GOLDEN, Colo. - Another big game from
Michael Zeman helped #5 Colorado School of Mines get past South Dakota Mines 44-24 at Marv Kay Stadium.
The Orediggers improved to 7-0 and took over sole possession of first place in the RMAC at 5-0 after the only other unbeaten in the league, CSU Pueblo, lost to New Mexico Highlands.
Zeman ran for 116 yards and three touchdowns and added another score in the air, while
John Matocha threw for three touchdowns and 273 yards in total. It was Zeman's 60-yard touchdown breakout in the fourth quarter that sealed it after the Hardrockers, led by QB Jayden Johannsen (218 yards and two touchdowns, 62 yards rushing), battled back in the second half.
Mason Karp paced all receivers with 88 yards and a touchdown off five catches;
Tristan Smith had three catches for 75 yards. Kaleb Roth led the Hardrockers with 73 yards and a score on the ground and Jeremiah Bridges had a game-high six receptions for 68 yards.
The Orediggers' quick-strike ability was on display as they pounced on Hardrocker mistakes, including a shanked punt and a turnover that fueled a 24-point Oredigger second quarter to put them up 31-10 at the half.
The Hardrockers struck first on Spencer Skeesick's 22-yard field goal to open the game, but the Orediggers answered with Zeman's first touchdown, a one-yard plunge, later in the quarter to take the lead. SDM moved the ball effectively to start the second quarter and capped the drive with Johannsen's one-yard throw to Josh Leone for a 10-7 lead, but the home team would reel off the next 30 points to take control.
Big pass completions to
Tristan Smith (39 yards) and
Joe Golter (21 yards) on the next series set up Zeman's next score, and a four-yard punt on SDM's next series gave the Orediggers great field position to manufacture their next scoring drive as Zeman snatched a wide-open 10-yard pass from Matocha to make it 21-10.
Mack Minnehan forced a fumble on Roth that was recovered by
Adrian Moreno on the Hardrockers' next possession, and one play later,
Max McLeod hauled in a 39-yard dart from Matocha to blow the game open at 28-10. Mines tacked on a 34-yard
Jacob Click field goal at the buzzer to lead 31-10 at the half.
The two teams went back and forth in the third quarter until a 35-yard
Mason Pierce punt return set Mines up at midfield, and on the first play, Matocha hit
Mason Karp over the middle for a 57-yard catch-and-run to lead 37-10. SDM scored on their next chance with Jeremiah Bridges' 10-yard catch, and a Hardrocker interception led by a Kaleb Roth touchdowns at the start of the fourth quarter.
With the Orediggers needing something to shut the door, Zeman delivered. From his own 40, the senior turned the corner and raced 60 yards to score, making it 44-24; SDM wouldn't score again as they turned the ball over on downs in the red zone, and threw an interception to
Logan Rayburn on their final two possessions.
NOTABLES
- The Orediggers stretched their home regular-season win streak to 24 straight games, and their RMAC win streak to 16.
- Mines improved to 21-1 all-time against the Hardrockers.
- The Orediggers racked up 455 total yards to the Hardrockers' 351.
- For the first time this season, the Orediggers were out-possessed as the Hardrockers held the ball for 36:49. Mines' quick-strike capability had a lot to do with it though, with five scoring drives of 2:30 or less including a pair of one-play scores that lasted less than 10 seconds.
- Pierce was dangerous on punt returns with two for 69 yards.
- Mines sacked Johannsen six times led by
Nolan Reeve's pair as he had eight stops overall.
-
Gabriel Kortz put together his second double-digit tackle game of the season with 10.
Adrian Moreno had nine.
- Minnehan's forced fumble was his second of the year; he also has a recovery and an interception in 2021.
NEXT UP
The Orediggers visit Colorado Mesa in Week 8 for a 1 p.m. kickoff.
