The biggest surprise in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference through two weeks is the play of the Adams State Grizzlies. If Fort Lewis College’s football team wants to retain the musket, they’ll have to shoot down the air attack of the Grizzlies on Saturday.
Fort Lewis and Adams State will meet at noon Saturday in the 52nd Musket Game. The traveling trophy, a .45-70 military issue rifle donated in 1966 by Maholn “Butch” White, has remained in Durango the last two seasons with the Skyhawks claiming victory against the RMAC rival Grizzlies. FLC has won the musket only 16 times in 51 years but has won it three of the last four years.
“Any time you play the musket game, it’s a huge game,” said FLC head coach Joe Morris after last week’s 17-13 win at Black Hills State. “I look forward to seeing our seniors fight their tails off to get a chance to go shoot that deal. That game, there’s never a problem getting everyone fired up for.”
This year may be a different challenge for the Skyhawks than in recent years, as the Grizzlies enter with the nation’s third-leading offensive attack in NCAA Division II football.
Adams State (1-1, 1-1 RMAC) has the top-scoring offense in the conference at 46 points per game. Though FLC (1-1, 1-1) has averaged only 18 points per game, it boasts the No. 4 scoring defense, having allowed only 19 points per game to opponents.
FLC’s defense has been dominant against the run, but it will have to slow down RMAC Offensive Player of the Week Nick Rooney and the Grizzlies’ passing attack this week. Rooney passed for 506 yards on an incredible 37-of-46 passing last week. He passed for five touchdowns in the win against Western State, with the Colorado Cup on the line in that game.
Rooney has a solid target in wide receiver Marquese Surrel, who has averaged 134.5 yards per game with three touchdowns this season. His 13 receptions last week tied a school record for receptions in a game, and his 209 receiving yards was third all-time in Adams State history. FLC also will have to stop Chad Hovasse, who had three touchdown catches last week. Adams State running back Corey Brown has been tough, too. He has averaged 128 yards per game on the ground.
FLC’s defense finds itself in some national rankings, too. The Skyhawks are seventh in the nation in third-down defense and boasts the 39th-best red zone defense. FLC has returned two interceptions for touchdowns this year, with a Dre Cortez score in the opening-week loss to Chadron State and a game-winning interception returned for a TD by Donell Pleasant III in the fourth quarter of last week’s game in South Dakota. FLC leads the conference with four interceptions.
The Skyhawks’ run defense also has been strong, allowing only 133 yards per game on the ground.
It’s the offense of the Skyhawks that has sputtered to start the season behind a rebuilt offensive line. Junior quarterback Bo Coleman hasn’t had much time to throw, and dropped passes and penalties also have cost the Skyhawks. The running game hasn’t got much going, either, though FLC runs for more yards per game (171) than it passes for (66.5). FLC’s passing yards per game are easily last in the RMAC by nearly 100 yards per game.
If the Skyhawks are to retain the musket and give the seniors the right to shoot the gun after the game, the offense will have to keep up with Adams State on Saturday.
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
If you go
Who: Adams State at Fort Lewis
What: Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference football
When: Noon Saturday
Where: Ray Dennison Memorial Field, FLC campus
Listen Live: KIUP 930 AM, 97.3, 106.3 FM
Twitter: @jlivi2
