University of Northern Colorado Athletics
@UNCBEARSFB Release 2017 Fall Camp Schedule
7/26/2017 8:45:00 AM | Football
2017 Preseason Notebook
GREELEY, Colo. – Riding high off back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in over a decade, Northern Colorado Football will get its 2017 campaign underway July 29. In his seventh season with the Bears, Head Coach Earnest Collins Jr. released his 2017 fall camp schedule consisting of an all-freshmen mini-camp, 21 practices and three scrimmages that are open to the public and the media.
Beginning August 22nd, practices will shift to a morning schedule, beginning at 7:30 a.m.
Follow Along With Fall Camp
Twitter:Â @UNCBEARSFBÂ (hashtags: #UNCommon, #BigSkyFB)
Facebook:Â /NorthernColoradoFootball
Instagram:Â UNCBearsFootball
YouTube:Â Northern Colorado Athletics
Quickly
The Northern Colorado Bears open their 124th season of intercollegiate football on Saturday, September 2 at Nottingham Field, squaring off against College of Idaho (NAIA). The game, the first meeting between the two teams will kick off at 2:05 p.m. It will be the third time in the Earnest Collins Jr. era that the team will face an NAIA opponent to open the season. The Bears faced Langston to open the 2013 season and came away with a 31-10 victory and in 2016, they opened with Rocky Mountain College winning 42-28. UNC enters 2017 with a 439-459-23 all-time record (a .488 winning percentage). The Bears have two big games on the schedule during the non-conference season at SEC powerhouse, Florida (Sept. 9) and 2016 PAC 12 South Division Champs, Colorado (Sept. 16). This will be the first ever meeting with the Gators and the first game against the Buffs since the 1934 season. The last time UNC and Colorado played, the Bears won the game 13-7. They are 2-9 against CU all-time. This is the first time since the 2008 season that the team will play two FBS opponents in the same year.
2017 Anniversaries
There are a few notable anniversaries in 2017, starting with the 20th anniversary of UNC's second national championship team (NCAA Division II). One year after winning a national title for the first time in school history, the Northern Colorado football team repeated, winning the 1997 championship as well, and doing it all on the road. The Bears, coached by Joe Glenn, went 13-2 overall and 8-1 in the North Central Conference to win the title outright for the first time in school history. Despite having arguably the toughest Division II league, the Bears had to play all four playoff games away from the friendly confines of Nottingham Field to earn their second-straight title blowing out New Haven in the championship game 51-0. It's the 48th anniversary of UNC's only undefeated team, the 1969 Bears. Under head coach Bob Blasi, UNC finished the season 10-0, including going 8-0 in the RMAC, The Bears finished the season ranked third in the nation and won their first undisputed Rocky Mountain Conference Championship. The team averaged 43.5 points per game, the second highest average in the nation, while holding their opponents to an average of 12 points per contest. Finally, it's the 15th anniversary of the program's last conference title. The 2002 season under Kay Dalton saw the Bears finish with a 12-2 overall record, claiming the regular season NCC title.. The only losses of the season came at the hands of Montana and Grand Valley State, in the NCAA Division II Semifinals. This was also the last season that UNC was at the DII level before making the transition to join the FCS ranks.
Staff Updates
There were two offseason staff personnel moves. Defensive backs coach, Charles Gordon left the team for a position in the NFL. Gordon joined the Denver Broncos staff as a defensive quality control assistant. The former Kansas Jayhawk had been on staff for the past four seasons. Gordon will be working closely with Denver's defensive coordinator, Joe Woods who he has ties with. Woods spent eight seasons in Minnesota as the Vikings' defensive backs coach and coached Gordon during his stint in the NFL. In his absence, Head Coach, Earnest Collins Jr. will take over as the defensive backs coach. The program also promoted Isaac Williams into a full time role as an offensive assistant. Williams spent the past season as the defensive graduate assistant.
Best Offense in FCS Program History
2016 saw the offense thrive under senior backup QB, Kyle Sloter and longtime Offensive Coordinator, Jon Boyer. The team finished with the best offensive production in the program's Division I era, putting up 34.30 points per game, 422.60 yards per game, 4,648 total yards and 161.9 rushing yards per game – all Division I bests. Sloter was a one-year starter for UNC and put up remarkable numbers in his senior year after taking over the starting job in week two of the 2016 season due to an injury. He passed for a Division I school record 29 touchdowns, along with throwing just 10 interceptions. He finished the year with 2,665 yards passing, becoming the first QB to throw for over 2,000 yards since the 2013 season. An All-Big Sky Honorable Mention and a FCS National Player of the Week in week two of the season. Sloter rushed for 203 yards and picked up three rushing touchdowns. Along with the TDs record, he also set UNC's all-time single-game touchdown passes record with six, which he did twice.
Rebuild Up Front
The Bears lost three of their four starting defensive lineman, along with two of their starting linebackers to graduation. There will be a lot of spots up for grabs on defense and the competition begins in August. The only starters returning on defense up front are defensive end, Keifer Morris and linebacker, Noel Reid. UNC brought in three mid-year transfers for the front seven in defensive tackles Tank Terrell and Michael Ihejeto, along with linebacker Henry Stelzner. Along with the three transfers, Northern Colorado returns defensive linemen, Eddie Gonzales, Lane Scott,Khairi Bailey, Chuck Davis-Ezeli and Kadim Phillip from injury... All five have seen playing time throughout their careers. On the backers' side, UNC has gotten solid snaps from returners Nick Johnson, Denzel Hatcher, Luke Nelson, Jacob Bobenmoyer and James Riddle. Linebacker, Isaiah Williams found a permanent home on the defensive line. Williams made the move to defensive end after playing some snaps at the position this past season.
Season Tickets on Sale
Season tickets for the 2017 football season are on sale now and begin as low as $65 for adults. Fans can enjoy five games this season at Nottingham Field beginning Sept. 2 with the opener against College of Idaho at 2:00 p.m. A new incentive for both new and previous season ticket holders is a complimentary ticket to the UNC at Colorado game in Boulder with the purchase of any season ticket package. The Bears will take on the Buffaloes on Sept. 16 at Folsom Field in a 12:00 p.m. kick. UNC is once again offering the Family Pack for just $160, featuring two adult and two child tickets with each additional child ticket for larger families being prorated. That's just $3.20 per ticket for all five home contests. Special pricing for children under 13, senior citizens and UNC faculty/staff, is also available.
Practice Schedule
July, 29, 3:00 PM – Mini Camp Practice #1, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
July, 30, 3:00 PM – Mini Camp Practice #2, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
July, 31, 3:00 PM – Mini Camp Practice #3, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 1, 3:00 PM – Mini Camp Practice #4, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 2, All Players Report
Aug. 3, 3:00 PM – Practice #1, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 4, 3:00 PM – Practice #2, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 5, 3:00 PM – Practice #3, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 6, 3:00 PM – Practice #4, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 7, 3:00 PM – Practice #5, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 8, 9:45AM/3:00 PM – Walk Through #6/Practice #7, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 9, 3:00 PM – Practice #8, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 10, 9:45AM/3:00 PM – Walk Through #9/Practice #10, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 11, 3:00 PM – Practice #11, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 12, 3:00 PM – Scrimmage #1, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 13, No Practice
Aug. 14, 8:55 AM/2:15 PM – Practice #13/Walk Through #14, Butler Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 15, 3:00 PM – Practice #15, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 16, 9:45 AM/3:00 PM – Walk Through #16/Practice #17, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 17, No Practice – Move in Day
Aug. 18, 3:00 PM – Practice #/18, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 19, 7:30 PM –  Bears Bash, Night Scrimmage #2, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 20, No Practice
Aug. 21, Fall Classes Begin, No Practice
Aug. 22, 7:30 AM – Practice #20, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 23, 7:30 AM – Practice #21, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 24, 7:30 AM – Practice #22, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 25, 7:30 AM – Practice #23, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 26, 9:00 AM – Scrimmage #3, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 27, No Practice
Aug. 28, 7:30 AM – Practice #25, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 29, 7:30 AM – Practice #26, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 30, 7:30 AM – Practice #27, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 31, 7:30 AM – Practice #28, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Sept. 1, TBA – Walk-Through at Nottingham Field, CLOSED
Sept. 2, 2:05 PM – vs. College of Idaho, Nottingham Field
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Season tickets, which include five exciting home games and a ticket to the UNC road game at the University of Colorado, are on sale now for as low as $65 each for adults. UNC is once again offering the Family Pack for just $160, featuring two adult and two child tickets with each additional child ticket for larger families being prorated. Individuals and companies wishing to support the Bears and the Northern Colorado community can also purchase Send-A-Bear tickets for just $25 each with those tickets being donated to area youth and non-profit groups. Single game group tickets are also available at just $7 per ticket when purchasing of 10 or more. For more information on any UNC football ticket opportunities, please call the UNC Ticket Office at 970-351-4849 or click here.
GREELEY, Colo. – Riding high off back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in over a decade, Northern Colorado Football will get its 2017 campaign underway July 29. In his seventh season with the Bears, Head Coach Earnest Collins Jr. released his 2017 fall camp schedule consisting of an all-freshmen mini-camp, 21 practices and three scrimmages that are open to the public and the media.
Beginning August 22nd, practices will shift to a morning schedule, beginning at 7:30 a.m.
Follow Along With Fall Camp
Twitter:Â @UNCBEARSFBÂ (hashtags: #UNCommon, #BigSkyFB)
Facebook:Â /NorthernColoradoFootball
Instagram:Â UNCBearsFootball
YouTube:Â Northern Colorado Athletics
Quickly
The Northern Colorado Bears open their 124th season of intercollegiate football on Saturday, September 2 at Nottingham Field, squaring off against College of Idaho (NAIA). The game, the first meeting between the two teams will kick off at 2:05 p.m. It will be the third time in the Earnest Collins Jr. era that the team will face an NAIA opponent to open the season. The Bears faced Langston to open the 2013 season and came away with a 31-10 victory and in 2016, they opened with Rocky Mountain College winning 42-28. UNC enters 2017 with a 439-459-23 all-time record (a .488 winning percentage). The Bears have two big games on the schedule during the non-conference season at SEC powerhouse, Florida (Sept. 9) and 2016 PAC 12 South Division Champs, Colorado (Sept. 16). This will be the first ever meeting with the Gators and the first game against the Buffs since the 1934 season. The last time UNC and Colorado played, the Bears won the game 13-7. They are 2-9 against CU all-time. This is the first time since the 2008 season that the team will play two FBS opponents in the same year.
2017 Anniversaries
There are a few notable anniversaries in 2017, starting with the 20th anniversary of UNC's second national championship team (NCAA Division II). One year after winning a national title for the first time in school history, the Northern Colorado football team repeated, winning the 1997 championship as well, and doing it all on the road. The Bears, coached by Joe Glenn, went 13-2 overall and 8-1 in the North Central Conference to win the title outright for the first time in school history. Despite having arguably the toughest Division II league, the Bears had to play all four playoff games away from the friendly confines of Nottingham Field to earn their second-straight title blowing out New Haven in the championship game 51-0. It's the 48th anniversary of UNC's only undefeated team, the 1969 Bears. Under head coach Bob Blasi, UNC finished the season 10-0, including going 8-0 in the RMAC, The Bears finished the season ranked third in the nation and won their first undisputed Rocky Mountain Conference Championship. The team averaged 43.5 points per game, the second highest average in the nation, while holding their opponents to an average of 12 points per contest. Finally, it's the 15th anniversary of the program's last conference title. The 2002 season under Kay Dalton saw the Bears finish with a 12-2 overall record, claiming the regular season NCC title.. The only losses of the season came at the hands of Montana and Grand Valley State, in the NCAA Division II Semifinals. This was also the last season that UNC was at the DII level before making the transition to join the FCS ranks.
Staff Updates
There were two offseason staff personnel moves. Defensive backs coach, Charles Gordon left the team for a position in the NFL. Gordon joined the Denver Broncos staff as a defensive quality control assistant. The former Kansas Jayhawk had been on staff for the past four seasons. Gordon will be working closely with Denver's defensive coordinator, Joe Woods who he has ties with. Woods spent eight seasons in Minnesota as the Vikings' defensive backs coach and coached Gordon during his stint in the NFL. In his absence, Head Coach, Earnest Collins Jr. will take over as the defensive backs coach. The program also promoted Isaac Williams into a full time role as an offensive assistant. Williams spent the past season as the defensive graduate assistant.
Best Offense in FCS Program History
2016 saw the offense thrive under senior backup QB, Kyle Sloter and longtime Offensive Coordinator, Jon Boyer. The team finished with the best offensive production in the program's Division I era, putting up 34.30 points per game, 422.60 yards per game, 4,648 total yards and 161.9 rushing yards per game – all Division I bests. Sloter was a one-year starter for UNC and put up remarkable numbers in his senior year after taking over the starting job in week two of the 2016 season due to an injury. He passed for a Division I school record 29 touchdowns, along with throwing just 10 interceptions. He finished the year with 2,665 yards passing, becoming the first QB to throw for over 2,000 yards since the 2013 season. An All-Big Sky Honorable Mention and a FCS National Player of the Week in week two of the season. Sloter rushed for 203 yards and picked up three rushing touchdowns. Along with the TDs record, he also set UNC's all-time single-game touchdown passes record with six, which he did twice.
Rebuild Up Front
The Bears lost three of their four starting defensive lineman, along with two of their starting linebackers to graduation. There will be a lot of spots up for grabs on defense and the competition begins in August. The only starters returning on defense up front are defensive end, Keifer Morris and linebacker, Noel Reid. UNC brought in three mid-year transfers for the front seven in defensive tackles Tank Terrell and Michael Ihejeto, along with linebacker Henry Stelzner. Along with the three transfers, Northern Colorado returns defensive linemen, Eddie Gonzales, Lane Scott,Khairi Bailey, Chuck Davis-Ezeli and Kadim Phillip from injury... All five have seen playing time throughout their careers. On the backers' side, UNC has gotten solid snaps from returners Nick Johnson, Denzel Hatcher, Luke Nelson, Jacob Bobenmoyer and James Riddle. Linebacker, Isaiah Williams found a permanent home on the defensive line. Williams made the move to defensive end after playing some snaps at the position this past season.
Season Tickets on Sale
Season tickets for the 2017 football season are on sale now and begin as low as $65 for adults. Fans can enjoy five games this season at Nottingham Field beginning Sept. 2 with the opener against College of Idaho at 2:00 p.m. A new incentive for both new and previous season ticket holders is a complimentary ticket to the UNC at Colorado game in Boulder with the purchase of any season ticket package. The Bears will take on the Buffaloes on Sept. 16 at Folsom Field in a 12:00 p.m. kick. UNC is once again offering the Family Pack for just $160, featuring two adult and two child tickets with each additional child ticket for larger families being prorated. That's just $3.20 per ticket for all five home contests. Special pricing for children under 13, senior citizens and UNC faculty/staff, is also available.
Practice Schedule
July, 29, 3:00 PM – Mini Camp Practice #1, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
July, 30, 3:00 PM – Mini Camp Practice #2, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
July, 31, 3:00 PM – Mini Camp Practice #3, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 1, 3:00 PM – Mini Camp Practice #4, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 2, All Players Report
Aug. 3, 3:00 PM – Practice #1, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 4, 3:00 PM – Practice #2, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 5, 3:00 PM – Practice #3, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 6, 3:00 PM – Practice #4, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 7, 3:00 PM – Practice #5, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 8, 9:45AM/3:00 PM – Walk Through #6/Practice #7, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 9, 3:00 PM – Practice #8, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 10, 9:45AM/3:00 PM – Walk Through #9/Practice #10, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 11, 3:00 PM – Practice #11, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 12, 3:00 PM – Scrimmage #1, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 13, No Practice
Aug. 14, 8:55 AM/2:15 PM – Practice #13/Walk Through #14, Butler Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 15, 3:00 PM – Practice #15, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 16, 9:45 AM/3:00 PM – Walk Through #16/Practice #17, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 17, No Practice – Move in Day
Aug. 18, 3:00 PM – Practice #/18, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 19, 7:30 PM –  Bears Bash, Night Scrimmage #2, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 20, No Practice
Aug. 21, Fall Classes Begin, No Practice
Aug. 22, 7:30 AM – Practice #20, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 23, 7:30 AM – Practice #21, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 24, 7:30 AM – Practice #22, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 25, 7:30 AM – Practice #23, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 26, 9:00 AM – Scrimmage #3, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 27, No Practice
Aug. 28, 7:30 AM – Practice #25, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 29, 7:30 AM – Practice #26, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 30, 7:30 AM – Practice #27, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Aug. 31, 7:30 AM – Practice #28, Butler-Hancock Practice Fields, Open to Public/Media
Sept. 1, TBA – Walk-Through at Nottingham Field, CLOSED
Sept. 2, 2:05 PM – vs. College of Idaho, Nottingham Field
Â
Season tickets, which include five exciting home games and a ticket to the UNC road game at the University of Colorado, are on sale now for as low as $65 each for adults. UNC is once again offering the Family Pack for just $160, featuring two adult and two child tickets with each additional child ticket for larger families being prorated. Individuals and companies wishing to support the Bears and the Northern Colorado community can also purchase Send-A-Bear tickets for just $25 each with those tickets being donated to area youth and non-profit groups. Single game group tickets are also available at just $7 per ticket when purchasing of 10 or more. For more information on any UNC football ticket opportunities, please call the UNC Ticket Office at 970-351-4849 or click here.
Players Mentioned
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/ FootballTuesday, December 23
Tuesday, December 23
Tuesday, December 23
Tuesday, December 23
