Earlier this year I wrote that NAU was stuck in the middle of the pack and looked like they were going to have no more than a statistically promising season with little success towards their chances of postseason play. Perhaps the team just happened to turn the corner right as that comment went out to the web. Maybe coach Jerome Souers saw those comments and felt the need to prove me wrong. Whatever the case may be the fact is that the Lumberjacks have a chance to win a share of the Big Sky Conference crown with a win at Southern Utah and could see themselves in the FCS playoff picture. But taking care of business against the Thunderbirds remains priority number one in Flagstaff.
Slow Moving Against Southern Utah
The Big Sky has been full of high powered offensive numbers this season with no team having lower than 3,400 yards of total offense thus far. Defense has been something that has been difficult to maintain up to this point within the conference which makes the fact that this squad tops the conference in both total defense and scoring defense a luxury they are very happy to have. The 167 points they have surrendered this year tops the next team on the list in Portland State by almost 40 points. Compare that to NAU’s 334 points allowed this season and you can see the difference between the two units. If the Lumberjacks are going to take advantage of the Southern Utah defense it is going to be in the running game. The Thunderbirds have only given quarterbacks and receivers 1693 yards this year but have given up 1809 rushing yards up to this point in the season. The Lumberjacks’ offensive line must get that initial push and get the Thunderbirds running around blocks to tire them out. If they can do that early they may just find the corners and safeties on the back end slow to react to the ball.
Will The Thunderbirds Play Hard?
While Southern Utah has proven to be a tough squad in the conference, that may be why we see them maybe not play up to their usual energy level. While their loss last week to Portland State was a tough pill to swallow, it doesn’t change the fact that the Thunderbirds will at the worst share the regular season title of the Big Sky by the end of the season. The main thing is does Southern Utah want to give NAU that chance to earn the automatic bid into the FCS playoffs? NAU would get that bid with a win, a loss by Montana and another loss by Portland State in the other contests that will be taking place within the Big Sky. The momentum the win over Southern Utah would give the Jacks could propel them to another win in the playoffs if the two ended up meeting later on down the road. Not to mention NAU already beat Eastern Washington who would also have a share of the Big Sky conference if they finished 6-2 as well. Southern Utah could just as easily let younger players get their reps in to prepare them for next year while resting players like Defensive Player of the Year candidate James Cowser among others. Or they could send out the dogs and risk injury and still come out with a share of the title in the end. Those kinds of decisions will be up to coach Ed Lamb to decide for his squad in Cedar City.
Potential Award Winners Need To Shine Bright
The Lumberjacks will need a lot of extra help to get into the FCS playoffs with the automatic bid. It is likely that at least one of the two games outside of NAU’s control doesn’t go in their favor. The best way to still get in and not get the automatic bid is to show dominance over a talented Southern Utah team. Reigning Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week, Case Cookus, must give another stellar performance and lead the way when he gets his chances to throw to potential Big Sky Offensive Player of the Year candidates like Emmanuel Butler and Casey Jahn who have both gathered 1,000 yards this season, the fourth NAU duo to accomplish that feat in the program’s history. With a potential Freshman Player of the Year candidate in Cookus and those two weapons on the offensive side of the ball it is easy to miss that NAU may also bring home the Special Teams Player of the Year with their kicker and punter Ryan Hawkins. Hawkins has shown great ability to both punt and kick this season with an incredible average of 46 yards per punt and a strong 90% field goal percentage though he only has had to kick ten field goals this year thanks to a strong and end zone finding offense. His 52 consecutive makes on PATs this year shows that fact. For NAU they will need each of these young men to show the voters in the FCS that NAU is a squad that cannot be overlooked when choosing who gets into the playoffs this season if the other games don’t play in the favor of the Lumberjacks.
The game will kick off at Cedar City, Utah at 3:00 PM on November 21st.