With more attention, UNC football preps for big game vs. Sacramento State ...Saudi Arabia

The University of Northern Colorado football team has a big game this week.

Let that sink in for a moment. The Bears are playing an important game.

It’s been a bit since UNC fans could soak in that reality. UNC beat nationally ranked Idaho last weekend on the road. The win led to the team receiving votes for a Football Championship Subdivision poll for the first time in the Division I era. Receiving votes means the Bears, never more than a .500 team at the FCS level, sat just outside of the top 25.

The team won just one game in the 2023 and 2024 seasons combined.

Media requests have increased this week. Bears head coach Ed Lamb had six media appearances this week, which is about three times more than a “normal week,” according to assistant director of strategic communications Brooke Richards. Quarterback Eric Gibson Jr. spoke with KFKA sports radio host and Brady Hull this week.

Meanwhile, coaches and players are doing what they do: preparing for the next game, Saturday evening at Sacramento State. The game begins at 7 p.m. at Hornet Stadium and will be available on Pirate Radio 93.5 and streaming on ESPN+. Live stats of the game are available at StatBroadcast. The Hornets are 10 1/2-point favorites as of Thursday morning.

“We understand it’s there, we see it,” UNC linebacker and team captain Keenan Guthrie said of the recent success, adding it’s important to recognize it and take pride in it. “But at the end of the day, we haven’t done anything yet. We haven’t accomplished anything yet.”

Guthrie said the team is doing a great job focusing on what’s really important.

“We just keep moving and just forget about what’s going on outside of here,” he said. “This is all that matters, is what’s going on within the team.”

What’s going on immediately is the Bears face a very good team in Sacramento State. The Hornets have the same record as UNC: 3-3 overall and 1-1 in the Big Sky Conference after coming up with a road win last weekend at Weber State. They are also receiving votes in two FCS polls as of this week.

Sacramento State ranks in the top five in the Big Sky in both scoring offense and defense, meaning the Hornets score and they’re good at keeping the opponent from doing the same. They’re averaging 32.2 points per game on offense (5th in Big Sky), and the defense is giving up 23.8 points — fourth best.

The Hornets are also top five in total offense and defense. They average fifth-best 420 yards a game in total offense — combining the run and pass. On total defense, the Hornets rank second (allowing 362.7 yards per game) behind Montana State. UNC is fourth in total defense (381.5).

UNC has the second-best scoring defense. The Bears are allowing 21.7 points a game, behind only defending conference champion Montana State (17.6). After the 49-point outburst at Idaho last week, the improved UNC offense ranks 9th in the 12-team Big Sky at 24 points per game.

The Hornets’ rushing offense is No. 1 in the Big Sky, and this is where the Bears might very well be challenged. The run defense has been a point of emphasis at UNC all year.

Sacramento State is averaging 234.7 yards a game on the ground. The Bears give up 195.7 a game against the run, which is also ninth in the Big Sky. Complicating things for UNC, Sacramento State has multiple players who run the ball effectively — and that might happen on every play, Bears coach Ed Lamb said.

“It really is going to come down to playing with lower pad level, getting off blocks, and … having our eyes in the right place,” the coach said.

Eyes in the right place comes into play because of the number of ball carriers Sacramento State can use.

Backs Rodney Hammond Jr. and Damian Henderson II both average at least 60 yards per game, and they’re in the top 10 in the Big Sky. Hammond Jr. is eighth (68 rushing attempts, 369 net yards, 5.4 yards per carry and four touchdowns). Henderson is ninth, averaging 7.2 yards per carry on 51 attempts for 365 yards and four touchdowns).

Hammond Jr. was named the Big Sky Conference special teams player of the week Monday after racking up 262 all-purpose yards in a 55-27 win over Weber State. Hammond Jr.’s night against the Wildcats included a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. UNC sophomore safety Cam Chapa shared the conference defensive player of the week award.

Hornets quarterback Cardell Williams is the Hornets’ third-leading rusher with 45 carries for 290 yards, a 6.4 per carry average with seven touchdowns. He averages close to 50 yards a game rushing and about 134 yards passing.

“If the quarterback is not really a threat that way (running), then 90% of our focus is on the back, and that really changes this week,” Lamb said “We’ve got to be really disciplined in the way we line up and where we put our eyes and feet. We’ve got to get off blocks and tackle.”

Lamb said the Sacramento State defense is one of the most aggressive units the Bears will see this season, particularly on the line. The Hornets are third nationally, in all of FCS, in tackles for loss (51) and tied for first in sacks (24 – 4 per game).

Ten guys who have played at least four games have recorded sacks and tackles. Sophomore defensive lineman Jayland McGlothen leads the team in sacks (6), and he’s second in tackles for loss (7.5 for 35 yards). McGlothen has 21 total tackles. He was named as one of the best FCS players at his position at the halfway point of the season.

Bears quarterback Gibson Jr., who’s played his way into the top 10 passers in the Big Sky, said the team “loves” the challenge of playing Sacramento State. And doing this on the road. UNC has played four of six games on the road.

Gibson Jr. is completing 65.9% of his passes, an average of 187 yards per game with six touchdowns and three interceptions. He’s thrown for at least 300 yards in three of five starts this year.

“Their defense is really good,” he said of the Hornets. “They have athletes all over, a lot of speed, a lot of physicality. But, at the end of the day, we’ve played a lot of other teams with speed and physicality. It’s about us executing our offense to the highest level, and that’s all that matters.” .

Gibson Jr. threw for 350 yards last week at Idaho. Junior wide receiver Brayden Munroe returned from an injury to catch five passes for a career-best 151 yards and a touchdown. His day against the Vandals included a 57-yard reception in the second quarter setting up a touchdown.

In the week leading to the Colorado State game, Munroe expressed confidence in the Bears winning multiple games this year. That was a big thing to say at that point. The team was coming off a win over Chadron State in the season opener. UNC had won only once in Munroe’s first two seasons in the program. He was in the first class of players brought in by Lamb in 2023. The team didn’t win a game that season.

Munroe put up a social media post of his own on the team receiving votes in the poll. He said the win over Idaho was great, but the players want more.

“We don’t just want three wins,” he said. “You know, everything we’ve been through the past couple of years. I’ve been here those two years (when they won one game). We want it more than other teams, with everything we’ve been through.

“We got a lot of games on the schedule we know we can win. It didn’t stop on Saturday (at Idaho), and it’s not going to stop until the last game of the year, whenever that might be.”

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