceptions. Sophomore free safety Tim Miller has kept the streak alive this year with five interceptions through 10 games. Last year, cornerback Nick Gilbreath recorded five picks, in 2002, Grant Newton picked off an RMAC-leading eight passes, while Tolu Lasaki recorded seven picks in 2001.

IT’S MILLER TIME
Sophomore safety Tim Miller seems to have a nose for the ball. In addition to his team-high five picks, he has broken up eight passes, forced a team-leading three fumbles and recovered one fumble He is fourth on the team with 60 tackles and ranks 19th in Division II in interceptions (0.6 ipg) and 23rd in forced fumbles (0.33 ffpg).

READY, WILLING AND ABEL
True freshman kicker Aaron Abel has been reliable after the first eight games as he has converted 48-of-53 extra point attempts. He is also 3-of-6 on field goal attempts, including a long of 30 yards.

BEND, BUT DON’T BREAK
The Oredigger defense has adopted the “Bend, but Don’t Break” philosophy so far this season. The group has come up with the big play when needed, as evidenced with two interceptions in the end zone against Missouri-Rolla and a third one to stop a drive deep in CSM territory. One week earlier in the season opener, the Orediggers stopped Washburn on a 4th and one play at midfield with 55 seconds to play that sealed the win. In a win over Chadron State on Sept. 25, the defense stopped Chadron State three times all afternoon. Late in the first half, CSM forced a fumble on its own 2-yard line, on the second last drive for the Eagles, Mines stopped them on a fourth and eight from the CSM 25-yard line and also the final drive of the game when sophomore free safety Tim Miller picked off a deep pass.

DEFENSE IN THE SECOND HALF
The CSM defense has been close to lights out in the second half, surrendering just 8.2 points over the final 30 minutes. If you take away the 21 points allowed in the second halves to Chadron State and Mesa State, the total comes down to just 5.0 over the other eight games. Mines has held seven of its 10 opponents to seven or fewer points in the second half and has posted two second half shutouts. In contrast, the Orediggers have posted 205 points in the second half this season, 105 in the third quarter and 100 in the fourth.

ZERO ON THE BOARD
The shutout of Western State on Sept. 11 was the first for the Oredigger defense since the 2002 season opener at Oklahoma Panhandle State on Aug. 31. CSM won that game, 14-0. Mines has not had two shutouts in the same season since 1958 when they blanked Omaha and Colorado State.

CAN’T PICK ON NICK
Colorado School of Mines junior cornerback Nick Gilbreath has shown that his selection to the Preseason All-RMAC and All-American Teams has been well deserved. He is fifth on the squad with 54 tackles and leads the team with nine pass breakups. He has also intercepted two passes.

AUSTIN WAGNER, THE LINEBACKER WHO TACKLES
Sophomore linebacker Austin Wagner made his presence felt in Saturday’s win over Mesa State as he was in on a career-best 13 tackles to up his season total to 31, including four for losses.

STREAKS
Several Orediggers will be looking to keep streaks alive this week. Senior quarterback Chad Friehauf has thrown a touchdown pass in 16 straight games, while senior wide receiver Jonny Chan has caught at least one pass in 21 straight games, dating back to the 2002 season finale. Mines has also had a 100-yard receiver in 15 consecutive games.

PARTY CRASHERS
The Orediggers have played the roll of spoiler three times this season as they have crashed their opponents Homecoming Party. The first time was on Sept. 11 when CSM blanked Western State, 58-0. On Oct. 9, the Orediggers spoiled Nebraska-Kearney’s Homecoming with a 34-10 victory and on Saturday, CSM ruined Fort Lewis’ Homecoming with a 37-17 win. The Orediggers made it a pefect 4-for-4 in Homecoming’s this year with a 45-17 win over New Mexico Highlands in the 2004 CSM Homecoming Game Sponsored by Sprint.

THE UNDEFEATEDS
Colorado School of Mines is one of just six teams who remain undefeated in Division II heading into Week 11 of action. Three teams reside in the Southwest Region, including top-ranked Pittsburgh State (10-0), No. 2 Northwest Missouri (10-0) and Mines (9-0). Pitt State and NW Missouri play each other this Saturday. The other undefeateds are No. 3 Albany State (9-0), No. 4 Michigan Tech (9-0) and No. 6 Arkansas Tech (9-0).