RAPID CITY, S.D. - #19/10 Colorado School of Mines scored on the first play of the game and never looked back, shutting down South Dakota Mines in a 48-20 road win.

The Orediggers (5-2, 5-0 RMAC) retain sole possession of first place in the RMAC, stopping the high-powered offense of the Hardrockers (4-3, 3-2 RMAC) and producing a 34-point first half on offense to run away with the victory. 

John Matocha continued his highly-productive play passing for 338 yards and four first-half touchdowns on the way to a career-high five, while adding 57 yards on the ground, with Max McLeod turning in his second consecutive 150+ yard day with 169 and two touchdowns through the air. Michael Zeman had 116 total yards and two scores.  

Nolan Reeve's two sacks and seven tackles led a defense that bent but didn't break against the RMAC's #1-rated passing offense, holding the Hardrockers nearly 70 yards below their season aerial average at 286 yards and limiting SDM to 4-of-14 on third downs. 

Mines set the tone immediately when Matocha hit McLeod for a 78-yard catch-and-run on the first play of the game, then marched downfield on their second drive, converting a key 4th and 1 on the way to Matocha hitting Johnston over the top on a 29-yard score. 

The hosts got on the board late in the first quarter on a 4th-and-goal pass from the 4 to Isaiah Eastman, but Mines responded immediately as Matocha hit McLeod for another huge one-play touchdown - this time from 75 yards - to extend the lead to 21-7. A Hardrocker fumble on the ensuing kickoff gave the Orediggers a chance from the 23, but they came away without points heading into a howling wind. 

South Dakota Mines scored on a long drive to open the second quarter, and were gifted a fumble deep in their own territory later in the period as the Orediggers were again held without points just outside the red zone. The Hardrockers were forced to punt, however, and it was another big 4th-down play as Zeman converted 4th and 1 and a lot more to score from 39 yards for the 28-14 lead.

The Orediggers fell on a golden opportunity just before the half when Mack Minnehan recovered a fumble deep in Hardrocker territory, and six plays later Matocha found Zeman wide open in the flat for a three-yard touchdown and a 34-14 lead. 

Both teams traded turnovers to start the second half before Mines marched downfield to score on Chris Yoo's short jump over the pile, and a 24-yard punt return by Mason Pierce and 30-yard Mason Karp catch set up Landon Walker's two-yard fly sweep around the end to lead 48-14.

The Hardrockers got a late fourth-quarter touchdown on Jayden Johannsen's 16-yard scramble, while the Orediggers were content to work the clock with 7:42 of time on just two possessions in the quarter. 

NOTABLES
- The Orediggers had 524 total yards of offense on a 358/166 pass/rush split. They scored 45 or more points for the fifth consecutive game in RMAC play. 
- Fourth downs were critical in the game as the Orediggers were 4-of-6 and South Dakota Mines 3-of-5; both sides scored touchdowns on 4th-down attempts. 
- Matocha surpassed Chad Friehauf for second all-time at Mines for passing touchdowns with his second in the first quarter, and he now has 88 for his career. He is the first Mines QB to pass for five touchdowns in a game since Isaac Harker in 2018. 
- Josh Johnston moved up to second place all-time on the Mines touchdown receptions list with the 33rd of his career in the first quarter. He surpassed Adam Saur (2005-09) for second. Johnston wound up with five catches for 82 yards in the game.
- SDM's dual-threat quarterback Hayden Johannsen threw for 263 yards and two scores but was held to 29 net yards and a touchdown on the ground.  Jeremiah Bridges had 128 yards receiving on 10 catches. 
- The Mines secondary notched five pass break-ups including two by Cam Forrest. 
- The Orediggers remain the only unbeaten team in the RMAC at 5-0. Of the four teams tied behind them with one loss, South Dakota Mines and Black Hills State both lost with Western Colorado winning and New Mexico Highlands playing later on Saturday. 
- Mines improved to 22-1 all-time against SDM with their fourth straight win in the series. 

NEXT UP
The Orediggers return home to host Black Hills State on Oct. 22.