BLACK HILLS STATE  at  No. 24 Western Colorado   SATURDAY, OCT. 16 // 1 P.M. // GUNNISON, COLO. // MOUNTAINEER BOWL Live Stream / Live Stats / Radio / Game Notes

Black Hills State football is heading to Gunnison, Colo. to face off with No. 24 Western Colorado on Saturday, October 16 at 1 p.m.

The Yellow Jackets (4-2, 2-2 RMAC) look to get back in the win column against the third-place Mountaineers (4-1, 5-1 RMAC), currently ranked 24th nationally.

Last Time Out
Black Hills State football lost a close one against No. 5 ranked Colorado Mines, 41-20 last week.

The Yellow Jackets totaled 278 yards of total offense, including 183 rushing. Matthew Collier led the rushing attack with a touchdown on 125 yards, his fourth game this season with 100+ rushing yards.

Jamin Wurtz and Kielar Harpham each had a receiving touchdown, as Wurtz hauled in five passes for 30 yards, and Harpham four for 24 yards.

Chance Eben was 11 of 25 passing for 95 yards and two touchdowns, while adding 50 yards on the ground on 12 runs.

Western Colorado
The Mountaineers are currently No. 24 in the AFCA DII Coaches' rankings with their 5-1 overall record, and 4-1 in the RMAC to start the season. WCU was picked to finish fifth in the RMAC Preseason Poll.

Series History
This will be the 9th meeting all time between the two programs dating back to their first meeting on Sept. 29, 2012, and the first since Nov. 2, 2019. BHSU is 3-5 all time against the Mountaineers and will be looking for their first win over them since a 27-0 shutout on Oct. 15, 2016 in Gunnison, Colo.

Weather Forecast
According to the 10-day weather forecast, the weather on Saturday, October 16 in Gunnison, Colo. projects clear skies with a high of 57 degrees and a low of 14.

Coverage
Yellow Jacket fans can catch Steve Ammerman on The Eagle Country at 95.9/96.3 FM or live online at MyEagleCountry.com. Ammerman is the voice of the Yellow Jacket Athletics and can be heard for every football and women's/men's basketball game throughout the year.

Homecoming Comeback
BHSU trailed Adams State 24-3 at halftime of their Sept. 25 matchup before winning 51-48 in double overtime. Overcoming the 21-point deficit is the team's largest comeback since a 28-point comeback on Sept. 2, 2017 - also against Adams State. That season, BHSU had three wins in which they came back from down at least 18 points.

Largest Comebacks Since 2012 (Division II Era):
Down 28 points - Sept. 2, 2017 vs. Adams State (W, 47-41 2OT)
Down 21 points - Sept. 25, 2021 vs. Adams State (W, 51-48 2OT)
Down 18 points - Sept. 23, 2017 vs. South Dakota Mines (W, 25-24)
Down 18 points - Sept. 30, 2017 @ N.M. Highlands (W, 50-40)

Off to a Good Start
With their four wins to open the 2021 season, the Yellow Jackets are off to a 4-2 record, their best start since the 2016 season when they started 5-1 and finished 7-4 overall.

First for Breske
Since being hired on as head coach in 2019, Josh Breske had only 2 games under his belt entering the 2021 season. After a wait of nearly two years, Breske earned the first win of his head coaching career on Sept. 2 in a 30-24 victory over Dickinson State.

Breakout Year for Collier
RB Matthew Collier entered this year with only 22 total yards in his collegiate career, all accumulated in 2019. Now in his junior season, he's already scored six touchdowns while accumulating 661 rushing yards. He's run for over 100 yards, four times this season, totaling 174 against Adams State (9/25),  125 against Dickinson State (9/2), 103 at Fort Lewis (10/2), and 125 against Colorado Mines (10/9).

Captains
The Green and Gold Captains for the 2021 season are Jacob Parks, Kielar Harphame, Keyshawn Farmer, Cody Hooker, Clayton Koch, Lathan Stevens, Jarrell Ganaway, Joseph Moraga and Jordan Pace.

Key Returners
Some with the help of the covid year, key returning seniors include WR Kielar Harpham, DL Jarrell Ganaway, OL Joseph Moraga, LB Cody Hooker and K Jacob Parks who holds the school record for longest field goal (53 yards).

Key returning juniors include S Bailey Rosenstrauch, DB Brady Morris, OL Sam Ambrogio and WR Jordan Pace.

Quarterback Chance Eben leads the returning sophomore class along with WR Hasaan Williams and WR Mitch McKibbon, OL Troy Mittelstedter, DL Morgan Tigner and DL Nikolas Arnold.