THE University of Northern Colorado (UNC) football team hosts the Weber State Wildcats for their Latin X Heritage Day Game. Vamos Osos!

Northern Colorado

Coach: Ed Lamb

Record: 0-4 (UNC) 45-47 (SUU)

Championships: 2 Conference Titles (SUU in Big Sky 2015, Great West 2010)

History: Head Coach Lamb produced two eight-win seasons, two conference titles, and two playoff appearances in eight years with Southern Utah. Bears fans hope the vast experiences Lamb has from Southern Utah to San Diego with Jim Harbaugh to BYU can cultivate a winning culture here too.

Offensive Impact Players

Quarterback, Jacob Sirmon, Senior – 6’5″ 230 lbs.

Running Back, David Afari, Junior – 5’10” 202 lbs.

Wide Receiver, Jamarii Robinson, Sophomore– 6’1” 187 lbs.

These players have to rally their perspective positions to make a change for the rest of the season. While the running backs are having unexpected success the other positions need to rally in hopes of diversifying the offense to better leverage scores. Sirmon is trying his best, but pressure gets to him quickly, routes are not getting open early enough, and when the run game becomes stale the pass game gets desperate. Look for David Afari and Darius Stewart to continue being reliable top contributors.

Defensive Impact Players

Defensive Back, Dustin Johnson, Redshirt Junior – 6’1″ 195 lbs.

Linebacker, Tama Tuitele, Reshirt Junior – 6’0″ 248 lbs.

Defensive Back, Tizell Lewis, Senior – 6’0″ 170 lbs.

The Bears defense is a scrappy bunch who have been able to force a couple turnovers, but still let the big plays get past them. Over the top coverage has been a downfall for the Bears as multiple scores on the Bears have come this way. UNC needs to eliminate the non-existent passing game of Weber State so that they can solely focus on the prominent runners.

#13 Weber State

Coach: Mickey Mental

Record: 2-1 (Weber State) 16-2 (Notre Dame College – Ohio, D2)

History: This is Mental’s first year as Weber States head coach as he takes over for Jay Hill’s departure. Mental had success at the Division II level at Notre Dame College with a 16-2 record and two Mountain East Conference Championships.

Offensive Impact Players

Running Back, Damon Bankston, Junior – 5’11” 195 lbs.

Running Back, Kris Jackson, Senior – 5’10” 210 lbs.

Wide Receiver, Jacob Sharp, Junior – 6’1″ 185 lbs.

The stout running back combo have been bruising the competition and are the main event of the competition. The passing game has been lacking success and production. While the Wildcats have a new coach they have reverted to their old ways of run first pass second.

Defensive Impact Players

Linebacker, Winston Reid, Senior – 6’1″ 230 lbs.

Safety, Naseme Colvin, Senior – 6’1″ 205 lbs.

Defensive End, Brayden Wilson, Redshirt Sophomore – 6’5″ 260 lbs.

Captained and led by Winston Reid the Wildcats have a fierce leader who is aggressively tallying up stats. The preseason pick for Big Sky Defensive MVP is the tackles and tackle for a loss leader in the conference. Look for Reid to continue adding stats for his trophy campaign this week with pressure from Brayden Wilson.

Prediction

UNC’s Latin X Heritage Day will likely be the highlight of this game as the Bears will struggle against an FCS 13th ranked Wildcats. Weber State specializes in running, but the Wildcats may change things up after a brutal loss last week 40-0 hosting Montana State. The Bears hope to hurt the Wildcats ranking this week, but anytime the Bears play a ranked team it’s usually lopsided.

Ben: WSU 41, UNC 17

Chris: WSU 28, UNC 7