Game Preview: Northern Colorado hosts Portland State on Senior Day & Military Appreciation Day

Saturday, November 18

Greeley, Colo.

12 p.m.

University of Northern Colorado

Portland State

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11/16/2023 11:19:00 AM | Football

By: Dennis Driscoll, UNC Associate Athletic Director for Strategic Communications

Portland State at Northern Colorado
Greeley, Colo. / Nottingham Field
Saturday, Nov. 18 | 12 p.m. MST
Live Stream – ESPN +
Press Conference

GREELEY, Colo. – The University of Northern Colorado football team concludes the 2023 season and hosts Portland State on Senior Day and Military Appreciation Day.

Bears and Vikings

This is the 14^th meeting between the two programs, with PSU holding a 9-4 series advantage.

The Vikings have won three in a row in the series, with the two teams last playing in 2022, which was a 35-21 decision.

UNC's last win in the series was in 2016, which was a 56-49 victory in Portland.

The Bear's longest winning streak in the series was three between 2012-2016. UNC and PSU last played in Greeley in 2019, which was a 38-30 setback.

UNC and PSU have played five times in Greeley, with the Vikings holding a 4-1 advantage. When the game is played in Portland, the Vikings hold a 5-3 record.

Senior Day

The UNC football team is honoring its senior class prior to the game.

-Tywonne Harris – Baton Rouge, La., DB
-Tizell Lewis – Aurora, Colo., DB
-Cameron Murray – Aurora, Colo., DB
-Karson Oliver – Tulare, Calif., OL
-Jacob Sirmon – Bothell, Wash., QB
-Jacob Stanton – Thornton, Colo., LB

UNC head football coach Ed Lamb, the coaching staff, support staff, administration, and the UNC community express their sincere appreciation to the senior class.

Strength of Schedule

According to the Massey Index Rankings, the Bears are playing the fourth-hardest schedule in the FCS this season. The Bears have played six ranked opponents this season: Incarnate Word (No. 8/9), Washington State (No. 23 FBS), Weber State (No. 13/14), Sacramento State (No. 4/5), Montana (No. 5/7), and Idaho (No.3/5).

The Bears

Last time out for UNC

The Bears are coming off a 28-7 setback at Northern Arizona.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Shea Kuykendall, filling in for an injured Jacob Sirmon, made the second start of his career. Kuykendall was an efficient 21-for-34 for 177 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Jamarii Robinson finished with seven receptions for 72 yards, while Blake Haggerty added 70 yards and one touchdown reception.
Dustin Johnson finished with a team-high 12 tackles.
Hunter Green added seven punts with an average of 48.3 yards per punt and a long of 61 yards.

A further look at the Bears

A true indicator of the Bear's statistics is compared to familiar opponents in its Big Sky Conference stats: the UNC defense allows an average of 29 points per game, which ranks eighth in the conference. Idaho State (31.3), Portland State (32.0), Eastern Washington (35.7), and Cal Poly (42.4). Furthermore, Sacramento State (28.7), and Weber State (26.6) rank slightly above UNC.
David Afari has rushed for 620 yards on 148 attempts for an average of 4.2 yards per attempt. Afari has scored two touchdowns and averages 62 rushing yards per game.
Despite missing the past two games, Sirmon ranks eighth in the conference with 1355 passing yards.
Haggerty is 16^th in the conference with 455 receiving yards.
Robinson is 20^th in the conference with 394 receiving yards.
Dustin Johnson continues to rack up the tackles and is seventh with 73 overall.
Jordan Knapke, who successfully moved from defensive back to linebacker, has totaled 65 tackles.

The Vikings

Last time out for the Vikings

PSU suffered a 34-10 setback versus Montana.
Dante Chachere finished 12-for-17 for 163 yards and one touchdown.
Jobi Malary rushed for 55 yards.
Jermaine Braddock recorded eight receptions for 142 yards and one touchdown.
McKenna Parker finished with a team-high 15 tackles and 2.0 tackles for loss.

A further look at the Vikings

PSU sports the second-highest-scoring offense in the conference with 34.5 points per game. On the flip side, the Vikings allow an average of 33.6 points per game, which is eighth in the conference.
Jobi Malary ranks fourth in the conference with 653 rushing yards. Malary also has a nose for the endzone and has 12 rushing touchdowns.
Chachere is a true dual-threat quarterback and has 506 rushing yards and seven rushing touchdowns.
Parker is the Vikings leading tackler with 68 overall.

Purchase tickets

Tickets are on sale for the final football game of the season versus Portland State on November 18, and the final two home regular season volleyball matches versus Idaho State on November 16 and Weber State on November 18.

To purchase tickets, visit uncbears.com/tickets or call 970-351-4849. Tickets can also be purchased at the Campus Commons Ticket Office, Monday-Friday between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m.