Setting the Stage: Looking for its first eight-win season since 2008, the Black Hills State football team's final game of the season will involve beating a team they have never defeated, Colorado Mines. The Yellow Jackets carry the momentum of a 21-19 victory over Chadron State last week, the first victory against the region rival since 1986. The defense forced six turnovers in the game, including five interceptions to push the Yellow Jackets, who have 25 interceptions, on the brink of an RMAC record for team interceptions in a season at 26. Drew Hebel enters the game with the nation's lead with nine interceptions. Offensively, Phydell Paris has set three rushing records: single game, single season and career. Paris eclipsed the single season and career marks last week.
 
Last Meeting: Colorado Mines prevailed 62-22 last season after falling behind 27-3. The Yellow Jackets attempted a comeback late in the second quarter for a 27-16 score by the then No. 11 team in the nation pulled away behind 396 yards passing from Justin Dvorak. Ryan Hommel completed 20 passes for 34 yards and two touchdowns for the Yellow Jackets while Phydell Paris tallied 132 yards and a touchdown on the ground. He held an average of 8.3 yards per carry in the game.
 
About Colorado Mines: Colorado Mines rejoined the top-25 after defeating Adams State 42-7 last week. This week, the Orediggers look to share the RMAC Championship with Colorado Mesa and possibly CSU-Pueblo. CSM can achieve this with a victory. Against ASU, the RMAC's all-time leading passer Justin Dvorak threw for 336 yards and four touchdowns while Sam Seeton rushed for 102 yards. For the season, Dvorak has totaled 3,753 yards through the air with 43 touchdowns. Defensively, Chris Brockman leads the team with 71 tackles, including 10 for a loss. CSM has NCAA Division II's most potent offense, ranking No. 1 with 559.1 yards per game while Dvorak leads the nation in virtually every passing category.
 
Series History: The series only dates back to 2012 and four meetings, all won by Colorado Mines
 
Coverage: Yellow Jacket fans can catch Steve Ammerman on the call on The Eagle, 95.9/96.3 FM, or live online at MyEagleCountry.com. Ammerman is the voice of Yellow Jacket Athletics and can be heard on every football and men's/women's basketball game throughout the season.
 
Temperature: The five-day outlook shows sunny skies and a high of 69 degrees.

GENERAL NOTEBOOK
 
Looking for an Eighth Win: The Yellow Jackets are in uncharted territory over the last decade at seven wins, which happened in 2007. The last time the Green and Gold had eight marked in the win column was 2006 when BHSU tallied an 8-3 record, won the Dakota Athletic Conference and went to the NAIA Playoffs before falling to Northwestern (Iowa).
 
30 Years in the Making: Black Hills State claimed a 21-19 victory against Chadron State last weekend, the first win against the region rival since 1986. That dates back 15 meetings and when current Director of Athletics Jhett Albers was an Academic All-American for the Yellow Jacket football team.
 
Rushing Record as a Junior: Phydell Paris enters the 2016 finale as the Yellow Jackets all-time leading rusher for the first time. He has tallied 2,921 yards over his nearly three seasons of action and passed Jeff Englund against Chadron State for the personal accolade. Englund held the title at 2,835 yards after competing for the Green and Gold from 1988-1991. In the same game for Paris, he also set the single-season rushing mark, as he has 1,178 yards this year. He passed Tanner Ehrlich, who held the mark of 1,163 yards in 2008.
 
Hebel Tops the Nation: Drew Hebel leads the nation with his nine interceptions over ten games, an average of 0.9 interceptions per game. The sophomore has tied the school record for interceptions in a season and owns a pair of games where he has intercepted two passes. He also ranks highly in the nation with 1.6 passes defended per game, a number that leads the RMAC.
 
Interceptions by the Bundle: With five interceptions against Chadron State, the Yellow Jackets moved from second to first in the nation in total interceptions at 25. That number is the top interception mark in all of NCAA football across FCS, FBS, Division II and Division III.  The Yellow Jackets have three games with four interceptions or more and own all three occurrences in the RMAC this year. The Green and Gold can tie the RMAC record for interceptions in a season with one more, or break it with two pickoffs against Colorado Mines.
 
Turnovers Gained: Coach Reiners has stated that one of the goals each game is to win the turnover battle and the Yellow Jackets have done just that and lead the nation with 32 turnovers gained. They also rank sixth in NCAA Division II with a 1.4 turnover margin.