GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — Defense ruled the day in Colorado Mesa's 18-3 RMAC victory over Chadron State on a sun-drenched Saturday (Sept. 28) at Stocker Stadium.
Liu Aumavae earned his first collegiate victory as a starting quarterback, Aiden Taylor had the first 100-yard rushing game of his college career, and the offense showed more balance, but it was the defense that stood out.
Jason Thome's 55-yard pick-6 put the Mavericks (2-2, 1-1 RMAC) up three touchdowns, and just for good measure, he picked off another, the eighth of the sophomore safety's career, on the final play of the game.
Mesa's run defense stuffed Chadron State (1-3, 0-2) at the point of attack all day, allowing only 48 rushing yards, and by getting constant pressure on both of the Eagles' quarterbacks, gave up only 75 passing yards.
Graduate student DJ Ralph, injured in the Eagles' season opener, got the start, but completed only 3 of 9 passes for 19 yards. Freshman Wyatt Sprague completed 7 of 15 passes for 56 yards in the second half, but Chadron State never sustained much of a drive.
In the fourth quarter, the Eagles elected to try a 57-yard field goal, and Wilson Yee split the uprights, capping the longest drive to that point, 40 yards. They had a 45-yard drive after that, but Colin Stuhr snuffed it out with an interception.
Colorado Mesa's defense forced punts on Chadron State's first seven possessions. Interceptions stopped three more, and Charlie Smith broke through and chased Sprague out of bounds for a 7-yard loss on a 4th-and-2 to end the third quarter.
Smith and Liban Shongolo each had nine tackles, with Kash Bradley and Levi Krebs adding five apiece and Thome and George Soppe four each. Chadron State managed only eight first downs against CMU's defense.
"We knew that we were going to have to be pretty close to a goose egg (defensively) for us to have success today," CMU head coach Miles Kochevar said. "And the defense was able to do that. I probably owe them one for the field goal there. They probably had a shutout there for the first one of the season, but so proud of those guys.
"(We) took advantage of some opportunities where we forced them to have to try to pass, which we knew they were struggling with right now."
As they've done all season, the Mavericks rotated the running backs, and Taylor served as a battering ram, averaging 5.0 yards per carry. He kept his legs driving even after contact and finished with 116 yards on 23 carries. Brandon Belgrave added 29 yards and one touchdown on 12 carries.
Aumavae, making his second straight start at quarterback, seemed more comfortable and confident running the offense. The sophomore transfer from San Diego State completed 16 of 24 passes for 126 yards. His longest completion was 14 yards, but the short, controlled passes mixed with power running kept the Eagles guessing.
"It's been a long time since he's played complete games, coming out of high school and winning the (Utah) state championship, but a couple of years of sitting and not playing week in and week out, it takes awhile to adjust back to game speed," Kochevar said of Aumavae. "Can I keep my composure, do those things that make the offense operate? Just being able to see it and feel it, so I was proud of him and the progress that he made. It also helps when you have success running the ball and you're not coming from a negative situation. We're putting ourselves in third and short, so you're going to see much more efficient football, and that's what we're striving for each series."
A wide receiver ran in the first touchdown of the game. Redshirt freshman Noah Greer came around on a jet sweep for a 13-yard score, his first career touchdown, on the second play of the second quarter, and CMU led 6-0 at halftime in a game resembling more of a Big Ten game than the high-scoring RMAC.
Taking the second-half kickoff, the Mavericks embarked on one of their best drives of the season so far, relying on the legs of Taylor, who pounded out 28 yards between the tackles on five carries.
CMU got some help on fourth down at Chadron State's 28 after electing to go for it. Chadron's outstanding defensive end Hunter O'Connor jumped offside, giving the Mavs a first down. Mixing the run and short passes, CMU moved the ball to the 9, where Brandon Belgrave ran it in off the left side, dragging a couple of defenders with him the final two yards.
Sullivan Moon had his PAT kick blocked after each of the first two touchdowns, and hit the upright after Thome snared Sprague's pass and raced untouched for an 18-0 lead late in the third quarter. Moon also missed a field goal wide left, but CMU's defense just kept turning the Eagles away.
Although Colorado Mesa's offense didn't pile up big numbers — 148 yards rushing and 126 passing — the difference was that the Mavericks didn't hurt themselves with turnovers and untimely penalties.
"As you go, we know kind of when they're going to present holes and opportunities, and we've got to be able to stay the course," Kochevar said of the Mavs' offense. "We've got to continue to have that consistent run game. When we can do that, now we can play-action, we can start to stretch the field vertically, get them sucked down there a little bit and it opens it up. ...
"The short and underneath passing game can become explosive plays. The receivers did a good job of putting a body on a guy in an area, but then we're looking to score. I thought our mindset was more there this week than it had been."
