Colorado School of Mines at Dixie State University, Saturday, 1 p.m.
Legend Solar Stadium, St. George, Utah. | Video: RMAC Network 
[Live Video] [Live Stats] [Mines Media Notes] [Dixie State Media Notes] 
 

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Thrust back into the RMAC title picture after three straight wins, Mines visits Dixie State for the first time in a crucial conference game.

WATCH US
Every remaining Mines game this season will be seen live online on the RMAC Network at MinesAthletics.com/tv.

IF YOU GO
Tickets are $10 for reserved and $7 for general admission. Tickets are available online. Click here for parking and directions information. Saturday's forecast for St. George is sunny with a gametime high of 85.

THE MINES-DIXIE STATE SERIES
This will be the first-ever meeting between Mines and Dixie State, who is a first-year affiliate member of the RMAC. Mines has played in St. George twice, however, in the Dixie Rotary Bowl in 2004 and 2005.

WEEK 7 REWIND
Colorado School of Mines scored 35 points in the first quarter and never looked back, rolling 56-28 past first-place South Dakota Mines at Marv Kay Stadium.Justin Dvorak became the RMAC's all-time passing touchdowns leader with one of the most complete performances of his career, passing for five touchdowns and 324 yards and running for 115 yards and two scores. Brody Oliver's two touchdowns helped him break the Mines and NCAA Division II tight ends' single-season receiving touchdowns record. The Orediggers racked up 693 yards of offense in all, including a season-high 369 yards on the ground. Defensively, Mines did its best to contain the RMAC's #2-rated offense, holding the Hardrockers to 28 points and 441 yards of offense, including only 118 on the ground. Drew Stephon and Jalen Champagne each had interceptions.

CROWDED AT THE TOP
Through seven weeks of the season, the RMAC standings are about as easy to figure out as a fluid mechanics final. Seven teams - Black Hills State, Colorado Mesa, Western State, Mines, South Dakota Mines, CSU-Pueblo, and Dixie State - have two losses. BHSU, CMU, and WSCU are each 5-2, with the other four at 4-2. By the end of Saturday that number will down to five, at most, as Mines plays Dixie State and Black Hills State hosts CSU-Pueblo.

DVORAK SETS RMAC TD RECORD
Mines quarterback Justin Dvorak set the latest in a string of records last week, becoming the RMAC's career passing touchdowns leader with 111. Dvorak surpassed Western New Mexico's Mitch Glasmann (109), and is already the Mines leader in every passing category. The Harlon Hill Trophy candidate leads NCAA Division II in every passing category this season, including yards (2,752), touchdowns (30), and total offense (419.4). Last week, he added a career rushing day with 115 yards and two touchdowns in addition to his 324 passing yards and five TDs. For his play, he was named the RMAC Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season and seventh time in his career.

NO ONE BETTER
Justin Dvorak's stats aren't just historic by Mines standards - they're historic nationally. Dvorak is the active leader in all of college football - every division - in career passing yards (11,634), touchdown passes (111), and total offense (12,601).

OLIVER SHATTERS RECORDS
Brody Oliver has put up some absurd receiving numbers in his first year as a starter. Oliver has at least 100 yards and a touchdown in every game this year, compiling 956 yards and 16 touchdowns - both the best in NCAA D-II (his 16 TDs leads all of college football). Last week, in only the seventh game of the season, Oliver broke both the Mines single-season and NCAA D-II tight ends receiving touchdowns record.

GROUND GAME STRONG
Mines' passing offense is well documented, as the Orediggers lead the nation with 398.7 yards per game. But last week, Mines had a monster rushing game to the tune of 369 yards, their best output since 1992. Both Dvorak (115) and Sam Seeton (106) crossed the century mark in yards, while Zac Guy had 62 yards on only five carries with a touchdown, Cameron Mayberry racked up 54 yards, and Josh Odom had 36. Mines averaged 7.9 yards per carry as they ran a season-high 47 times.

CHOICES, CHOICES
While Brody Oliver's numbers have been impressive, Mines' entire receiving corps has been outstanding this season with three Orediggers - Oliver, Ty Young, and Zach Richter - all over 40 catches. Richter is in the national top-25 in receptions as an important short-yardage option, while deep threat Young has seven touchdowns and 573 yards. Riley Hoff has produced four TDs and 367 yards, while running back Sam Seeton has had 20 catches for 132 yards from the backfield.

TIMELY TAKEAWAYS
Mines has generated six fourth-quarter turnovers this year, including in each of the last three games. Last week, it was a Jalen Champagne interception in the end zone against South Dakota Mines; the week before, it was Champagne again with a pick against Azusa Pacific. At Fort Lewis, Mines had two fourth-quarter takeaways thanks to Drew Stephon's interception and Caleb Courkamp's fumble recovery.

KEL-SO GOOD
Arguably Mines' biggest impact defensive player this year has been redshirt sophomore end Michael Kelso, who leads Mines with 7.0 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, and five hurries. Kelso leads Mines linemen with 31 tackles, as well. Kelso has 3.5 TFL and 2.5 sacks over the last two games.

MINES LEADS RMAC ACADEMIC TEAMS
The Orediggers placed a league-best 26 players on the annual RMAC All-Academic Teams, including an RMAC-best eight First Team selections. Logan Woish, Levi Cecil, Richie Rice, and Hasan Shaar were honored on offense, while on the defensive side, lineman Dallas Fields, linebackers Chris Brockman and Grant Gale, and safety Caleb Courkamp were recognized as first-teamers.

CAN'T KEEP THEM DOWN
Mines has been one of the best teams in the country this year on third down, ranking sixth in D-II with a 55.1 percent conversion rating. As a result, Mines is also the best first-down generating team in D-II, ranking first with 202 this season. Mines held a whopping 30-13 first downs advantage over Azusa Pacific and 36-23 against South Dakota Mines.

GOOD POINT
Mines has scored points in 111 consecutive games dating back to Nov. 10, 2007. The last time Mines was shut out was on Nov. 3, 2007 - an 18-0 loss at Colorado Mesa (then Mesa State).

SCOUTING DIXIE STATE
The upstart Trailblazers are 4-3 overall and 4-2 in RMAC play, tied with Mines among the logjam at the top of the standings. DSU is coming off an upset of then-#23 Colorado Mesa last week, 38-31. They are led by running back Clifford Simms, who has 625 yards and six touchdowns, and Josh Thompson, who has settled into the quarterback role with 62.6% passing, 784 yards, and four passing touchdowns. DSU is a run-first offense with nearly twice as many rushing plays (averaging 211 yards per game) as passing (averaging 198.3 yards per game). Defensively, the Trailblazers allow 26.1 points and 385 yards of offense per game, including only 190.7 passing yards per game. Colton Olson has a team-high 59 tackles, while Keanu Foki leads up front with 4.5 sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss.

NEXT TIME
The Orediggers return home to host Chadron State Oct. 29 at noon.