2021 Football Notebook (Week 4 at Eastern Oregon)

COMING UP: at No. 11 Eastern Oregon, Saturday, 1 p.m. (PT)

COMPLETE WEEKLY MEDIA NOTEBOOK
 
LIVE LINKS: Saturday's game will be carried by the Mountie Sports Network (PPV $7.95) with Trevor Curl and Matt Belote calling the action. Live Stats will be available through the EOU SIDEARM Sports Portal.
 
SPECTATOR PROTOCOLS AT EASTERN OREGON: Fans traveling to La Grande will be subject to spectator guidelines enforced at Eastern Oregon. All spectators must wear a mask (over mouth and nose) at all times (failure to comply will result in removal from the venue); all seating will be general admission, with concessions available inside Community Stadium. Gates will open 90 minutes prior to kickoff, with spectators requested to leave the venue immediately after the contest.
 
77 YEARS OF COYOTE FOOTBALL: The 2021 season marks the 77th year of Coyote football as a collegiate program (C of I competed as an Academy from 1905-16 against high school and local town teams), recording an all-time record of 302-288-28. The Yotes had a football program every season from 1905-77 (minus the 1917 season, due to World War I, and the 1943, 1944 and 1945 seasons due to World War II). The team was disbanded following the 1977 season, with the squad returning to the gridiron in 2014. C of I has logged 4-straight winning seasons, including the record-setting 11-1 campaign in 2019.
 
SUCCESS AT HOME: With Saturday's win over Southern Oregon, the Yotes have posted a 23-13 record at Simplot Stadium since football returned to the College in 2014. Dating back to their first game at the facility in 1964, the Coyotes have an all-time record of 43-49-2 at Simplot Stadium.
 
POSTSEASON APPEARANCES: The 2019 season marked the Yotes third postseason appearance in program history and their first appearance in the NAIA Football Championship Series. In 1948, C of I was selected to participate in the Pear Bowl in Medford, Ore., defeating Southern Oregon, 27-20. In 1953, an unbeaten Northwest Conference champion Coyotes played in the Refrigerator Bowl in Evansville, Ind., losing to Sam Houston State, 14-12. In 2019, the Frontier Conference champs defeated Ottawa (Ariz.), 70-23, in a first-round game in Caldwell, before losing a 14-6 quarterfinal decision to Grand View (Iowa) in Des Moines.
 
BACK TO BACK FRONTIER CHAMPS: The Yotes begin 2021 as 2-time defending Frontier Conference champions, winning the league outright in 2019 and sharing the 2020 crown with Carroll and Eastern Oregon. C of I joined seven other teams – Morningside (Iowa), Grand View (Iowa), Baker (Kan.), Reinhardt (Ga.), Lindsey Wilson (Ky.), Keiser (Fla.) and Dickinson State (N.D.).
 
WELCOME BACK FRONTIER CONFERENCE: The 2021 season welcomes back the entire Frontier Conference to the field – as three teams (Southern Oregon, Montana Western, Montana Tech) opted out of the 2020-21 spring season. The league will play a 10-game modified double round-robin schedule – with C of I, Southern Oregon, Eastern Oregon and Carroll in one pod and MSU-Northern, Rocky Mountain, Montana Tech and Montana Western in the other. Teams will play a home-and-home schedule within the pod, while playing the teams in the opposite pod once.
 
AGAINST THE TOP-25: Saturday's game marks the first game for C of I against an NAIA Top-25 team this season and the 36th match-up against a ranked foe since 2014. The Coyotes are a combined 14-21 against Top-25 teams, including a string of 8-straight wins against ranked teams in the regular-season since September of 2018
 
RIVALRY WITH EASTERN: C of I and Eastern Oregon have met each of the last 18 seasons that the Yotes have fielded a football program, with the Purple and Gold holding a 33-13-1 all-time series lead, including an 8-5 mark since football returned in 2014. The 47 previous meetings between the two rivals ranks No. 4 on C of I's all-time meetings list – as the Coyotes have only played Pacific (52 times), Whitman (51 times) and Willamette (48 times) more.
 
COACH MO WINS #40: With the win over Southern Oregon, head coach Mike Moroski picked up his 40th win with the Yotes - joining Anse Cornell (54 wins from 1916-32) and Clem Parberry (47 wins from 1935-50) in C of I football's 40-win club.
 
C OF I OFFENSE VS. EASTERN DEFENSE: The Coyotes head into Saturday's match-up with the No. 1 offense in the Frontier Conference, averaging 460 yards per game - including 257 yards a game on the ground. They'll meet a Mountie defense that has held opponents to just 116 rushing yards a game and 19 points per game. Both Jack Rice (28-of-54 381 yards 4 INT 3 TD, 93 rush yards) and Ryan Hibbs (17-of-25 256 yards 0 INT 2 TD, 43 rush yards) are expected to see time at quarterback, looking to get the ball to receivers Hunter Juarez (15 rec 264 yards 1 TD), Jack Nadley (10 rec 106 yards) and Isaiah Veal (3 rec 56 yards 1 TD). Running back Nick Calzaretta (63 rush 381 yards 5 TD) leads the league in rushing and has two career 100-yard games vs. EOU. The Eastern defense is paced by Frontier Defensive Player of the Year and first-team All-America defensive end Chase Van Wyck (13 tackles, 2.5 TFL, 2 sacks), with a trio of linebackers - Solo Taylor (29 tackles, 2 TFL, 1.5 sacks), Hayden Brandon (19 tackles) and Zak Donato (19 tackles, 2.5 TFL, 2 sacks) part of a unit that has recorded eight sacks and five interceptions.
 
EASTERN OFFENSE VS. C OF I DEFENSE: Which EOU offense will we see on Saturday - the one that blitzed Montana Tech for 266 rushing yards in the season opener, or the one that has combined for 101 rushing yards against Montana Western and Carroll? The Mountaineers will face the top scoring defense in the league, as C of I has allowed just 16 points per game and has limited teams to under 300 yards of offense per game. Kai Quinn (46-of-78 513 yards 2 INT 5 TD, 101 rush yards) returns for his super-senior year, with EOU returning key receivers in 6-foot-5 Saige Wilkerson (12 rec 115 yards 1 TD) and Tyler Brown (9 rec 144 yards 1 TD). Jordan Eggers (53 rush 227 yards 2 TD) recorded his first career 100-yard game in the season opener and is EOU;'s featured back. Can the Coyotes make an adjustment against Eastern after the Mounties racked up 38 points against them in April? The Coyote linebackers will be the key - as Dylan Martinez (37 tackles, 5 TFL) and Tanner Leaf (12 tackles, 4 TFL) will have to contain the playmaking abilities of Quinn. Safeties Taeson Hardin (27 tackles, 2 INT) and Jacob Batubenga (12 tackles) will have to be active in the run game for the Yotes to be successful.
 
C OF I / EASTERN SPECIALISTS: Coyote kicker Stan Mulderij (2-of-4 PAT, 1-of-1 FG) returned from injury against Southern, converting a 19-yard field goal, but missing a pair of extra points. Cameron Simons (9-of-9 PAT, 2-of-5 FG) handled kickoff duties. Punter Jacob Johnson (31.7 avg) has put four of his 12 punts inside the 20-yard-line. Kick returner Caden Cobb (21.5 avg) averaged over 30 yards per return at EOU this  spring, while Hunter Gilbert (8.5 avg) is the primary punt returner. Eastern kicker Zachary Cahill (8-of-8 PAT, 5-of-5 FG, 46.3 punt avg) has been perfect on the season - including a four field goal game at Montana Tech. He has shared punt duties with Jaiden Machuca (39.9 avg). Isaiah Thomas is EOU;'s top returner, averaging 5.4 yards per punt return and 18.4 yards per kickoff return.
 
LAST SEASON'S GAME: C of I scored three unanswered touchdowns in the fourth quarter, including a pair by the Coyote defense, rallying for a wild 49-38 road victory over No. 20-ranked EOU at Community Stadium. Eastern took a 38-28 lead early in the fourth quarter, but the Yotes cut the margin to 38-35 on a Nick Calzaretta touchdown run. The defense did the rest of the damage – as Jacob Batubenga returned a fumble 42-yards for a go-ahead score and two plays later, Keagan McCoy returned a fumble 17-yards to cap the rally. Ryan Hibbs threw for 266 yards and three touchdowns in the win, with Isaiah Veal catching five passes for 124 yards and two scores.
 
YOTES DOMINATE SOUTHERN: Since C of I returned to the gridiron in 2014, a staple has been big offensive outbursts by the Southern Oregon offense against the Yotes.- as the Raiders surpassed 500 yards of total offense twice and 600 yards of total offense three times. Saturday, the Coyotes flipped the script, clamping down on the No. 1 pass offense in the Frontier Conference – holding SOU 200 yards under their season average, and limiting the Raiders to just 54 rushing yards in the win. C of I did not allow a play from scrimmage longer than 20 yards and no pass play went for more than 16 yards. The three points allowed by the Yotes were the fewest ever in the 18-game series; the three points scored by SOU was their fewest in a game since 2011 and their fewest vs. an NAIA team since 1989, with the 205 yards of total offense their lowest output in 10 years. The 54 rushing yards marked the third-straight time against Southern that C of I has held the Raiders under 100 rushing yards.
 
LEAF MAKES STATEMENT IN FIRST START: Two-sport athlete Tanner Leaf did not compete during the spring season, as he served as the starting left fielder for the Coyote baseball team. Five months later, the Boise native earned a starting linebacker spot against Southern Oregon and made the most of the opportunity – leading the team with 10 tackles, including four tackles for loss and two sacks. The performance earned Leaf ERCK Hotels-Frontier Conference Defensive Player of the Week and NAIA Football National Defensive Player of the Week honors. It marked the first time a C of I player recorded four tackles for loss in a game since Keagan McCoy in 2019 against MSU-Northern and the first 2-sack game since Cade Flint this spring against MSU Northern.
 
NAIA PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Tanner Leaf beomes the seventh C of I player to earn NAIA National Player of the Week, joining three others to earn Defensive Player of the Week honors – Cory Brady (2014), Nate Moore (2016, 2017) and Dylan Martinez (2021). Nick Calzaretta (2017) and Darius-James Peterson (2017, 2018) have earned Offensive Player of the Week honors, while Kyle Mitchell (2019) earned Special Team Player of the Week honors from the NAIA.
 
DEFENSIVE LINE HAS BIG DAY: C of I got a big boost up front on Saturday, as brothers Vince Seth and Ryan Seth made their season debuts – adding to the Coyotes depth on the defensive line. Vince Seth had two tackles and a quarterback hurry and Ryan Seth added a tackle – leading a group of tackles that clogged up the interior line. The work inside allowed the ends to have a big day – both Cole Schmidt and Willie Nelson had three tackles, Keagan McCoy and Alex Ojukwu each added two stops – with McCoy adding two quarterback hurries and Ojukwu a fumble recovery.
 
CORNERS LOCK IT DOWN: Facing the top pass offense in the Frontier Conference and one of the top passing squads in the NAIA, the Yotes secondary was key in stopping the big-play Southern attack. Corners Isaiah Abdul, Dorian Hardin and Bridger Marboe did not allow a pass play longer than 16 yards, while each of the three recorded at least one pass break up – holding SOU to just 151 passing yards. Hardin led the group with seven tackles on the day, while the trio held Raider speed threat, Adrik Lamar, without a catch.
 
HARDIN AND MARTINEZ CONTINUE HUGE SEASON: All-Conference standouts Taeson Hardin and Dylan Martinez had another big afternoon in the win over SOU – helping the Coyote defense record their best effort in program history against the Raiders. Hardin had seven tackles in the victory, adding his sixth career interception, along with two passes defended. Martinez logged his fourth-straight game with at least nine tackles, recording nine stops, two quarterback hurries, while recovering a second quarter fumble. Martinez currently least the Frontier Conference with 37 tackles, while Hardin ranks in the Top-5 in both tackles and interceptions.
 
OFFENSE STARTS STRONG: C of I set the tone early against Southern – as the Coyote offense dominated the time of possession in the first half – bolting to a 23-0 lead with eight minutes left in the second quarter. The Yotes took the opening kickoff and chewed up nearly eight minutes of the clock on a 15-play drive, ending with a short Stan Mulderij field goal. The Coyote defense would force two 3-and-outs and a turnover on SOU's first three possessions – all resulting in C of I touchdowns. The Yote offense ran 40 of the first 50 plays of the game and held the ball for 20 of the first 23 minutes and finished the afternoon with a nearly 2-to-1 edge in time of possession.
 
EFFICIENT IN THE PASS GAME: The Coyotes used three different quarterbacks in Saturday's win – with Jack Rice and Ryan Hibbs sharing the bulk of the time (walk-on Cooper Bailey made his debut on C of I's final drive of the day). The duo combined for one of the top passing games in program history – completing 17-of-22 passes for 229 yards and a touchdown – with no interceptions, ending a streak of seven straight games with at least one pick. The 77-percent completion rate ranked No. 3 for a single-game by the Yotes, outdone only by a 19-of-23 (83-percent) day vs. MSU-Northern in 2017 and a 21-of-27 (78-percent) game vs. Rocky Mountain in 2015. Rice had his best game of the season through the air, completing 8-of-10 passes for 89 yards – including three third down conversions, with Hibbs going 9-of-12 for 140 yards and a fourth quarter touchdown.
 
CALZARETTA TIES RECORD: Running back Nick Calzaretta was a work horse on Saturday, carrying the ball 27 times for 89 yards and two touchdowns. It marked the third time in his career that Calzaretta had 27-or-more carries, joining Steve Douglas as the only C of I players in program history to accomplish the feat three times. It was the 18th time in his Coyote career that Calzaretta has rushed for 80 yards or more (he has 10 100-yard rushing games), while his second quarter touchdown run pushed his career scoring total to 204 points – becoming the fourth C of I player to surpass 200 career points (Darius-James Peterson, Tom Winbigler, Kyle Mitchell).
 
VEAL HAS BREAKOUT GAME: Last season, receiver Isaiah Veal was the go-to target for the Yotes, leading the team with 18 receptions, 300 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Through the first two games, Veal was targeted just once – but things changed quickly against SOU. The fourth-year player caught a pass and added a 13-yard run on C of I's first possession and capped the day with his fifth career touchdown grab, a 44-yard catch. Veal is averaging nearly 18-yards per reception during his career and is 23 receiving yards away from cracking the all-time Top-25 in program history.
 
NO MISTAKES: C of I played a clean game on Saturday, committing no turnovers in the win over SOU – the first time since a 2019 playoff win over Ottawa (Ariz.) that the squad did not turn the ball over. C of I has been opportunistic this season – leading the Frontier Conference with in turnover margin (+6), ahead of both Eastern Oregon (+4) and Carroll (+3) – with the team the long squad in the circuit that has not lost a fumble.
 
BREAKING A THIRD QUARTER HEX: The Coyotes will be looking for more production coming out of halftime – as through three games, C of I has scored just three points combined in the third quarter. The Yotes have a combined three first downs on 11 possessions in the third quarter – converting only a field goal vs. Rocky Mountain (set up by a turnover in the red zone) – with the squad combining for just three yards off offense in the third quarter vs. Southern. On the flip side, the Yotes have outscored their opponents this season, 34-7, in the first quarter and 35-10 in the fourth quarter.
 
THIS DAY IN COYOTE FOOTBALL HISTORY (SEPTEMBER 25): C of I has previously played on Sept. 25 six different times, posting a 3-3 all-time record on the date. The Coyotes won their first three games on the date – defeating Southern Idaho College of Education 27-0 in 1948, thanks to two Glen Ward touchdown runs; topped Mountain Home AFB, 32-7, in 1952, as Ted Martin rushed for three scores; while in 1954, Bob Sloan rushed for a score and connected with Bill Kundrat for another in a 14-7 win at Lewis & Clark. C of I has dropped their last three Sept. 25 games – a 48-7 decision at Idaho state in 1965, where the Yotes were limited to 89 yards of offense; a 23-8 loss at Westminster in 1971, despite a 33-yard touchdown run from Everett Carolina; and a 20-17 road loss at Montana Western in 1976, where a late field goal sunk the Yotes.
 
RECORD BOOK: A total of 12 players find themselves on the career Top-25 record list, including Nick Calzaretta, who ranks No. 3 all-time in rushing attempts (589), rushing yards (2,906), rushing touchdowns (33) and in total touchdowns (34), is No. 4 in points scored (204) and No. 6 in total offense (2,906) and in touchdowns responsible for (34). Hunter Juarez ranks No. 3 in receiving yards (1,814), No. 5 in receiving touchdowns (13), No. 6 in receptions (88), No. 19 in total touchdowns scored (13), No. 23 in points scored (78) and No. 24 in touchdowns responsible for (13); Connor Gagain is No. 16 in receptions (53) and touchdown receptions (5) and No. 21 in receiving yards (527); Ryan Hibbs is No. 10 in touchdown passes (7), No. 13 in passing yards (908) and in pass completions (62), ranking No. 20 in pass attempts (103); Stan Mulderij is No. 6 in field goal made (3) and No. 18 in extra points made; Cameron Simons is for No. 7 in field goals (2) and No. 20 in extra points made (9); with Isaiah Veal No. 16 in touchdown receptions (5) and Jack Rice No. 18 in touchdown passes (3). Defensively, Keagan McCoy ranks No. 2 in sacks (13.5), No. 5 in tackles for loss (21.0) and No. 20 in tackles (92); Isaiah Abdul is No. 13 in interceptions (5) and No. 16 in tackles (106); Taeson Hardin is No. 10 in tackles (127) and in interceptions (6); with Dylan Martinez No. 15 in tackles (107) and No. 22 in interceptions (3).
 
LOOKING AHEAD: Next Saturday, C of I will welcome Carroll College to Simplot Stadium for the annual Homecoming Game, with kickoff set for 1 p.m.  It will mark the first time the Yotes will go head-to-head with Boise State on the gridiron in the Treasure Valley, as the C of I-Carroll game will be taking place at the same time BSU meets Nevada.