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I know I've seen a few SUU posters here on occasion. Any firsthand insight on what NAU fans should expect this weekend?

From what I've read box-score wise, the Thunderbirds have played two FCS schools well on the road and outgained Texas State in their loss. SUU has played NAU quite tough the last 2 seasons. NAU's defense has been stout so far but this is road game number three out of four in a row. Never know how teams react to road conditions over extended periods.

I don't know quite what to expect from NAU yet. Optimistic but conservative in my expectations.

Lumberjacks 24
Thunderbirds 20

Put your best DB on Poots, your next one on Sitake and constant pressure on Sorensen. TXST had no sacks but the QB was running for his life all night. The only thing is that with these 2 covered, their 3 & 4 receivers can do some damage.

How's your KOR team? Bush had 124 yds (61 long)
No blocked punts, but close several times and one was like 7 yards due to a muffed snap.

They got a lot of yardage in the last 3 minutes cause our D let up (mental lapse) when it was out of reach for them to win - one being a 70 yd TD pass.

SUU’s scores so far (1-3)

Lost to Wyoming 20-28
Defeated San Diego 32-3
Lost to San Jose St 11-16
Lost to TX St 28-42

SUU hung with Wyoming and had San Jose St beat up until a late score to lose that one. San Jose St played tough against Wisconsin (27-14) so that looks good for SUU. The last few games between NAU and SUU have been close fought games (‘08 19-14) (’09 42-39) so I expect the same from this one.

This game seems to be the one on the schedule that would defiantly count as a trap game. On the road, out of conference right before a monstrous three game stretch so I hope the coaching staff has these guys thinking clearly about this one. The Jacks defense has been awesome, but then again we really haven’t played anyone. The offense has been pretty vanilla, and sometimes flat out frustrating to watch because I feel Mike Herrick is being underutilized. I hope the last few kinks are worked out this week because after that its sink or swim.

I thought I saw somewhere that SUU lost its starting QB to an injury?

SDHornet wrote:I thought I saw somewhere that SUU lost its starting QB to an injury?

I hope not...But I will take a look into it.

Despite the record, SUU has had a pretty successful year thus far. Went on the road in Week 1 and played well at Wyoming; actually had a chance to tie the game at the end but a hail mary was caught just short of the goalline. Came home Week 2 and easily beat San Diego. Had SJSU beat on the road but lost it late after some costly penalties changed field position; also dropped what would have been a touchdown pass a few drives earlier that might have put it out of reach. It seems the Texas State game shifted on a failed fourth down conversion deep in Texas St territory early in the game; when we didn't get it, TX St never looked back and rolled. As far as Sorensen, he did injure his ankled late in the SJSU game and didn't play in the 4th quarter which was costly. However, he seems 100% now and played the entire game last week in Texas.
Although biased, my prediction for this week's game is that SUU wins 31 to 21. Recently, we have been solid at home and we need to pick up this win in the worst way before conference play begins.

Could be a trap game for NAU. The Lumberjack defense, especially the front 7, has been stellar and will give the T-Birds some trouble. On offense, NAU QB Michael Herrick has been victimized by an inexperienced and "slippery-fingered" receiving corp. If they rise up and start catching the ball, the Jacks' offense will become one of the best in the FCS. In recent games, Herrick has done what he can do and will still be a factor in this game. The T-Birds need to get the ball to Tyson Poots. He has given the Jacks fits in the past. It should be a pretty competitive game with NAU winning 35-21

Basically if our special teams plays much better and our defense can shut down the run we should be okay. We are stellar at home and i personally believe this is the best team SUU has had at the FCS level. We just have to limit the mental mistakes and be able to play a whole game (lost to SJSU and Wyoming because we lapsed either for a quarter or at the end). However i have high hopes for the T-Birds in this one, we have lost to the Jacks close the past 2 seasons, i feel we will win this time in another great game :

-SUU: 31

-NAU: 24

Also if we beat the jacks it may help convince the Big Sky to add us as a 12th member

SUUTbird wrote:Basically if our special teams plays much better and our defense can shut down the run we should be okay. We are stellar at home and i personally believe this is the best team SUU has had at the FCS level. We just have to limit the mental mistakes and be able to play a whole game (lost to SJSU and Wyoming because we lapsed either for a quarter or at the end). However i have high hopes for the T-Birds in this one, we have lost to the Jacks close the past 2 seasons, i feel we will win this time in another great game :

-SUU: 31

-NAU: 24

Also if we beat the jacks it may help convince the Big Sky to add us as a 12th member

I hope so, have you SUU fans heard anything new about joining the Big Sky?

They arent joining the BSC. They suck & their stadium sux. end thread/

BlackFalkin wrote:They arent joining the BSC. They suck & their stadium sux. end thread/

Thats weird, I thought I asked a SUU fan. Why is it that you are under the illusion that EWU's stadium is so much better than everybody else's ? Your red rag is a national joke.

ajwildcat wrote:

BlackFalkin wrote:They arent joining the BSC. They suck & their stadium sux. end thread/

Thats weird, I thought I asked a SUU fan. Why is it that you are under the illusion that EWU's stadium is so much better than everybody else's ? Your red rag is a national joke.

Honestly, they both suck.

Southern Utah U. fans -
Good stuff here. Checking the Salt Lake City or Las Vegas newspapers for info on a regional school (Southern Utah) is about as frustrating as checking the Arizona Republic for NAU coverage. Virtually non-existant. Thanks for the scoop.

BlackFalkin -
I see you're still making friends and influencing people on here. Your in-depth commentary adds a wealth of knowledge to the conversation and is much appreciated. Your present is missed over at egriz.com. You should go back and say "hi".

I've said it before that I hope the Big Sky Conference adds Southern Utah. Having a regional rival and being able to do an occasional roadtrip for NAU football/basketball/soccer/etc. would be cool.

Any SUU fans doing in-game commentary? Is there a SUU fan forum to follow?

No tv down here in the desert. On-line radio for the first hour plus but after that @ work. Can't listen to on-line radio there. Have to follow gametracker or something similar at that point.

mtjack wrote:Any SUU fans doing in-game commentary? Is there a SUU fan forum to follow?

No tv down here in the desert. On-line radio for the first hour plus but after that @ work. Can't listen to on-line radio there. Have to follow gametracker or something similar at that point.

Link me up brother.