#11/10 Colorado School of Mines (5-0/5-0 RMAC) vs. Western Colorado (3-2/3-1 RMAC), Saturday, 12 p.m.
Marv Kay Stadium, Golden, Colo.
[TV: KWGN Colorado's Own Channel 2] [Streaming: RMAC Network] [Live Stats] [Mines Media Notes] 
 

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The oldest continuous football rivalry in Colorado returns to Marv Kay Stadium as #11/10 Mines hosts Western Colorado in the 95th meeting of the rivals.

WATCH US
Saturday's game will be simulcast live on KWGN Colorado's Own Channel 2, and stream live on the RMAC Network, which is also available on smart TV services like Roku, Apple TV, and Amazon Fire. Miles Dunklin, Justin Adams, and John Simmer will have the call. 

TICKETS AND PARKING
Digital tickets are available through Mines' online ticketing portal. Parking in Lot K (north of the soccer stadium) is available for $10 - a reminder to all fans that Lot K does not open until 10 a.m. Free parking is available anywhere else on campus. Fans should be on the lookout for local neighborhood street closures in Golden on gameday; plan on utilizing 11th Street or Maple Street to reach Marv Kay Stadium. 

WEATHER REPORT
Despite the forecast for Golden's first snow of the year on Thursday, Saturday looks to be a good day for football with highs around 60 and sunny skies. 

CAPTAINS NAMED FOR 2019
Mines has elected four captains for the 2019 season: senior linebackers Jimmy Bauer and James Kohlschmidt, senior running back Cameron Mayberry, and senior tackle Grant Stewart. Stewart is a returning captain from 2018.

MINES VS. WESTERN COLORADO
Colorado's longest continuous football rivalry, Mines and Western Colorado will meet for the 95th time ... Western leads the series 52-40-2 ... The two first met in 1925 (a 15-6 Western Colorado win) and, save a five-year break for World War II, have met at least once every year since ... Mines has won 10 of the last 12 games in the series, but the two have split their last four ... Mines has won two straight with a 45-7 win at home in 2017 and a 44-16 victory in Gunnison last year ... The winning team has scored 35+ in each of the last five meetings.

MINES MOVES UP IN NATIONAL POLLS
Mines' 5-0 record has moved them up two spots in this week's AFCA poll to #11 and #10 in the D2football.com ranking. The Orediggers have been ranked in every poll this year since debuting at #17 in preseason.

RMAC STANDINGS
Mines remains alone atop the RMAC at 5-0, with Dixie State a game back at 4-1 and CSU-Pueblo and Western at 3-1. [RMAC Standings]

OREDIGGERS ROLL OVER COLORADO MESA
Mines improved to 5-0 and retained the Nyikos Cup with a comprehensive 56-20 win at Colorado Mesa to remain unbeaten this season. Cameron Mayberry put together a monster 192-yard, 2-touchdown afternoon, outgaining the Mavericks by himself as another big defensive effort helped Mines pull away early with a 28-0 start. The Orediggers produced 595 total yards offensively while the defense held the RMAC's #2 offense in the Mavericks to only 188 yards. John Matocha passed for a career-high 291 yards as he put together four total touchdowns (three passing and one rushing). Mason Karp caught a career-high 10 passes for 67 yards while Tristan Smith led all receivers with 86 yards and a touchdown. Joe Golter and Zach Peterson also caught scores and Geoff Keating returned an interception for a touchdown.

MAYBERRY EARNS RMAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONOR
For his work at Colorado Mesa, Cameron Mayberry was named the RMAC Offensive Player of the Week on Monday for the fifth time in his career. Mayberry and John Matocha (Weeks 2 and 3) have combined for three of the five RMAC offensive honors this season.

LAST YEAR VS. WESTERN COLORADO
Mines turned in a defensive showcase in a 44-16 win in Gunnison last year. The Orediggers racked up six sacks, did not allow a touchdown in the first half, and gave up only 247 yards total, including 53 on the ground, to blow by the Mountaineers. Matthew King and RJ Phillips each had two sacks while James Kohlschmidt had an interception to lead the defense. Mines' offense was productive as Isaac Harker threw for 274 yards and three touchdowns, Riley Hoff brought in 10 catches for 125 yards and two scores, and Cameron Mayberry ran for 115 yards and a touchdown.

DEFENSE MAKES NATIONAL NOISE
Heading into today's game, the Mines defense ranks atop the RMAC in scoring allowed (12.8 ppg), total defense (228.8 ypg), and rushing defense (33.8 ypg). But looking nationally, the Orediggers still stack up with the best: Mines ranks in the top-10 in NCAA Division II in rushing defense (2nd), total defense (3rd), scoring defense (7th), third-down defense (8th), and tackles for loss (9th). 

MAYBERRY SURPASSES 4,000 YARDS
Last week, Mayberry became the first back in Mines history and ninth in RMAC history to hit the 4,000-yard plateau, continuing a string of record book entries for the senior this fall. With his touchdown at CSU-Pueblo in week 3, Cameron Mayberry grabbed the final career record he didn't already own: the Mines rushing touchdowns mark. Mayberry's 49 surpassed Greg Marshall's 48 set between 1989 and 1992, and he added to that total the last two weeks to become the only active player in NCAA college football to reach 50 rushing touchdowns (he currently has 52). Mayberry also has the program records for carries (633) and yards (4,021), as well as single-game and single-season records in all three categories. With 54 total career touchdowns scored (52 rushing, 2 receiving), Mayberry also leads all college football players in all divisions for the most rushing and total touchdowns among active players:

NCAA Division II Active Career Rushers
Nate Gunn (Minnesota State) - 4,149 yds
Cameron Mayberry (Mines) - 4,021 yds
Stevie Green (Fayetteville St.) - 3,912 yds
Nelson Brown (Cal [Pa.]) - 3,626 yds
Jaleel McLaughlin (Notre Dame [Ohio])  - 3,342 yds

NCAA All-Divisions Active Career Total Touchdowns
Cameron Mayberry (Mines) - 54 TD (52 rush/2 rec.)
Justin Hill (Mount Union) - 52 TD (48 rec./1 rush/3 PR)
Walter Fletcher (Ball State) - 50 TD (42 rush/7 rec./1 PR)
Brian Mann (Ferrum) - 50 TD (48 rush/1 rec./1 KR)
Jaquan Hemphill (Hardin-Simmons) - 48 TD (41 rush/7 rec.)

NCAA All-Divisions Active Career Rushing Touchdowns
Cameron Mayberry (Mines) - 52 TD
Brian Mann (Ferrum) - 48 TD
Wesley Schools (Grove City) - 46 TD
Lance Moise (Concordia Chicago) - 45 TD
Josh Parks (St. Thomas) - 44 TD

NOW THAT'S TEAMWORK
Cameron Mayberry may be a one-man wrecking crew, but of course it takes a total team effort to produce W's. That was on display last week when Mayberry's rushing yardage outgained Colorado Mesa's total offense, 192 to 188. It's the third time in Mayberry's career that he and the Mines defense have paired up for the feat:

Colorado Mesa (10/5/2019) - 192 yards, 188 opponent yards
Adams State (9/1/2018) - 137 yards, 132 opponent yards
Western Colorado (9/23/2017) - 155 yards, 141 opponent yards

MATOCHA PRODUCING AT QB
Freshman quarterback John Matocha continues to produce since being inserted as the starter in week 2, and his efficiency in the passing game hasn't diminished over four starts. Matocha is coming off a career-high 291 yards on 24-of-33 passing with three touchdowns at CMU; he has produced four total touchdowns in three of his four starts, having rushed for three scores to go with his 11 in the air. Matocha's 73% completion rating ranks fourth in NCAA Division II (the next closest freshman, Austin Reed of West Florida, is 13 percentage points behind him), and Matocha ranks in the national top-25 in efficiency (7th, 176.0), touchdowns (25th, 11), and yards per pass attempt (15th, 8.8). 

KARP, SMITH STEP UP AT CMU
With veteran slot receiver Sean O'Dell out for the Colorado Mesa game, it opened the door for a pair of redshirt freshmen to have big days. Mason Karp and Tristan Smith each had career games as Karp caught 10 passes for 67 yards (he had caught six for 44 yards combined coming into the game), and Smith caught three passes for 86 yards and a touchdown while also having a 73-yard touchdown catch called back on a penalty (he had not caught a pass in his career).

PETERSON MAKES HIS MARK
While the two youngsters were making their mark, another veteran Mines receiver also recorded a first. Senior tight end Zach Peterson caught his first career touchdown in the Colorado Mesa win, a 16-yard strike in the first half that came in his 34th career game. An outstanding blocking back, Peterson also now has catches in back-to-back games.

GIMME THAT
Ball control will be something to watch in this week's game as Western Colorado and Mines come in as the #1 and #2 teams in the RMAC in terms of time of possession. Western possesses the ball an average of 34:06 per game, while Mines holds it 33:21 per game.

BELOW AVERAGE
In four out of five games this season, Mines' defense has held its opponent to significant below their season average (through week 5) in total offense. As a result, the Orediggers own the RMAC's #1 and NCAA D-II's #3 total defense at 228.8 yards per game; this season, the Orediggers are holding opponents to 112.1 yards per game below their season average.

LIVING IN THE BACKFIELD
Mines' vaunted run defense is rated #2 in NCAA Division II through five games at 33.8 yards per game allowed. The Orediggers have been impressive at getting to both the quarterback (16.0 sacks) and the running back as they're ninth nationally in tackles for a loss at 43. Nineteen different players have a tackle for loss this year, led by Averie Mansfield (6.5), Mack Minnehan (6.0), and Luke Jeter (6.0).

MANSFIELD LEADS THE WAY
Senior inside linebacker Averie Mansfield has emerged as a production leader this year, leading the Orediggers' front seven with 29 total tackles and 6.5 tackles for loss. Mansfield has had five or more stops in each of the last three games (7 vs. CSU-Pueblo, 10 vs. New Mexico Highlands, 5 vs. Colorado Mesa) and has made 3.5 TFL combined the last two weeks. 

WE CAN SCORE TOO
The Mines defense has come up with three defensive touchdowns in five games after Geoff Keating's pick-six at Colorado Mesa last week. Logan Braden also has two touchdowns, an interception return against Adams State, and his scoop and score of Keating's fumbled interception against Black Hills State.

ALL IN A DAY'S WORK
The hard hat is a longtime symbol of Mines students (every freshman receives one when they embark on the M Climb) and engineers everywhere. This season, the Mines bench is featuring a Turnover Hard Hat, which is awarded to and signed by a player generating a takeaway. So far the hard hat has been worn by five different players, with Kobe Brewster and Geoff Keating each getting it twice:

Mack Minnehan at Adams State, Interception    
Logan Braden at Adams State, Interception (TD)    
Josh Odom vs. Black Hills State, Forced fumble    
Geoff Keating vs. Black Hills State, Interception    
Kobe Brewster at CSU-Pueblo, Interception    
Kobe Brewster vs. N.M. Highlands, Interception    
Geoff Keating at Colorado Mesa, Interception (TD)    

NEXT UP
Mines stays at home to host Fort Lewis for Homecoming on Oct. 19.