GOLDEN, Colo. - #2 Colorado School of Mines improved to 5-0, handling business against Chadron State in a 35-7 Homecoming win before a sellout crowd at Marv Kay Stadium.

The Oredigger defense (5-0, 3-0 RMAC) held the Eagles (1-4, 0-3 RMAC) to just 2-of-16 on third-down opportunities and sacked CSC quarterback Preston Pearson five times with constant backfield pressure.

John Matocha threw for 284 yards and three touchdowns to move one behind Justin Dvorak for the RMAC career passing touchdowns record, while Noah Roper had a career game with 110 yards and two scores on the ground and another touchdown in the air. Max McLeod ran his century-yards streak to five straight games with 103 on 10 catches, and Zach Hoffman had a career day with 84 yards and two touchdown catches.

Peyton Rose had 1.5 sacks to lead the Mines pass rush with Blake Ramsey, Kyle Bahnsen, Zach Hester, and Jack Peterson also getting in hits. Chadron State was limited to just 107 yards in the first half and 247 for the game, including 93 on the ground. 

Chadron threatened on their opening drive before Jaden Williams' interception in the red zone shut down the opportunity, and the Mines offense counterpunched immediately with an 11-play, 92-yard series capped by Matocha's 16-yard swing out to Roper for six. CSC's punt on their next possession led to a one-yard pop-pass touchdown to Hoffman, giving Mines a 14-0 lead after the first quarter.

Hoffman made a spectacular diving catch for an 18-yard touchdown to open the second, and Roper hit a gigantic hole up the middle for a 38-yard score to make it 28-0 midway through the second. Roper's three-yard finish later in the quarter set the edge at 35-0 at halftime.

A penalty-filled third quarter saw neither team score, and the Eagles' lone points of the game came on a fake field goal with holder Brodie Eisenbraun running it in from 13 yards to start the fourth quarter.

GAME NOTES
- Matocha now has 133 career passing touchdowns, one behind Dvorak for the Mines and RMAC records and fourth all-time in NCAA Division II history.
- McLeod joins Brody Oliver (2016 and 2018) and Jonny Chan (2003) as only the third Mines receiver to notch five straight 100+ yard games.
- Pete Sterbick moves to 5-0 in his first season as head coach, now the fourth Oredigger boss to do so (and only second in the modern era) joining Gregg Brandon (2015), William Hanley (1914), and Thomas Beadle (1898).
- Mines was flagged 12 times for 105 yards and Chadron State nine for 90. Mines had two scores wiped out by penalties including a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown called back for too many men on the field and Devyn Lauer's pick-six negated on pass interference, both in the second quarter. 
- Mines won its 10th straight over the Eagles, and also won for the 10th straight time on Homecoming.

NEXT UP
Mines heads to Colorado Mesa next week to defend the Nyikos Cup with a 1 p.m. kickoff Oct. 7.